Mastering Technical Sales

Every high-tech sales team today has technical pros on board to “explain how things work,” and this success-tested training resource is written just for them. This newly revised and expanded third edition of an Artech House bestseller offers invaluable insights and tips for every stage of the selling process. This third edition features a wealth of new material, including new chapters on business-driven discovery, white boarding, trusted advisors, and calculating ROI. This invaluable book equips new sales engineers with powerful sales and presentation techniques that capitalize on their technical background—all spelled out step-by-step by a pair of technical sales experts with decades of eye-popping, industry-giant success under their belt.

This indispensable sales tool shows you the ropes of lead qualification, the RFP process, and needs analysis and discovery, and explains how your technical know-how can add invaluable leverage to sales efforts at every step. You learn how to plan and present the perfect pitch, demonstrate products effectively, build customer relationship skills, handle objections and competitors, negotiate prices and contracts, close the sale, and so much more.

Sales Engineers' Handbook covers all of the key areas of selling high-technology products, including detailed action plans to establish personal excellence in key performance drivers in technical sales. This comprehensive volume teaches you how to be more successful as an individual contributor, helping to better ensure promotion within your sales organization, or advancement elsewhere within your company. The book gives you the practical guidance you need to sharpen your skills in sales and technology. Moreover, for the technical manager it explains how to build an infrastructure to support continuous high sales growth.

John Care and Chris Daly lay out the 3+1 rules of SE Leadership. A simple framework designed for everyone - from SEs thinking about moving into management to the newest of new SE Managers to a Global SE Vice President. This is a fascinating blend of tactical and strategic advice based on 30+ years of experience and many years of running SE specific workshops. All designed to allow you to follow the 3+1 Rules: Develop And Serve Your People, Run Pre-Sales As A Business, and Serve Your Customers all matched up with Rule #0 Manage Yourself. It's a common and often repeated story. You take a rock star Sales Engineer who is highly valued for their sales and business skills - and make them a manager because they are a great SE. With no regard for their possible leadership skills whatsoever. Perhaps they are pointed at a few online HR resources and take a mandatory "Managing Within The Law" session. Then they are released into the wild, and asked to manage, lead and motivate a team of Sales Engineers - each of whom performs the job differently than the newly minted manager used to do.

Praise for Mastering the Complex Sale "Jeff Thull's process plays a key role in helping companies and their customers cross the chasm with disruptive innovations and succeed with game-changing initiatives." —Geoffrey A. Moore, author of Crossing the Chasm and Dealing with Darwin "This is the first book that lays out a solid method for selling cross-company, cross-border, even cross-culturally where you have multiple decision makers with multiple agendas. This is far more than a 'selling process'—it is a survival guide—a truly outstanding approach to bringing all the pieces of the puzzle together." —Ed Daniels, EVP, Shell Global Solutions Downstream, President, CRI/Criterion, Inc. "Mastering the Complex Sale brilliantly sets up value from the customer's perspective. A must-read for all those who are managing multinational business teams in a complex and highly competitive environment." —Samik Mukherjee, Vice President, Onshore Business, Technip "Customers need to know the value they will receive and how they will receive it. Thull's insights into the complex sale and how to clarify and quantify this value are remarkable—Mastering the Complex Sale will be required reading for years to come!" —Lee Tschanz, Vice President, North American Sales, Rockwell Automation "Jeff Thull is winning the war against commoditization. In his world, value trumps price and commoditization isn't a given, it's a choice. This is a proven alternative to the price-driven sale. We've spoken to his clients. This stuff really works, folks." —Dave Stein, CEO and Founder, ES Research Group, Inc. "Our business depends on delivering breakthrough thinking to our executive clients. Jeff Thull has significantly redefined sales and marketing strategies that clearly connect to our global audience. Read it, act on it, and take your results to exceptional levels." —Sven Kroneberg, President, Seminarium Internacional "Jeff's main thesis—that professional customer guidance is the key to success—rings true in every global market today. Mastering the Complex Sale is the essential read for any organization looking to transform their business for long-term, value-driven growth." —Jon T. Lindekugel, President, 3M Health Information Systems, Inc. "Jeff Thull has re-engineered the conventional sales process to create predictable and profitable growth in today's competitive marketplace. It's no longer about selling; it's about guiding quality decisions and creating collaborative value. This is one of those rare books that will make a difference." —Carol Pudnos, Executive director, Healthcare Industry, Dow Corning Corporation

Sales and Sales Engineering leaders across the world have used the Trusted Advisor label hundreds of times over the past twenty years. Yet it really doesn't mean that much without a lot of explanation. You may be thinking about some of these questions right now. Becoming a Trusted Advisor is not as simple as it sounds, which is why so many organizations either never try, or make a half-hearted effort. Trusted Advisor - two words, five syllables and fifteen letters hide a massive complexity. For the first time ever, there is now a book specifically designed to start the individual Sales Engineer on the journey to becoming a Trusted Advisor. Section One covers how to define and actually measure trust with your clients. Section Two looks at the practical aspects involved in building trust through Discovery, Presentations, Demos and all the other standard activities of an SE. Section Three examine how to get started and put it all into practice - both for individuals and for SE teams. This is not one of those tiny 40 page eBooks. It's over 150 pages of thoughts, ideas, best practices and real life examples based on dozens of clients and thousands of students who have already taken the workshop.** Note the 2020 Paperback version is a reformatted version of the original eBook with a only few minor edits and updates. **

Of the 17 million people in the U.S. who are involved directly or indirectly in sales, many repeatedly acknowledge facing four major challenges: No prior sales education or training Lack of formalized sales training, resources, and methodologies provided by their companies Due to the recession and downsizing era, lack of 12-18 month professional sales training for new hires provided by Fortune 500 companies A consistent struggle to keep their sales force, distributors, manufacturers reps and affiliates motivated and focused on effectively selling their products and services Mastering the World of Selling helps companies and entrepreneurs overcome these four major obstacles with candid advice and winning strategies from the leading sales trainers and training companies in the world: Acclivus*AchieveGlobal*Action Selling*Tony Allesandra*Brian Azar*Baker Communications, Inc.*Mike Bosworth*Ian Brodie*Ed Brodow*Mike Brooks*Bob Burg*Jim Cathcart*Robert Cialdini PhD*Communispond, Inc.*Tim Connor*CustomerCentric Selling*Dale Carnegie*Sam Deep*Bryan Dodge*Barry Farber*Jonathan Farrington*Jeffrey Fox*Colleen Francis*FranklinCovey Sales Performance Solutions*Thomas A. Freese*Patricia Fripp*Ari Galper*General Physics Corporation*Jeffrey Gitomer*Charles H. Green*Ford Harding*Holden International*Chet Holmes*Tom Hopkins*Huthwaite, Inc.*Imparta, Ltd.*InfoMentis, Inc.*Integrity Solutions*Janek Performance Group, Inc.*Tony Jeary*Dave Kahle*Ron Karr*Knowledge-Advantage, Inc.*Jill Konrath*Dave Kurlan*Ron LaVine*Kendra Lee*Ray Leone*Chris Lytle*Paul McCord*Mercuri International*Miller Heiman, Inc.*Anne Miller*Dr. Ivan Misner*Michael Macedonio*Sharon Drew Morgen*Napoleon Hill Foundation*Michael Oliver*Rick Page*Anthony Parinello*Michael Port*Porter Henry*Prime Resource Group, Inc.*Neil Rackham*Revenue Storm*Linda Richardson*Keith Rosen*Frank Rumbauskas*Sales Performance International, Inc.*Sandler Training*Dr. Tom Sant*Stephan Schiffman*Dan Seidman*Blair Singer*Terri Sjodin*Art Sobczak*Drew Stevens, PhD*STI International*The Brooks Group*The Friedman Group*The TAS Group*Brian Tracy*ValueSelling Associates*Wendy Weiss&*Jacques Werth*Floyd Wickman*Wilson Learning*Dirk Zeller*Tom Ziglar*Zig Ziglar

Distinguish yourself as a "Sales Master" and win big in business today! Your personal and professional distinctions are THE precursor to closing the deal. Why? Because most salespeople are not distinctive-all they do is follow one another. Sales Mastery gives you Chuck Bauer's unique personal experience as a highly successful salesman turned sales coach. You'll connect with his methodology, proven by salespeople in every industry, to distinguish yourself, build your sales skills, and win deals again and again. Each chapter focuses on one important quality of salesmanship enabling you to actualize your potential as a prosperous seller Includes tips for mastering sales presentations, phone pitches, customer objections, and closing strategies Learn how to market yourself shamelessly, close sales according to your clients' dominant personality styles, and make prospects chase you Author is a nationally recognized sales trainer and coach Sales Mastery gives you the toolset to break away from the pack to be the sales leader you always wanted to be... and reap the bigger commission checks that result!

This bestselling book -- now in its Fourth Edition – has become the gold standard for Sales Engineers, who engage on the technical side of the sales and buying process and are the people who know how everything works. It helps you navigate a complex and ever-changing technical sales environment and become an effective bridge-builder between the business/commercial interests and the technical details that support the sale. Written by one of the foremost experts in this field, the handbook presents everything you need to improve your skills and increase your value to the sales team. Chapters are written in a modular fashion so that you can choose topics most relevant to you at the moment – or follow them in order as they build upon each other and give you the complete A to Z on your role. Each chapter is short enough so that you can read through it in 10-15 minutes and apply the learning the next day. You’ll find actionable hints, case studies, and anecdotes illustrating the topics with lessons learned, both positive and negative. The book helps you: understand the unique role of the Sales Engineer, from the broad picture to the nuances of the job; develop skills needed to become a valuable consultant to your team and the customer team; utilize best practices for creating and completing winning RFPs; effectively integrate global practices into your day-to-day activities; increase your ability think on a more strategic level; become a trusted advisor to executive customers. With this completely updated and expanded edition of Mastering Technical Sales in hand, you will achieve a better win rate, experience higher customer satisfaction, hit revenue targets, and feel greater job satisfaction. Newly added and revised chapters guide you through today’s challenges, including the impact of the cloud and everything-as-a-service, new sales models (monthly vs. annual revenue commits), and the virtualization and automation that is now part of the Sales Engineer’s world. This book is a must-have resource for both new and seasoned Sales Engineers within tech software, hardware, mechanical, and civil engineering vendors, along with management and leadership in those organizations, and anyone who must present, demonstrate or sell hi-tech items for a living.

To live is to communicate, and to communicate with confidence is a craft that one will do well to master early rather than later in life. If only the gift of the gab were enough to sail smoothly through the rough waters that the tough world is teeming with, every glib conversationalist would have a successful vocation, but that’s not the case. The means of communication come naturally to human beings, but the skills that make communicating worthwhile and meaningful do not. Thankfully, anyone who wishes to can learn—and even perfect—these skills. This concise handbook focuses on the ways in which students can develop a robust career after completing their academic studies. The foundational work of nurturing and strengthening individual abilities begins during university life, but these skills need to be complemented with strategies that help the student turned professional to not only interact well with society but also earn its respect through clear, precise, and honest communication. Talent needs to be matched with competence, and the book shows exactly how one goes about doing that. It spells out the ingredients of a sound and strategic action plan that definitively aligns one’s goals with one’s aspirations, no matter how lofty. This plan has to be closely related to the choices, conditions, and possibilities that will be available for the kind of education and experience that individuals have and the aspirations they harbor. Students entering high school or university can use the book to review the necessary courses to choose during their academic life. Young people will find solid guidelines in it that provide a structure for planning and focusing on the skills needed when one embarks upon a fulfilling career.