The Financial Times on winning new business in a recession…
As many of you know I have been very busy speaking at sales conferences and sales seminars so I haven’t had chance to post this article before in which I was interviewed for the Financial Times of December 08. Virginia Matthews was exploring the need for small and large businesses to drum up more prospects and more opportunities in the current economic client and I think it is well worth reading... [Read more]
On being a motivational speaker…
I was interviewed this week about being a motivational speaker by Simply Sales Jobs who are running a series of interviews to help sales professionals and people thinking of commencing a career in sales to better understand the benefits, challenges and rewards of a career in selling… You own and run ‘Gavin Ingham Ltd’ – tell me more about your role, company and what motivated you... [Read more]
The return of the sales apprentice…
A few weeks ago I was enjoying the sun on my back and a long cool drink on my balcony in Spain when I got a message to call Jennifer Celerier from this year’s Apprentice. Having written so much about them I was intrigued so I decided that I would give her a call straight back. Apparently, both she and Kristina Grimes (who came second in 2007) had enjoyed my blogs on the Apprentice and wanted... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice 2008: Sales training tips from the hit TV show, the final
The final of The Apprentice 2008… Who would Sir Alan choose to be his apprentice? Would he go for the corporate girl? The “reformed” loud mouth? The “young” boy? Or the geezer? What sales training and business lessons would we learn if any? It doesn’t seem any time since we had 16 candidates and here we were with just four left and a final decision to make. The teams for tonight had already... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice 2008: Sales training & business tips from the hit TV show, part XI
Love them or hate them, tonight The Apprentice treated us to the “interviews” of Lee, Claire, Lucinda, Helene and Alex. There weren’t any sales training or business lessons to be learned and we didn’t get to see much of the interviews. You can’t learn much about interviewing from The Apprentice either unless you want the spirit if not the weight of UK Employment Law bearing down on you. Still,... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice: Sales training tips from the hit TV show, part X
In last week’s Apprentice the task was to rent out high end supercars. The team making the most sales would be the winner. A sales task plain and simple and one which created many interesting sales training and business lessons.. Sales managers for the day on the two teams were Michael (leading Helene and Claire) and Lee leading Lucinda and Alex. Their first task was to pick two cars per team... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice: Sales training & business development tips from the hit TV show, part IX
Well! Well! Well! What was that all about? What did you miss if you chose to watch Man U and Chelsea rather than tuning in to Sir Alan and his wannabee business moguls! After tonight’s Apprentice I was left feeling that something must have been left out in the editing, that something must be lost in translation somehow… Tonight’s show was an odd one with few or no sales training lessons... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice 2008: Sales training & business development tips from the hit TV show, part VIII
Tonight’s task for our sales training apprentices was “big business” said Sir Alan… weddings. Sir Alan had secured each of the teams a sales pitch at The National Wedding Show at the NEC in Birmingham. The Wedding Show attracts 20,000 visitors and 300 suppliers… a target rich selling environment as one of my first sales managers used to be fond of saying… Tonight... [Read more]
The Sales Apprentice 2008: Sales training & business development tips from the hit TV show, part VII
Lights! Camera! Action! We were down to 10 but by the end of the show these 10 were to become 8! What went on in tonight’s Apprentice and what sales training and business development tips, if any, could we learn from it? At the start of tonight’s programme I was concerned for Sir Alan… Could it be that there is no-one remotely worth hiring in the show at all this year? I’m really not sure and... [Read more]
Why people think salespeople are stupid…
Last week I was on the train travelling back from London having run two of my sales seminars – No Fear Cold Calling and Professional Selling Skills – and I was reading the Evening Standard. On page 12 (Comment – Thursday 1st May 2008) there were a few pieces written by Charlotte Ross and a picture of Kevin and Sara from The Apprentice. Underneath it was written the following… A... [Read more]
