Business articles by Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD
By Peter Lyle DeHaan Marketing drives sales. You can’t hope to have the latter without the former. Over the years I’ve tapped many marketing channels. Some were successful and others not so much. At the call center where we specialized in telephone answering service, I made extensive use of Yellow Pages ads. Remember them? It […]
Capitalize on Naturally Occurring Motivators, but Don’t Manufacture a False Sense of Urgency By Peter Lyle DeHaan In the past, I mentioned a variation of the either/or close. I call it the special incentive close. Here’s how I use it when selling advertising for my publications. In essence it’s buy now and receive a special […]
Ask Your Prospect to Choose Between Two Options, Both of Which Meet Your Objective By Peter Lyle DeHaan Remember when I went on the sales call with Mitchell? In a few minutes I closed the sale he’d been working on for a couple of months. The “secret” sales technique I used is no secret at […]
Interact with Sales Staff in the Field to Determine Their Strengths and Weaknesses By Peter Lyle DeHaan Mitchell came to us in need of a second chance. With a lifetime of experience in the business world and history of sales success he seemed overqualified to work for our company. But he assured me this was […]
When the Execution of Your Plan Falls Short, It Might Be Time for a New Plan By Peter Lyle DeHaan In the book-publishing community, it’s no secret that most authors would rather write than promote their work. In this regard, I am like most authors. Yes, some writers are extroverts and love the activities around […]
Evaluate If Recent College Grads Are Right for Your Company By Peter Lyle DeHaan When hiring a salesperson, you can seek someone with relevant experience or someone with related education. Sometimes a candidate has both. The opposite is when they have neither. I’d been hiring salespeople who had varying degrees of selling experience, though sometimes […]
Successful Selling in One Area Does Not Universally Apply to All Others By Peter Lyle DeHaan Frank had a successful sales career in one industry, but his desired career path wasn’t an option at that company. To pursue his dream, he needed to change employers. He soon landed a job as a sales manager, the […]
Sales Compensation Requires Careful Consideration By Peter Lyle DeHaan Our company had multiple offices. Those in larger cities called for having full-time salespeople. At one of those offices, one with a larger geographic workforce to draw from, my ads always received a response. Yet not all respondents were good fits. For one applicant, Jennifer, our […]
Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures By Peter Lyle DeHaan Her words surprised me. “I can’t run this ad!” The rep’s response caught me off guard, but it wasn’t completely unexpected either. “I agree that it’s a bit unorthodox.” “I might get fired if I publish this.” She fumbled for words. “Or we might get […]
Ill-Conceived Incentive Programs Can Actually Hurt Sales By Peter Lyle DeHaan John was a salesperson who periodically visited our business. His company supplied specialized equipment to our industry, and we regularly bought from him. He cultivated relationships with many people in the company, including me, even though at the time I was scarcely an influencer—let […]