The True Sales Podcast: Selling with Honesty, Consistency & Confidence

Many people are reluctant sellers. Even seasoned salespeople sometimes feel uncomfortable sharing their strengths with potential clients , never mind the occasional salesperson who really doesn't like to shout from the rooftops about what they do!  If you find yourself a bit tongue-tied pitching yourself at networking events, in meetings or over the phone, this episode will help you. If you&a...

Closing is not - as often claimed - the secret to sales success . But it does matter. It's not the secret because you don't rescue a bad sales conversation with a great close. But it matters because you can have a good sales conversation and waste it by closing badly. This is not only the most common closing mistake in telesales but also the most frustrating. All the hard work has been d...

There are many different ways to sell - it's one of the best things about sales though it also creates some problems in training sales teams. In this short solo episode, host Paul Owen shares his thoughts on the balance between methodology, delivery and learner participation. Is one sales methodology the clear winner? Or is the answer to consistent sales success something else entirely?  Enjo...

Education is broken. It has been for years. That broken model is often replicated in the training world, for sales and others. This leads to unproductive training programmes, a lack of positive change and a growing disenchantment with learning . This is a problem we need to fix . This is a problem we can fix. Join host Paul Owen in this solo episode as he makes clear the problems of the broken mod...

Can you make yourself more likeable? And, if you can, does it matter in sales?… In this solo episode, host Paul Owen answers both questions based around the many years of research into likeability done by social scientists. If you think that likeability either happens or doesn’t, think again. You’re about to find out that there are 5 factors that foster likeability. And each of them is under your...

One of the happiest, most successful remote sales teams we have ever seen is run by Sian Burton, Commercial Director of Kyero , the leading international property portal. Join host Paul Owen as he spends an engaging half hour with Sian to find out her sales management secrets. With teams based across 5 countries and speaking many languages, the challenges of recruitment, onboarding, training, mana...

When we ask people the Number 1 benefit of great sales questioning, few people get the answer right. Yes, of course, we ask questions of a potential client to understand their needs and work out if we can help. But there is a lot more to it. In this short solo episode, host Paul Owen shares the one benefit that is the most powerful and the most overlooked in the world of sales.  Of course, we make...

A large percentage of many sales teams are underperforming. Not only now but on an ongoing basis. Why is that the case? Why do we accept this? What are we doing to address this consistent sales under-performance? Our guest Richard Washington, Founder and MD of Tick Talent, built a large and successful tech sales operation himself several years ago and now helps scaling tech teams to find the top s...

In many markets, it's tough right now. Stop worrying about it. Stop complaining . And take action. The danger, in more challenging times, is that we pause to analyse and stay in analysis phase for too long. Understanding the data and making plans are both important, of course, but it has to lead to action. So what actions will help you . In this short solo episode, host Paul Owen shares 3 sim...

So many of us hate networking . Even amongst those that don't mind networking, many do it badly. There is one major reason why this is either the least favourite or the worst delivered business generation platform: WE MISUNDERSTAND NETWORKING . In this solo episode, your host Paul Owen will share the networking mistakes he made over many years. He will also challenge you to think again about...

What is the worst answer in sales ? And why is it the worst answer? In this short solo episode, host Paul Owen shares his thoughts on these questions. We all think we know the worst answer in sales but, in many cases, we're wrong.   Tune in to hear:  The 4 reasons why 'The Worst Answer' will kill your sales success The better answer you should seek instead (yes, we all know, is the...

It's not what you know that makes you successful. It's what you do. There's a huge misunderstanding about knowledge vs action . "Knowledge is power" the cliche tells us. No, it's not. The implementation of knowledge is power. This is hugely overlooked in the world of sales and many others. Including medicine.  The world of surgery had an opportunity to transform itsel...

One of the most critical support services to provide to your sales teams is dedicated sales coaching . You can hire an external expert but, with the right process and expertise, you can do much of it in-house too. Too many people work in sales without individual coaching and we want to encourage companies all over the world to change this. One of the reasons coaching is not provided is that sales...

New ideas for selling better come in many different forms . Yes, sales books can be helpful but, often, the best ideas come from other fields of study. In this solo episode, host Paul Owen shares 5 of his favourite non-sales books that have given him sales inspiration. There are 2 books by doctors and 1 by a table tennis champion so you can be assured of variety. Tune in to hear a short overview o...

For many of us, our first impressions of sales are negative and we quickly build a belief that sales is bad and salespeople do bad things. But what if that's wrong? What if your first interaction with sales was filled with love and that informed how you viewed it from that day on? Meet the man whose first sales job - knocking on neighbours' doors selling chocolate to raise money for a sc...

There are many KPIs that are measured in sales but which ones are the most important? And is there one that beats all others to give you the best indicator of success? This week's guest Colin Mitchell is a Founder with 3 successful exits who believes 1 sales KPI is head and shoulders above the rest and it's the one we should all track carefully. A fascinating character with a successful...

Can you tell a short, captivating and impactful story about your business that engages an audience and moves them to action? Would you like to be able to do so? Whether we're talking about our businesses, our community projects or our life goals, it can be easy to get stuck in well-intentioned but misdirected ideals, meaningless detail and unconvincing sales pitches. But when we can step in f...

Sales is the most important function in any business and one of the most critical skills in life (yes, really).  Yet, still, salespeople are too often overlooked as the diligent revenue-driving workers we are. No business survives without revenue and no revenue is generated without sales (ok, sometimes marketing too!). Join Paul Owen in this short solo episode to hear a celebration of sales as one...

What can a door handle teach us about sales? There is a glaring omission in the sales habits of many of us in sales and the way a door opens (or doesn't) gives us an unusual reminder of the importance of NOT omitting it. Join Paul Owen in this short solo episode to hear about the lesson of 'stimulus / response compatibility', whether that's opening or door or guiding a potentia...

All salespeople from cold outbound callers to account executives carry a quota and some of that is likely to be self-sourcing. All too often, a self-sourcing opportunity at our very fingertips is missed .  Our contact at a client leaves and we quickly try to find a new contact there to keep the business but how often are we proactively following up that contact in their new job? What if we're...

In almost every other example of success in life, we see that people practise to become great: sport; music; drama and medicine. So, why is it that salespeople remain reluctant to practise their art?  There are 3 fundamental mistakes made in implementing a regime of sales practice . One around belief in its applicability; one around its relevance to real world problems; and one, incredibly, around...

Building successful partnerships for your business can not only increase your revenue and profit but it can also help your customers . In fact, the most successful ones start with how to help your customers, not how to increase your revenues, according to our guest this week.  Barrett King, Senior Manager within the Global GTM Strategy Team at Hubspot, has over 10 years' experience of buildin...

Sometimes it’s our job in sales to say ‘No’ to business because not every deal on the table is worth taking. Just because someone is offering to pay you money for your product or service, it doesn’t mean it’s worth taking.  When should you say no to business, turning down potential revenue? Why does it make more sense to do this? And how can you do it without losing a relationship with the company...

Many people start selling by copying someone else's style of selling but find that it doesn't suit them . They struggle to connect with potential clients, find it hard to sell well and, all too often, give up on sales and think they're not suited to it. This is bad for career development options but could be terminal if you're running your own business and need to sell to keep...

How can you overcome the fear of rejection on outbound sales calls ? 2 simple tips will help you and, in just 8 minutes, we'll share them with you in this episode.  For many people, the relative comfort of sending emails takes them away from the fear of making outbound calls. If that works, great. If it doesn't, it's probably not your email text that's not working; it's th...