“Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer” applies to your competition; to beat them, you need to know how they intrinsically function, their strengths and weaknesses, and how to position against them. You can do this first by researching and gathering pertinent information on your current and up-and-coming competition, then using it in your differentiation, messaging, and strategy.

The most effective prospect-facing collateral is the result of collaborative sales and marketing teams. While the marketing team is responsible for the development and design of sales collateral, it is marginally effective if it doesn’t incorporate the needs and goals of the sales team. 

What better time to train your team than a slower summer? Whether you manage an inside, outside, or hybrid team, chances are that sales activities have reduced in early Q3. Take this opportunity to do some hands-on training with your sales team.

If you’re reading this blog and thinking “I don’t need to do this, my CRM is spotless”, then we applaud you! Few can say they have the time, resources, and/or interest to clean up their CRM systems, and even fewer can say that they’ve completely wrangled their dirty data.

 In our 2017 summer blog series 8 Weekly Projects to Stay on Track During a Summer Slump, we'll be sharing weekly ideas and suggested activities for sales leaders to keep themselves and their team productive in the typically slower summer months.. 

“Summertime and the living is easy..." Not so much for the many companies who experience slower sales as the business world loosens its tie and dips its toes in the pool come the sunnier months. Not only is summer notorious for lower close rates, but it also marks the halfway point of the year; Q1/Q2 have wrapped up, and if a slow summer wasn’t incorporated into annual planning, it can cost you the number come end of year.