This Isn’t Just “Off The Cuff”

Do you admire people who can do things “off the cuff?” When someone makes something look easy, many of us assume the person is just naturally talented. We don’t often get a peek behind the curtain to know how much time and effort someone has put into honing their particular skill. I had the very…

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How To Keep From Losing A Client

losing a client

Have you ever wondered how to keep from losing a client who says they can no longer afford you? Chances are they would very much like to continue to work with you but something in their finances has changed. Now, they’re looking for ways to cut expenses and you’re on the chopping block. In this…

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Are You Fumbling The Close?

closing, sales maven, Nikki Rausch, blog, selling tips, sales training

Are you fumbling the close in the selling process? Rest assured, you’re not alone. Being proficient at closing sales is one of the most requested skills I’m asked to teach. You can have the best product/service and you can even have the best price and still struggle to make money when you don’t know how…

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The Shotgun Approach Is Old-School Sales

selling, old school approach, sales tip, consulting,

The shotgun approach to selling is old-school sales  (and not in a good way). How many unsolicited emails/instant messages do you receive every day from someone you’ve never met trying to sell you something? How often do you buy from these people? For those who answer anything other than “never,” you’re definitely the exception to…

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How To Gracefully Tell Someone, “Get To The Point!”

Rapport, Communication Skills, Sales Tip, Sales Maven,

When’s the last time you wanted to shout at someone, “GET TO THE POINT”? We’ve all found ourselves on the receiving end of someone’s long drawn-out explanation or story. Maybe in these situations, you’re able to maintain your friendly and interested composure. Yet, your internal dialogue doesn’t quite match. There’s a whole other conversation going…

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How To Get Questions Answered

Woman raising her hand to get her questions answered

Do you ever wonder what’s the best way to get questions answered? Maybe you’re asking questions of your followers, clients, etc. and not receiving a response back. Is there anything worse than asking questions and only hearing dead air in return? There’s a reason you’re hearing dead air in return. Watch this week’s tip to…

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How To Use A Microphone For The Best First Impression

how to use a microphone sales maven

How do you feel about speaking into a microphone? Is having your voice amplified fun for you, or do you shy away from a microphone? How important is it that you make a positive first impression when meeting people for the first time? Would you be surprised to learn that it only takes 1/10 of a second…

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Price Setting: 2 Tips For Successful Pricing

Business owner price setting in her clothing shop

Price Setting: When’s the last time you wondered if you should raise your price? Maybe you charge by the hour and find this to be a difficult way to make money long term. A common discussion with my clients revolves around pricing; how it was set, is it enough, and when to raise their prices.…

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Business Favors: Is It Really A Favor?

Business Favors: When someone tells you after the fact that they did you a favor how do you generally respond? Most likely you’re grateful. However, what if the person acts a little put out by doing you a favor even if you didn’t ask or expect the favor in the first place? Do you start to…

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Aggressive Sales Tactics: Tone This Down When Selling

aggressive sales tactics, sales coach, sales maven, sales help

Aggressive sales tactics can be a huge turnoff. How do you respond when people present their product/service to you in a way that makes it seem as if you don’t buy from them- you’re killing yourself, damaging the environment, and/or robbing people of basic human rights? And do you even listen anymore when this is the…

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Knee-Jerk Response: The Knee-Jerk “No” in Sales

knee jerk response

When’s the last time you had a really great idea, and when you presented it to someone, they gave you the knee-jerk “no?” A knee-jerk response is when someone gives you an immediate emotional response, and often in sales it’s a “no.” Maybe you’re familiar with this type of response in your personal life, and certainly,…

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The Invite: Are You Missing A Step?

business man issuing invitation

As a kid, did you ever try to jump up as many steps as you could at one time? Were you able to jump up 2 or even 3 steps? Maybe you got a group of friends together and you all tried to out-do the person before you. How successful were you? What would happen if…

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How To End A Conversation Gracefully

business woman exiting a conversation gracefully

Have you ever found yourself in a conversation and you’re not quite sure how to end the conversation gracefully? Maybe you attended a networking meeting recently, and although you enjoyed the conversation, you knew it was time to move on, yet stayed because you didn’t know how to bring it to a close. This week,…

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Are You Asking For What You Want?

asking for what you want

When’s the last time someone asked you a question that made you stop what you were doing and really think about your answer? You know one of those big questions that you could easily give a standard response to but instead you decided to dig deep within yourself and answer from a truly authentic place.…

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How To Address Competition With Prospective Clients

Savvy Sales Tip, Sales Maven, Sales Training, Selling Skills

When a prospect brings up a competitor, do you ever feel frustrated or even irritated? What about when the competitor is not transparent with their offer, and it makes it look like they’re offering a better deal than you? Most of us get frustrated in these situations. It’s common to want to point out all…

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Effective Email Communication

effective email communication

When’s the last time you sent out emails announcing some great new program and didn’t get a single response? As a business owner or sales professional, effective email communication is essential to connecting with potential clients and generating leads. It’s frustrating to put in the effort to craft a thoughtful email only to receive little…

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Think Twice Before You Offer Discounts

offer discounts, sales maven, sales strategies, business advice

How many times in the last 4 weeks did you offer discounts for your services/products? And, how many of those times did you offer it without your client even asking for a discount? In the last few days I’ve heard this over and over. People “confess” to me they offer discounts without even being asked for…

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Over Promise & Under Deliver

over promise

When’s the last time you committed to something for a client and because life got in the way, you ended up dropping the ball? Did it negatively impact your relationship with your client? Did you have to go back and apologize or did you just not bring it up the next time you interacted with…

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Ask For The Sale: Don’t Be A Chicken

ask for the sale

When’s the last time you got yourself all pumped up to do something to grow your business or ask for the sale only to chicken out at the last minute because you were worried about what other people would think of you? Are you too chicken to ask for the sale? Recently, I was the…

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A Picture Is Worth Thousands Of Dollars

Sales Tools, Savvy Selling, Rapport Building, Selling

You’ve heard the saying, “A picture’s worth a thousand words.” Here’s a new one for you, “A picture is worth thousands of dollars.” Or at least it has been in my business, and there’s a good chance it can be in yours as well. Do you already have a professional picture of yourself depicting the…

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Why Not Me?

Thinking pattern, success, sales, Savvy Selling

What thoughts come to mind when someone says, “Why me?” or  “Why do these terrible things happen to me?” Do you agree with the person, maybe feel sorry for them? Is life being unfair and picking on them in some way? We all know life’s unfair. None of us are exempt from curveballs being thrown…

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Be Flexible: Why You Have To Pace Before You Lead

Be flexible why you have to pace before you lead

When’s the last time you found yourself interacting with a client and thinking to yourself, “Geez, I wish this person was more upbeat, relaxed, friendly,…, more like me.” Last week I had the pleasure of training sales professionals in Phoenix.  One of the guys in the room shared how difficult he finds working/selling to people…

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Your Internal State May Be Costing You Clients

internal state

Before you walk into a meeting with a prospective client, do you take a moment to collect yourself? To really hone in on your internal state? If you’re not checking on your internal state, you may be costing yourself clients. In my NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) training, we spent a lot of time focused on state…

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You’ve Got The Look: It’s All In The Eyes

eyes

When’s the last time you heard, “The eyes are the window to the soul?” What would be your guess as to how many songs have been sung about the eyes?  Here’s just a few that come to mind:  “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You”  – Franke Valle “I Only Have Eyes For You,” –…

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What’s The Value Of Doing Favors For Clients

doing favors for clients

How many times this month have you found yourself doing favors for a client? Doing favors could be making an exception to your normal policies/procedures, offering a discount, tailoring a program, or doing something extra for the client. Did you specifically let your client know they received a favor? Notice, the question is “Did you…

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When A Client Asks For A Discount

When a client asks for a discount

Discounts, Savings, Special Offers Are you a fan of a good bargain? I am, I love a good deal! Now, flip it around. When your client asks for a discount, do you dread responding? For those thinking, “Oh, I hate when a client asks me for a discount” or “Dang it, now if I don’t offer a…

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How To Respond To Questions While Creating Curiosity

Respond to questions

Do you know how to respond to questions while creating curiosity? Where would you rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 on your level of curiosity? (1 being “not curious by nature,” 10 being “I gotta know more!”)? Year’s ago, I learned a communication technique that involved using the phrase, “I’m curious.” After…

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Client Preference: Take What’s Offered

client preference sales maven

Have you ever had an interaction with someone where you felt compelled to share the story with others afterward? Last week, I was contacted by a salesperson, and the communication between us was so interesting that I’m sharing it in hopes you find some useful tips to apply to your client interactions. It’s such a…

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“Just Kidding”: Is It A Rapport Breaker?

When someone makes a negative comment to you and then follows up with, “Just Kidding,” do you believe them? Do you ever wonder if some part of what they said when they said “just kidding,” they actually meant? I was in the audience at an event recently, and the speaker singled out a person in…

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What Goes Around… Comes Around

what goes around... comes around

How long has it been since you either said or heard said: “What goes around… comes around?” Consider this phrase “what goes around…comes around,” and how you might use it to impact your business/sales in a positive way. For instance, let’s take referrals.  Have you ever given a referral to someone only to have them…

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I’m New: New & You

I'm new

Learning to do something new can be uncomfortable. It requires change.  Most of us internally groan a little when we have to “change” something.  My long time teacher and NLP trainer use to quote, Mark Twain when talking about change, “The only person that likes change is a wet baby.”When we’re in front of a…

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Slinging Mud: Are You Muddying The Water?

Muddying The Water

Are you muddying the water in sales? Many salespeople are. Here is what Nikki Rausch, your sales maven has to say about it. Imagine you’re thirsty. All you can think about is a nice refreshing glass of water.  You’re craving it; you know how good it’s going taste when you get your first sip.  Now…

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Why So Contrary? Communication Tips For Polarity Response

contrary, polarity response

Why so contrary? Many of us have someone in our life that regardless of what we say, they offer an opposing view. What do I mean by contrary? I say/He says: Black/White Yes/No True/False Spicy/Mild Sunshine/Rain and the list goes on and on… Anyone in particular come to mind for you: your loving partner, your child,…

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“What Do You Do?”: How To Be Interesting & Relevant

what do you do, sales maven, sales help, sales tips

When meeting someone for the first time, do you ever struggle with what to say when you get asked the question, “What do you do?” For those that sometimes stumble answering this question- “what do you do?”, I have a simple strategy for you. I learned this about ten years ago, and it has helped…

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“Does That Make Sense?”- A Nicer Way To Ask

does that make sense

How often do people ask you this question, “Does that make sense?” How often do you ask people, “Does that make sense?” I admit this comes out of my mouth way more often than I would like. You might be wondering why I would suggest another way to phrase this question. Here’s why you want to avoid saying “does…

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