Introduction to Sales
Articles
People Buy from People They Like?
”People buy from people they like.” It’s a sales adage that has been widely debated and dissected over the years. Some experts dismiss ...
Do You Have a Deal — or “Happy Ears”?
We’ve all been there: a prospect seems super interested, nodding along as you talk, and you start imagining your commission check. But ...
How to Be a Better Salesperson
Whether you’re new to sales or have been in the industry for years, there’s always room for growth and improvement. So, let...
Are Any Sales Compensation Plans Really Uncapped? Exploring the Limits of Sales Incentives
Uncapped commission is a term that’s often used to entice salespeople to join a company or to motivate them to sell more. But wha...
Quota Attainment Rate: Understanding Sales Performance
A sales quota is a target that’s set for you to achieve within a certain time frame. It could be a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or...
Update Your Sales Call Notes in the CRM! How to be Effective and Streamline the Process
We’ve never met a sales pro who just loves updating the notes in the CRM after a sales call. We get it. It can be tedious and annoying....
Should You Get a Sales Coach? What to Consider
Sales is a highly competitive and constantly evolving field. And whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned prof...
Working with Account Executives as an SDR: Best Practices and Tips
If you’re a Sales Development Representative (SDR), you know that your role is crucial to the success of your company’s sal...
Do You Need a Degree for Sales? Exploring the Importance of Higher Education in Sales Careers
A lot of people have asked whether they need a degree to get into sales. A whole lot. The short answer is no, you don’t necessari...
Sales Cycle: Understanding and Optimizing Your Sales Process
Understanding the sales cycle is crucial for anyone in sales. By knowing where your potential customer is in the process, you can tailo...
Working with the Product Team as an Account Executive: Tips and Best Practices
Working with the product team as an Account Executive can be a challenging task, but it is an essential part of the sales process. As a...
Psychology of Sales: An Introduction
Making a sale is about more than just having a great product or service. It’s about understanding your customers and what motivat...
Sales Forecasting: Understanding the Process and Why Its Useful for Every Sales Rep to Do
Sales forecasting is a critical component of any successful sales strategy. And contrary to what some may think, sales forecasting is n...
Account Executive Career Guide: How to Become a Successful AE
An account executive is a sales professional inside of an organization that is tasked with selling the company’s product or service to ...
Account Manager Responsibilities: A Comprehensive Guide
Account Managers are primarily responsible for managing a company’s relationships with its clients. Your responsibilities include...
Working with Your SDR as an Account Executive: Best Practices and Tips
As an account executive, working closely with your SDR (or SDRs) is essential to ensure that they are setting you up for success. And b...
Value of Product-Market Fit: Why It Matters to Salespeople
As a sales professional, your goal is to connect customers with solutions that not only meet their needs but also exceed their expectat...
SDR Career Guide: How to Become a Successful Sales Development Rep
If you’re looking to break into sales, becoming a Sales Development Representative (SDR) is a great way to get started. SDRs are ...
What is a Sales Engineer? Definition and Responsibilities
A Sales Engineer is a professional who supports the sales team in selling complex, technical products to businesses through a consultat...
The Challenger Sales Model Explained: Insights and Benefits of a Modern Sales Approach
The Challenger Sales Model is based on the idea that sales reps should challenge customers and disrupt their current thinking to teach ...
MEDDIC Sales Explained: How To Use and Implement the Common B2B Sales Approach
The MEDDIC sales methodology was first developed in the 1990s by Jack Napoli and Dick Dunkel at PTC. Using the MEDDIC framework, they w...
Working with Sales Engineers as an Account Executive: Tips and Best Practices
Sales Engineers are an essential part of the sales process, especially in tech sales. They work closely with Account Executives to ensu...
Tire Kickers: How to Spot and Avoid Them
Months of emails and follow-ups. Several product demos that seemed to go really well. So many questions answered. But it never feels li...
Account Management vs. Customer Success: What’s the Difference?
Because they’re both client-facing roles, the terms “account management” and “customer success” are sometimes u...
What is it Like to Work in Tech Sales? A Peek into the World of Sales in the Tech Industry
Working in tech sales can be an exciting and lucrative career path for those who enjoy working with people and technology. As a tech sa...
29 Best Sales Podcasts: Resources for Boosting Your Sales Skills
The rise of podcasts has made it easier than ever to get access to some of the top sales minds in the industry. Not only are podcasts a...
Healthcare Sales Career Guide: Opportunities and Insights
Healthcare sales representatives sell medical products and services to healthcare professionals, hospitals, and other medical facilitie...
Working in Financial Services Sales: What is it Like?
Working in financial services sales can be a lucrative and rewarding career path for people passionate about finance and who enjoy buil...
Working in Consumer Packaged Goods Sales: What is it Like?
Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) sales involves selling products that are frequently consumed and replenished, such as food, beverages, an...
39 of the Best Sales Books to Elevate Your Sales Game
Becoming a successful sales professional involves more than just charm and charisma. It requires a deep understanding of human interact...
Sales Buying Roles: Gatekeepers
Understanding the sales buying roles is crucial for salespeople to effectively navigate the sales process and close deals. One key role...
Sales Buying Roles: Decision-Makers
One of the most important aspects of this sales process is identifying who is the ultimate decision-maker. The decision-maker is the pe...
Sales Buying Roles: Influencers
Understanding the influencer buyer role is crucial for sales professionals to effectively sell their products or services. Sales profes...
Sales Buying Roles: Champions
Understanding the different buying roles is crucial to closing enterprise sales deals. It’s important to identify who the decisio...
Sales Buying Roles: Understanding the Different Stakeholders and Personas
If you’re in SMB, mid-market or enterprise sales, you know that the buying process can be complex and involve multiple stakeholde...
Working in B2B Sales: What is it Like?
Working in B2B sales can be a rewarding career path for those who enjoy building relationships and closing deals. As a B2B salesperson,...
What is Enterprise Sales? Key Characteristics, Challenges, and Strategies for Success
Sales is often subdivided into different segments. Enterprise sales refers to those salespeople who sell to large prospects and custome...
What is SMB Sales? Key Differences and How to Succeed in the SMB Market
SMB stands for Small and Medium-sized Businesses, which make up the majority of businesses in the world. These businesses have unique n...
On-Target Earnings (OTE): What It Is and How It Is Calculated
Many people new to sales are unsure what’s meant by on-target earnings or OTE, which is often used in job postings and employment contr...
What is Presales? A Deep Dive into Pre-Sale Activities and Their Impact on Sales Outcomes
Many people are not familiar with presales and may confuse it with sales — or even think it’s the same thing. In reality, presale...
What is Tech Sales?
Tech sales is the process of selling technology as software, hardware, or an IT service. As a tech sales representative, you might be s...
Common Tech Sales Roles: Understanding Key Positions, Skills, and Compensation in the Industry
When considering a role in tech sales, it’s critical to understand the terminology used within the industry for different jobs so that ...
What is a tiered commission structure?
A tiered commission structure is an incentive compensation system in which the earnings calculation changes at different performance le...
Tech Sales Career Paths
Sellers often ask me how to break into tech sales. So often, in fact, that I already wrote about it. That article includes a lot of gre...
Sandbagging in Sales: Why It Happens and How Effective Comp Plans Can Help
Sandbagging in sales refers to withholding information about potential deals or deliberately delaying deal closures to manipulate quota...
8 Common Sales Commission Structures
Sales is a difficult and stressful job. So why do it? To put it bluntly, sales is one of the best ways to make a six-figure income earl...
Sales vs. Business Development: Key Differences
Sales and business development are distinct but complementary functions within a company, focusing on revenue generation. While sales f...
The Seven Sales Cycle Stages
Whether you’ve just become an account executive or you’re a seasoned sales professional, understanding the sales cycle is crucial...
How AE Sales Quotas are Set
Here’s a fairly common situation: a company hits their number but only 25% of the team hit goal. I know you’re not su...
What is it like working in medical device sales?
Medical device sales reps play an important role between companies and clients, and it can be a great role to be in. Want to know what ...
Popular Articles
View all ArticlesJust Applying Isn’t Enough to Land a Sales Role. (And What You Should Be Doing.)
Applying for a sales job right now? Here’s the real talk. If all you are doing is applying to sales jobs by submitting an application o...
Don’t Say This When Selling or Job-Hunting
“Just checking in …” When I used to reach out to a prospect with this line, it was the death knell for a potential sale. It’...
Is Moving from Sales Manager to Individual Contributor Really a “Step Back”? Hardly.
Here’s a question that you’re bound to get if you’re a sales manager interviewing for an individual contributor position: “Why are you ...
Don’t Take a Good Manager for Granted
A great manager is an accelerant on your earnings and career trajectory. But only if you can get enough of their time, coaching, and me...