The most successful organizations implement a systematic sales training process for getting sellers up to speed quickly, developing the skills and knowledge they need, supporting their ongoing sales efforts, and driving top sales performance. But how exactly do they do this? In the new webinar 5 Elements of World-Class Sales Training Programs, RAIN Group President Mike Schultz provides insight into how the most successful organizations structure their sales training initiatives to produce sellers who consistently exceed their targets and bring in the most revenue. Click here to watch the free webinar now.        

Selling works when an organization, and its sellers, excel in certain key areas. The Sales Competency WheelSM is a graphical depiction of these areas. Not every seller must do everything in the Wheel (e.g., not every seller must fill their own pipelines or drive account growth), but every sales organization needs to make sure the right people are good in the right areas to unleash maximum sales potential.      

Some buyers are conditioned to try certain tactics to lower your price. Maybe they've read about negotiation in books or were trained to use pressuring strategies. When buyers take this kind of positional and win-lose approach, their goal is generally to gain the most for themselves at the expense of the seller. For example, savvy buyers know that many sellers will be especially vulnerable to manipulation just when a contract is about to be signed. It's tempting at this point for the seller to give the buyer what they want and lower the price instead of digging deeper to uncover if their concerns are valid, or a bluff. Here are 6 common tactics buyers might use to gain a positional advantage, and ideas for how to respond.        

Email prospecting is a hot topic these days—and it should be because it works. Or at least, it works when it's done right. Before you type up your next sales email, make sure you attend to these secrets to success. Read more for 8 sales email secrets.        

Your sales team isn't hitting quota. You have aggressive growth goals but keep falling short. You want more of your sales team to transition from average to top performers. So you invest in sales team training, with the expectation that it will give them the boost they need to not only hit their goals, but exceed them. Then, when it comes to measuring results a few months after training, you find that besides a slight bump, results are largely the same as before. The list of reasons why training goes wrong is long.     Related StoriesOn-Demand Webinar: 5 Elements of World-Class Sales Training Programs[New White Paper] World-Class Sales Training: How to Build and Implement Your Own Sales UniversityThe Foundation of the Most Effective Sales Training 

We've written a lot about our What Sales Winners Do Differently research, in which we studied more than 700 B2B sales purchases by buyers representing $3.1 billion in annual purchasing power. We've shared with you how sales winners don't only sell differently, they sell radically differently from second-place finishers. Sellers who win have distinct patterns for how they sell. There's a specific combination of behaviors and outcomes they achieve that second-place finishers don't. (See the Top 10 Factors Separating Sales Winners from the Rest.) We've categorized and labeled these factors in the Three Levels of RAIN SellingSM: Connect, convince, and collaborate: Here is what winners of B2B sales do both more often, and better than, second-place finishers.     Related Stories5 Ways to Get the Most Out of B2B Sales TrainingBuyers Want to Talk to YouTop 10 Most Popular Content Pieces from 2014 

Sales advice is a dime a dozen. There are scores of "experts" writing articles, white papers, books, blogs, and more, and generally making a lot of noise about how to be successful in sales. And, unsurprisingly, the advice of one "expert" often contradicts the advice of another. Does cold calling work? Is building relationships still important? Is social media worth your time? What are the most effective closing techniques? And the list goes on. With all the advice out there, it’s hard to sort out what’s most important and what will have the greatest impact on your bottom line. To find out, we asked 5 proven sales experts at the top of their fields one question.     Related StoriesRisky Business: 4 Areas Buyers Perceive Risk in SalesTake the New Survey: The Top-Performing Sales OrganizationHow to Measure Your Client Relationship Strength 

"Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in." - Napoleon Bonaparte I've seen more people intend to crush their goals than I have seen people actually crush their goals. They talk about how they're going to make it to the top. They read books and attend seminars. They talk a good game. Then many go nowhere. Oh, they can justify their lack of production: the competition has advantages, the buyers won't act, the economy is rough. No luck this year. Excuses.     Related StoriesRisky Business: 4 Areas Buyers Perceive Risk in SalesHow to Measure Your Client Relationship Strength5 Changes in B2B Buying Behavior You Need to Know About 

Ask most people about the strength of their core client relationships and they'll say, "Great. Rock solid." Yet these comments usually refer to how much rapport or trust sellers feel they have with the client. They don't answer the question through the lens of business value the client receives from them. They're also often thinking more of the relationship they feel they have with their client, not how their client feels about them. To assess the strength of your relationship with a client, the key is to view it through their eyes. You can start by evaluating your relationships using these 7 questions.     Related StoriesRisky Business: 4 Areas Buyers Perceive Risk in SalesSell with Hustle, Passion, and Intensity5 Changes in B2B Buying Behavior You Need to Know About 

In this RAIN Group Center for Sales Research survey, we set out to answer the following question: What do the top-performing sales organizations—those with better proposal win rates, attainment of sales plan, and overall revenue growth—do differently than the rest? But we need your help. Please take 15 minutes to complete the Top-Performing Sales Organization survey. As a thank you for participating, you'll receive a free report summary.     Related StoriesWant Loyal Clients? It Starts in the Buying ProcessFree Ebook: The One Piece of Advice You Need to Exceed Your Sales Targets[New White Paper] World-Class Sales Training: How to Build and Implement Your Own Sales University