Sandler

The 2014 Sandler Client Summit was another huge success, especially on social media. Attendees were quick to post insights learned from the speakers, share photos, retweet, favorite, "like" and expand their current list of LinkedIn connections through new contacts made at the #SandlerSummit. 

Today I asked a group of salespeople to share something that they wished they'd said to a prospect when they had the chance. I explained they were in a 'safe environment' so it was okay to be honest. The comments were interesting. And when I say interesting, I mean somewhat reserved, restrained and polite.

Going against the grain, Sandler Training switched up the agenda from previous years and started Day 2 with separate breakout sessions for clients and trainers. And despite the packed agenda from Day 1 and continued fun out on the town, the energy was palpable early Friday morning.

Eager to learn and ready to network, clients and trainers attending the 2014 Sandler Summit were blown away by the sales training insights, tips, stats and best practices shared throughout the sessions. Read to see a few of our favorite moments... 

Dave kicked off the Sandler Summit, bright and early, to an eager crowd waiting to hear what's in store for Sandler this year, ranging from enhanced sales training programs to book launches. He quizzed the group on sales statistics, shared tips to improve behaviors, told stories about how his attitudes about motivation were formed and then focused on techniques and tactics. Here are a few highlights from Sandler's top leader's opening remarks: •Three things you need to do today to become a "Behaviorist": clarity, frequency and consistency

Sandler Training spends more than 92,000 hours per year training companies and individuals how to strengthen sales, leadership and management skills.

"A person's burning desire to achieve something must come from within." You've set lofty goals for 2014 but have you also built the plan to achieve them? Often we fall into the trap of setting goals without 'building a plan' to achieve them. If you decide to make one change this year – 'build the plan and then implement it'

This is the time of year that a lot of people start talking about setting goals. In reality, goal-setting and goal evaluation should be an ongoing process, a process that takes place all year long. But it is true that the end of one year and the beginning of another offers a good opportunity for salespeople to take stock, evaluate what has just happened over the past twelve months, and start planning for what needs to happen next. There's more to goal-setting than just accepting quotas!

You're meeting with a prospect. You've asked all the appropriate questions to uncover the prospect's problem, concerns, desires, goals, and expectations. After fully analyzing the situation, you announce with no hesitation whatsoever, "No problem. I have exactly what you need." Does the prospect gasp a sigh of relief, utter under his breath, "Thank goodness," and pull a purchase order from the drawer? Perhaps in Grimm's version of the story, but not in the real world. Why

I often get asked by prospects and clients to give them the secret ingredient that will help them get motivated or how to motivate their sales teams. I hear comments like, "Most of us know what we need to do, why don't we just do it?" I chuckle when I hear this because we all know that the only person who can motivate us to do something is ourselves. It's like going to the gym: friends and family can encourage and suggest that we go, however the ultimate decision lies with the individual.