Training Tools, Tips & Resources

Training resources blog by Corexcel. Your connection to everything related to training.

Sales = Customer Service?

It’s no doubt that we as consumers are throwing the traditional sales funnel for a loop with our quest for knowledge long before we go shopping. While the traditional sales funnel had consumers contacting the salesperson right away, social media has allowed us to be more independent. We research product information and consumer reviews before we’re ready to talk to someone.Customer Service for Sales Online

Nowadays, salespeople are being looked at for confirmation, not information. 

My new blog post on the DiSC profiles blog goes into more detail about how the sales funnel has changed, and why it’s important that now, more than ever, salespeople deliver excellent customer service.

DiSC Profiles Blog – Social Media, Customer Service and the New Salesperson

I attended a webinar today that focused on, you guessed it, sales! We talked about identifying prospects, working with new customers and how social media has changed the way we sell.

Think about it. Say you want to buy a brand new 50 inch TV for above your fireplace (recommendations welcome!). It’s not very likely that you’ll drive from store to store looking for TV’s. First, you’ll visit Facebook; ask your friends for their help. You’ll do a search using Google or Bing to do some research on specials, coupons, brands and customer reviews. THEN you’ll head to the local stores to see what they have in stock.

Back in the day, salespeople played a different role in the buying process then they do now, and in return they are looked at differently. Many times, especially in smaller transactional type sales, salespeople are now seen as the final step in the transaction practice rather than the very first.

Salespeople are the confirmation buyers need that they are making the right purchase.

Sure, we’ll chat online with a representative or ask the salesperson for help, but now salespeople have to focus more on customer service than simply product information.

 

Leadership Quotes & Leadership Roles

By Jeff Nelson

Who is the first person that comes to your mind when you think of someone in a leadership role?  Maybe it’s our country’s president, the CEO of a company, the quarterback of your favorite football team or, if you think like me, your wife!  (Yeah, I’m not afraid to admit that she’s the one calling the shots most of the time.)

People in leadership roles are all around us and in our daily lives.  Remember that cruise that you took or the recent flight you boarded?  Well, the captain was in the wheel house steering the ship for all his vacationers, and the pilot was guiding the plane to ensure his passengers made it to their destination safely.

What are some of your favorite leadership quotes? 

Here are a couple of mine.

I don’t measure a man’s success by how high he climbs, but how high he bounces when he hits bottom. – General George S. Patton

One way of looking at this might be that for 42 years, I’ve been making small, regular deposits in this bank of experience, education and training.  And on January 15 the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal. – Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger (pictured right)

Leadership is the capacity to transform vision into reality. – Warren G. Bennis

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. – President John Quincy Adams

I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure, which is: Try to please everybody. —Herbert Swope

What you do has far greater impact than what you say. —Stephen Covey

You don’t lead by hitting people over the head—that’s assault, not leadership. –Dwight Eisenhower

If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities. —Maya Angelou

Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity. – General George S. Patton

Leadership is solving problems. The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help or concluded you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership. —Colin Powell

Management is about arranging and telling. Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing. —Tom Peters

A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves. —Lao Tzu

Comment with some of your favorite leadership quotes! 

Bad Management Blog Post #TBT

In honor of #TBT (Throwback Thursdays) and sticking with the leadership theme this month, I’m taking it way back to 2011 with my blog post on bad management. My tips on how to handle conflict with your boss (and how to right your wrongs as a bad boss) still stay true today. Check them out and leave a comment!

Check out both parts of my Who’s Afraid of The Big, Bad Boss? Blog series.

***********

First, what can you do as an organization combating bad management?
Bad Management
Have you been informed of bad management in your office? What do you do?

Have you ever heard of the saying, “You don’t quit your job; you quit your boss”? It’s certainly true. Bad management can cause employees to feel under-appreciated, frustrated and stressed out, leaving them uninterested in their work and looking for a way out.

When you hear “bad management” you may think of the screaming supervisor, absent-minded team leader or manager who plays favorites. However, bad management does not always have noticeable signs.

Bad management can be caused by the following common mistakes:

1.  Communicating poorly if at all
2.  Not delegating properly
3.  Not following through
4.  Failure to define employee team roles
5.  Micromanagement
6.  Ignoring problematic employees
7.  Behaving unpredictably
8.  Lack of trust for employees

Continue reading Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Boss? Part I 

*********

Think you’re stuck in a bad management situation?
Learn what you can do if you’re involved (either as the employee or the boss!) 

In my last article, I discussed how organizations can keep bad management from negatively impacting their bottom line. But what about the employee and manager involved? Keep reading!

Just because two individuals may not be getting along does not mean that one should just jump ship. Think about your career. Do you like the company and what you are doing? Is this bad manager (or your bad management style) the only thing that’s stopping you? Then don’t give up. Follow these tips to beat the bad.

What you can do as an employee:

Practice Patience & Positivity

Although you may not be getting along with your supervisor, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is because of bad management. Think about the overall situation from all views:

  • Are you or your supervisor new to the company?
  • Were they in a different type of department? i.e. Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, etc.
  • Are you or your supervisor going through any personal changes right now?
  • Are you being demanding?
  • Is your boss’ boss being demanding?
  • Is your company going through any difficult changes?

All of these factors can have an impact on your relationship with your boss…

Continue reading Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Boss? Part II

Related Products & Courses:

DiSC for Managers Profile – DiSC helps managers determine their management style and how to be more effective with  employees, peers and superiors of all DiSC styles. Group Reports and Comparison Reports make Everything DiSC ideal for management training.

Online Management Courses – Accredited, online, self-paced courses cover hot topics like effective negotiating, handling difficult employee behaviors, time management, coaching and more.

New! Manager’s Toolbox – Online, self-paced courses designed specifically for new managers covering topics like handling conflicts, boosting morale, new leader challenges and more. Learn More About The Manager’s Toolbox Courses