Articles for Sales Training & Business Development
CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF SALES AND BUSINESS KNOWLEDGE!
What Is Your Time Worth?
Mastering Your Time What is your time worth? Usually when we ask ourselves that, we’re trying to figure out what rate to charge a customer,
Take The Time To Celebrate A Job Well Done
Celebrate a Job Well Done I would like for you to take some time to pause and give yourself a pat on the back. I
Message To The Past
Your Younger Self Do you remember what you were like the first day you started in sales? Can you picture yourself in your office or
Resolutions
New Year’s Resolutions Not too long ago, you probably made some promises to yourself. Maybe you called them resolutions, maybe you called them adjustments, maybe
New Year. New You?
2021 Has Ended What was this last year like for you? 2020 was pretty crazy, wasn’t it? Was 2021 just as hectic for you, or
Use Visual Impressions to Advance Your Sales
Sales Are About Making An Impression. I’ve had the pleasure of working with a lot of great salespeople through the years. But it always stands
“Are You Sure We Won’t Be Thrown Out?”
Sales Training 101 “Are you sure we won’t be thrown out?” Sam* asked, looking nervously at me. Our job that day had been to train
Effortlessly Collect Testimonials from Clients and Customers
Customers and clients too busy to give formal testimonials? Discover how you can develop a system to collect reviews and testimonials effortlessly with these easy ideas!
What to Do After TOMA Ends
Wondering how you can continue to approach old potential customers that completed your TOMA campaign, but never responded? These ideas will help you stay in touch!
Client Care Call with Alexis Gallati
Want to sign up for any of Chuck Bauer’s Sales Coaching or Business Development programs? Check out this 6-min excerpt of a client care call PERFECTLY EXECUTED by one of our CPA client firms from Knoxville, Tennessee.
Results of Coaching Session with Thuy Nguyen
Thinking about signing up for any of Chuck Bauer’s Sales Coaching or Business Development programs? Check out this 11-min excerpt of a LIVE coaching session with one of our successful mid-size CPA client firms from Houston, Texas.
Full Coaching Session with Thuy Nguyen
Thinking about signing up for any of Chuck Bauer’s Sales Coaching or Business Development programs? Check out this full-length recording of a LIVE coaching session with one of our successful mid-size CPA client firms from Houston, Texas.
Sample Coaching Session with Thuy Nguyen
Thinking about signing up for any of Chuck Bauer’s Sales Coaching or Business Development programs? Check out this 25-min excerpt of a LIVE coaching session with one of our successful mid-size CPA client firms from Houston, Texas.
Power of Listening
How well do you actually listen to your prospects and clients? Learn about the power of listening and become one of the greatest communicators you can be.
Stay Focused – Even If You Think You Can’t
Unfocused? Having trouble getting back on track despite best practices? These are my top 3 tips to stay focused and improve your discipline.
Listen: Utilizing Delay Send for Emails on FICPA
Chuck Bauer discusses how to use a delay send email strategy to help you work smarter in this podcast episode with Mia Thomas, FICPA Director of Learning.
How a Set Sales Process Helps Sales Staff Close Deals Faster
Wouldn’t it be great if a sale just closed itself? Make closing more sales completely effortless by applying this one secret to your set sales process.
Listen: Building A High-Performance Recruiting System
The RIGHT people are your firm’s greatest asset—build a high-performance recruiting system using Chuck’s tactics shared with the Growing Your Firm podcast.
Listen: Working Smarter with Chuck Bauer on FICPA
In this podcast with host Mia Thomas, FICPA Director of Learning, Chuck sits down to discuss working smarter and time management strategies that will work immediately for any CPA or Accounting Firm business owner.
Listen: Setting Sales Processes with Chuck Bauer on NBRFM
Chuck Bauer discusses sales processes that create positive first impressions and manage expectations in any type of meeting with NBRFM host Sal Giangrasso.
Listen: Chuck Bauer on How to Turn Your Accounting Firm Around in 6 Months
CPAs: Generate more revenue for your accounting firm AND reduce stress with this advice that Chuck Bauer shared with the Growing Your Firm podcast.
Listen: Chuck Bauer on the National Business Review Radio Show
Inspired by success, Chuck Bauer discusses his work, his goals for his clients, and their achievements in this informative and inspiring podcast.
Shaken, Not Stirred – Playing it Cool Like James Bond
Networking events can be a great way to make personal connections but they also present challenges when it comes to follow-up. You exchange business cards, then maybe a couple of standard “it was so nice meeting you” emails, a few phone messages and then THE VOID.
What You Can Do to Have Yourself a Happy Holiday Sales Season
I hear the same thing every year: the holiday season is a “challenging” time for salespeople to set up meetings or close a deal. Why
Work Sales Smart – Not Hard
I have been involved in the sales & marketing industry for more than twenty years. Even today, it continues to amaze me that most, and
Who Moved My Referrals?
Imagine for a moment: what if you placed the same emphasis on referrals as the other items in your sales process? Where could this take
Employee Retention – The Interview and Training are Key!
Employee retention is critical to maintaining the profitability and success of any business. Not only are top, long-term employees by default, brand-loyalists, but they are a company’s best calling card.
Recruiting Mastery: Interview Tactics
Let’s cut to the chase: a lot of you sales managers and sales executives have tons of experience—you know what you’re doing, you know what you’re looking for. But what I’d like to do is give you two very out of the box interview tactics that will help you and supplement what you are already doing to find the right candidates.
Clients’ Believability Scale (C.B.S.)
One of the most powerful statements that Chinese philosopher Confucius ever made as it relates to YOUR presentations was the following: “I hear, and I forget; I see, and I remember; I do, and I understand.”
Monetizing the Value of Listening
Scientific studies have shown that 78% percent of our day is spent communicating. When you apply how we interact in today’s world – tactics like delayed send, repeatables, and others – that figure easily tops 100%. But studies also show we communicate at a 30% rate of efficiency, meaning seven out of every 10 messages are misunderstood, mistaken, missed or messed up… in other words – inefficient.
A New and Distinctive Tool For Your Sales Processes!
I have been waiting for new electronic sales tools to arrive and they have finally made their way to the marketplace: video email, live video broadcasting, and video training blogs! These sales tools work with all the following devices—and the number of compatible devices is growing by the day!
…And You Think You Have Difficult Clients!
This story comes directly from the experience of one of our sales training clients.
Names have been withheld to protect the innocent…
Focus is the Driving Factor for All Successful People
What traits do all successful people have in common? They have all perfected the art of focus, time management, and motivation to become leaders in their field. Successful people recognize the need to stay on task to complete it quickly and efficiently while maintaining optimal quality of their work.
Top 5 Healthy Habits of Successful People
Have you ever walked into a meeting and the person looked like they couldn’t be bothered to be there? Heavy sighing, heavy hand motions, every sign that showed they were in no mood to give you a minute of their time? Would you work with them again? Chances are, you’d find someone with a better positive mental attitude and someone who actually enjoys what they’re doing. In other words, someone great at their job.
Mastering Communication Boundaries
Every so often I come across a friend or business associate that is having communication challenges with a particular person or business associate. One suggestion that I offer is for them to understand and implement “Communication Boundaries.”
Have an “Open Door” Policy? Quick! Close it – NOW!
What increases productivity is the quality of your relationships with your staff and employees, rather than the quantity of time and familiarity with them. This one change — focusing on the quality of your business relationships, will boost your company and staff to the top in leadership skills.
Achieve Your Goals!
Prepare for the New Year and beyond! This FREE goal planner contains everything you need to help you plan and achieve your goals! Download today and don’t forget to share this with family, friends, and colleagues!
How to Increase Employee Retention in Your Business
Hiring a new employee costs serious money. How much to be exact? One study estimates 6-9 months of an employee’s salary is spent on recruiting and training. With the time, energy, and costs devoted to hiring and training employees, you want to find a balance for each and avoid high turnover.
Read on to see what you can do to keep your top talent happy while fostering growth and retention in new employees.
Suffering A Seasonal Sales Slump?
It’s that time of year again, when sales volume slumps during the holiday season. The CEOs and Sales Managers I work with have fits this time of year. Solve your seasonal sales slump with a holiday “Sharpen Your Sales” tune up!
Don’t Be a Brochure Drop-Er-Off-Er!!!
Recently I was in Shreveport, Louisiana running live sales calls with a salesperson from one of one of our east coast states. I flew in the night before and met with her over dinner. We looked over the sales plan for the next day…
Join The Video Revolution!
A New and Distinctive Tool For Your Sales Processes! I have been waiting for new electronic sales tools to arrive and they have finally made their
The Angry Gatekeeper
Think about the following sales situation for just a minute: You’re in pharmaceutical sales. You’re going into a medical facility. You know this medical facility has two gatekeepers. You also know that in the reception area…
The Perfect “Sales” Storm
Recently I received the following message from a student who is quick to implement what she has learned in her sales coaching sessions. The appointment that is described in this article is what happened in her words…
Becoming an Unconscious Competent
When I began my business career, little did I know that over a span of thirty years plus would I find myself writing a how-to article on the power of becoming an Unconscious Competent, a powerful methodology that when applied…
Achieving 100% Efficiency
We always need to be looking for ways to work better, faster, more efficiently. Every salesperson, every sales manager, every sales-related company is 70% inefficient unless they prove to me that they are not. So how do you achieve 100% efficiency?
We’re Currently Using Someone Else…
And We’re Happy!
Whether it is for financial services or a countless number of other industries, nearly everyone has an incumbent agent or company that they have an established relationship with…
Steps To Referral Program Sustainability
Steps To Referral Program Sustainability With this and any referral program, what you need is a program that is so simple and systematic that when
Finish First In Sales
Four elements help you close the sale: Recently I listened to one of my CEO clients give a sales meeting pep talk. His theme was
Improve Sales Conversion Rates
Through Voice Quality!
Listening to thousands of in-person presentations and phone calls since the mid-1990s has taught me that voice inflection is not something that salespeople get trained
When Should I Make That First Sales Phone Call?
Today’s question is from a sales manager, who writes “When should my salesperson start calling for an appointment? After the first two mail pieces? How
The Importance Of The 1st Monday In October
What Makes The First Monday of October Important? The first Monday of October is the day that all of our business students, sales students, and
7 Steps To Overcoming Challenging Attitudes
WORK on your personal foundation: the Five Pillars of Attraction. (F.R.E.S.H.) F: Finances R: Relationships E: Environment S: Spirituality H: Health Right now, write down one
44 Minutes On Hold!
Here is an interesting sales challenge I encountered while coaching a sales tune up in a Florida-based outbound/inbound call center. I am assigned to a
Is .25% Really An Enticement?
A sales challenge just in from one of our clients… I have a PROSPECT that is close to closing the deal with me. They have
Strategize w/ Chuck BEFORE Clicking Send!
Prospects ignoring your requests for follow-up appointments? If you are having trouble getting prospects or existing clients to respond to your requests for follow-up appointments, you
Lost Deal Due to Small Team Size
An interesting sales challenge from one of our clients… I have lost in the finals on 3 consecutive retirement plans —$12 million 401k, $5 million 401k
A Never-Ending Sales Cycle!
This prospect came to me in the fall of 2010 looking for advice on his 401k and his wife’s 403b. His brother, who is a
Recruiting Mastery: Know The Game You’re In
As I travel across three different countries working with sales managers, executives, business owners, and their sales forces, I find that sales managers and C-Level
Recruiting Mastery: Have A Plan
In my extensive travels in three different countries working with sales executives, I find that many don’t have a plan. When you don’t have a
Recruiting Mastery: Interview Tactics
Let’s cut to the chase: a lot of you sales managers and sales executives have tons of experience, you know what you’re doing, you know what you’re looking for. But what I’d like to do is give you two very out of the box interview tactics…
Recruiting Mastery: McQuaig Assessment
We have our recruiting flyer. We have our career package. We’ve done all the right things. We’ve gone through thirty resumes. We’ve done phone interviews
Sales Jeopardy
Every day across the world, there are hundreds of situations in sales known as sales jeopardy. Sales jeopardy is that moment in time, whether you’re face-to-face or on the phone, when you have made the presentation and are not getting a yes or a no.
Social Media 102
Turn Social Media Into Social SALES Media! Traditional marketing yields traditional results. Untraditional marketing yields untraditional results. Think about this for a minute. Century 21
Social Media 101
When it comes to social media, you have to be involved. We know this: 62% of men and women between the ages of 25 and
8 Steps To Earning A Successful Appointment
One of the most common gripes I encounter from Salespeople or Business Owners is that their prospects or clients are always canceling their (face-to-face, webinar or phone) appointments or even worse, they are getting no-shows.
Social Media—Stay on Top of Your Sales Game
Social Media can be sales media and it is here to stay! In addition to creating believability, social media gives clients and prospects the opportunity
Time Producers – Time Wasters
START today by getting your “stuff” together, STOP wasting time and take control of your sales destiny by increasing your personal sales production! Today, more
"I HAVE To Buy A Set Of Tires!"
You may be thinking “How weird!” about the title of this article. But you know what? It has a lot to do with many things
The Top Secret Sales Question
Every salesperson out there can change their sales revenue dramatically by using the “Top Secret Sales Question.” This question, could result in an immediate 10%
State of Sales Address
This is Business Coach Chuck with the “State of Sales Address” and tonight I’m glad we’re all here by virtue of internet communication in an
Are We Going To Be THROWN OUT?
Imagine this for a moment: your sales coach, instead of holding the usual meeting at his office or yours, picks you up and takes you to Barnes & Noble and once there, tells you something that prompts you to ask “Are we going to be thrown out?”
Make More Money: It’s As Easy As 1, 2, 3!
Because I work in the sales industry, I coach salespeople on their accomplishments as well as work with them on some of the difficult challenges
Are You Being Sales Distinctive?
Sales Distinction! This is going to be quick and easy. If you truly want to make more money in your sales career, if you really
How Are Your Sales Efficiencies?
Chuck’s All New Daily PMS Efficiency Chart Many of you are already familiar with my Weekly Sales PMS Chart-CLICK HERE to read Chuck’s article, Having
Become A Better Communicator
When we communicate with others, there is a preferred speed at which people who are listening have the highest amount of connectability—the ability to hear,
Words That Sell
As many of you know, I encourage all salespeople to have a plethora of sales tools at their disposal. From structured sales infrastructures, to personal
Get Sales Mileage from Your Holiday Cards
‘Tis The Season To Be Sales Smart . . . Every autumn, I get astonished looks from my audiences when I tell them to STOP
Want To Close More Sales? LISTEN UP!
One of the very best closing tools that you all have in your back pocket is the ability to REALLY listen to a client or
Take This Sales “POP QUIZ” Now!
Welcome back to school… when, every so often, to everyone’s dismay, your teacher would stop right in the middle of class and deliver a POP
Goals: Ready, Aim, Fire
The Purpose Of Goals Is To Focus Our Attention. The mind will not reach toward achievement until it has clear objectives. The magic begins when
You Didn’t Explain it Correctly
Three Reasons Why We Are Given a “NO!” Whether it’s making a sales presentation to a client, having a discussion with a loved one, attempting
Get Set Sales Processes Now
Where Are Your Set Sales Processes? Set Sales Processes . . . 95% of salespeople don’t have them or don’t understand the power of having
Increase Sales Belief—Increase Sales Revenue!
Did you see the UPSETS in college football a few years ago? It all started with Appalachian State UPSETTING Michigan 34 – 32. Then . . . look
I’ll Call You Back In A Few Weeks . . .
What Causes a Client to Say “NO”? Lucky. Yes, lucky. I am lucky that on a regular basis, I get to hear various communications between
Is There Anything I Can Do For You?
A Powerful Way To End Phone Calls and Meetings I am asked many times during speaking engagements on what I do when I conclude a
Visual Impressions Advance Sales
What Will Inspire You To Advance Your Sales? Just as you should use sales tools to make a visual impression on prospects and clients, you
Utilizing a Prospect Follow-Up Chart
You must follow up! If you don’t, your prospects will think you have ghosted them—to use current parlance—and they will never see a reason to
I SEE and I Understand – I HEAR and I forget
Using visual sales tools to forward your precision-based communication. 3rd Party – More Persuasiveness – Utilize the Believability Scale Brian Tracy says “97% of Americans
Thank Yous Advance Intimacy
One way to consistently “attract” business is through passive-aggressive communication techniques. Using these skills further advances intimacy with your clients and keeps you in touch
Having Sales PMS?
Yes, that’s right PMS! Actually I’m quite fond of PMS. In reality, I have PMS all over the place: in the air, when I fly my
T.I.P.S. – To Insure Prompt Sales
Among the most valuable business tips I ever received from motivational speaker Jim Rohn was the counter-intuitive “Tip in advance.” When we hear the word
Don’t Let Your Phone Run Your Life
Our phones certainly seem to run our lives! You know what I am talking about. You’re speaking to a friend and all of a sudden
Say What? Pay A Buck!
For four years, I served as a vice-president for a Dallas-based marketing and advertising firm. One of my responsibilities was to teach monthly sales training
It’s What THEY Remember That Counts
Communicating confidently is a challenge that we all face at different times in our lives. Whether it’s making a sales presentation to a client, conversing with a loved one, or speaking to an audience, communicating can be like a puzzle…
Closing Questions or Statements
Many of us at the time of closing a sale or asking for the order have a difficult time finding what to say. The following
Overcoming Negative Attitudes
My years of consulting with major companies have led me down interesting paths and into many fascinating experiences. Part of that fascination comes from watching
Tribute to Jim Rohn
Many years ago, I was a very new student in the personal development arena. I really did not know much about the field; many of
A Special Tribute to My Dad
My dad. What an extraordinary individual! A human being, a man of compassion—yet all the brawn a person could muster. He was born and raised
We Have a Long Way To Go
It’s 1:00 P.M., Central Time; Monday, September 17, 2001. Just six short days since the tragic events that occurred in New York and Washington, D.C.