About a week ago, you got out of a sales call and it was the best sales call you ever had in your life. The chemistry, the bonding was so fantastic. You didn't walk out, you floated out... .... and then you couldn't get them back on the phone and you wondered what the heck happened?... Selling is conversations and there are two kinds of conversations, safe and serious... .... In a safe conversation you're never going to get a stick of business. The prospect is in that conversation for a different reason than you are... ...In a serious conversation by contrast, the prospect has a compelling need and they're willing to discuss it with you but serious doesn't mean you're closed, serious just means you open. The biggest reason salespeople fail is the inability to transcend the gulf between social and business values....social values teach us that best efforts are okay... ...if you use your best efforts, you will fail a hundred percent of the time. ...The owner of a company calls all the employees together on a Friday afternoon and says, "The salesforce gave it their very best efforts but they didn't bring in enough business. We're not getting paid this week or for the next month but if we all put our shoulders to the grindstone, I think I'll be able to pay you in a month or so." We know that's a non starter...The owner of a business cannot work on a best efforts basis. It's do or die. The sales team also has to be on a do-or-die basis. Andy Gole Seminars Sales Leadership The Crisis in Sales Leadership Do or Die vs. Best Efforts Rocky, Freud, Darwin & Selling Crisis in Creating New Sales Relationships Heroic Selling Do you want me to sell or fill out paperwork? The Leads Are Terrible How Buyers Buy & What To Do About It