Sales people and companies who sell to interior designers, is it too late?

Warning..this blog is extremely honest! Today I heard of yet another major showroom closing it's doors here at the Chicago Merchandise Mart. At first, I was so sad and then got very mad. Why? Because maybe, just maybe it didn't need to close if they had a stronger sales strategy. Yes, I know the economy kicked the wind out of our sales (get it?). But it seems more and more companies and showrooms are still unable [...]

Good Appointments Are Worth The Wait!

I'm coaching a great sales person right now. She sells contract product mainly to hospitality and commercial designers. So she is taking my e-course Powering up Your Sales NOW! and had this response when I checked in with her and asked how she was doing? She said she was getting a little frustrated. That it took so much less time making appointments by just calling, showing up and showing product. She said this is taking so [...]

3 easy steps to skyrocket your sales of interior products in 2017

Those who achieved or surpassed their goals...Bravo! Those who didn't, it's not too late to stop focusing on speculating why you didn't and just do something about it to change the outcome, permanently! I teach sales people an approach to selling to meet the challenges of today's marketplace. The old way of "pushing" product, by dumping product in front of a client, talking about how wonderful these products are and leaving it up to them to [...]

5 Top Tips to SUPER-CHARGE Your 2017 Sales for Interior Design Products

I know it's almost cliche to talk about goals for a New Year, but here's why I still do it. It works...it's a new year, new start and usually new sales year. So why fight it? Instead, let's do it! I am still hearing from so many salespeople they don't write their goals down and are still focusing most of their presentation on the product instead of really asking those great qualifying questions to get to [...]

How do you accelerate sales from a new Interior Design product launch?

As long as I have been in sales, (arrgh... more than 25 years) August and September were known as NEW PRODUCT LAUNCH months. As sales people we always knew summer was a slower time, as designers and their clients were vacationing and wanted little to do with designing spaces. But comes late August and the product would come pouring in. To sales people this was our Christmas. Clients want to make their homes ready for the [...]