Closing, in the context of sales, is a heavily discussed topic, and--unfortunately--also one of the most misunderstood.

Feedback. It’s a big topic in sales. Often we are quick to listen to what our peers think of a sales call, or our manager's feedback during 1:1s. But how about the customer, what about their feedback?

I recently had a restaurant experience that reminded me of the importance of good communication in a sales process. Far too often sales professionals get focused on their own process and forget about the customer experience.

Invariably you or someone you know has, at one time or another, been a customer of Comcast. This conglomerate is the largest media company in the world and, more importantly, one of the biggest providers of high-speed internet.

How many times per day do you hear the words “thank you?” If you talk with a lot of vendors, and take numerous introductory sales calls, you probably hear those two words all the time.

When it comes to sales prospecting, there are many mediums to use. Phone, even in 2017, is still an incredibly powerful way of connecting with a company.

Prospecting can have a great impact on a salesperson's success.

Forecasting is the most important part of a salesperson’s job. Revenue generated by sales is the lifeblood that allows a business to grow. As a sales professional, it’s imperative that you are confident in your ability to forecast future revenue to the company.

When you’re in sales, you spend some of your time describing your product to customers and potential customers. When sales reps are speaking, it is incredibly importantly that they sound confident.

One of my favorite television shows over the past decade is the HBO drama The Wire. In season three, episode 11 there is a scene where a hitman from New York (Brother Mouzone) approaches the Baltimore kingpin Avon Barksdale. The hitman is seeking access to Avon’s partner who tried to have him killed in the previous season. The following dialogue occurs.

“Who is signing the contract?” This is a question that many sales leaders will ask their individual contributors (IC). My experience in Enterprise Sales has shown me different ways to reach the answer to this question. One of the better ways is understanding the power within an organization by powermapping. This technique helps you understand the more crucial question, which is: “do we have a deal here by a certain date?”

A wise business leader once told me: “David the only things in life worth doing are hard.”

After speaking with 31 different companies, I chose to join Rainforest QA for two major reasons. First, its product was solving a problem that I had witnessed first-hand. Second, Rainforest provided an opportunity to continue my career development as a sales professional. The following expands my thought-process in more detail.

Over three months I had the pleasure to speak with 31 companies about an Account Executive position. The different processes of these many organizations inspired me to write some observations and suggestions.