Sales Training America Seminars:

Sales Training America is a world class sales training and custom development training company specializing in sales training and sales skill development of our client's sales force. At Sales Training America we help our clients improve their sales profitability through the development of their sales management and sales efforts through SalesForce.com implementation. Sales Training America offers both public (open enrollment) sales training seminars well as the development of customized sales systems and sales seminars for Fortune 1000 companies across United States and Canada.

Are you one of the many corporations now focusing on core sales activities while implementing SalesForce.com while outsourcing non-core functions in response to intense competition?

If you are, Sales Training America can help there too. If you simply want to outsource some of your sales or sales management training or if you want to redefine yourself completely to survive mergers, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, downsizing, or corporate restructuring we can help you.

For free, no obligation information on how we can help you with your sales training needs please contact us today.

Sales Training Tips:

Sales Seminars Advice: Mistakes, Tips on Using Names

Dale Carnegie said that the sweetest sound a person can hear is his or her own name.

True, for the most part--when used appropriately by the right person at the right time. Conversely, in some cases, a person's name can be a turn off.

At the Safeway grocery store I frequent in Scottsdale, the check-out personnel are apparently instructed to call customers by name when they read them on the credit or debit card receipts. Nice intention, bad execution. Maybe once out of 100 trips the person has gotten close to saying mine correctly. It's actually quite comical how they struggle, then butcher it.

And it still floors me, the ignorance of many sales people when hearing a difficult or unusual name on phone calls. In talking to sales or service people on calls where I was the customer, after spelling my name, I've heard such idiotic comments as,

"Oh, that's a weird one."

"That's a strange name."

And some sales people just burst out laughing.

What do these dolts think? That I'm going to say, "Yeah, I know."

I personally don't stay up nights fretting over this. Mine IS an unusual name. (It's pronounced Sob'-check.) I'm used to it. Hey, to top it off, my first name is Art. Think of how many times I heard "Art Fart" while growing up, or, "I bet Art is your favorite Sub-JECT (yuck yuck)."

Some Sales People can be such morons.

But the name issue is a very tender area for some. And it says a lot about the sales person making the comment.

I don't mind if, after saying or spelling my name, a fellow Pole makes a commiserating comment like, "I've got you beat. My name is Wojtkewkowski."

Otherwise, it's really out of place to make inappropriate comments.

If someone with an unusual name takes the lead, and pokes fun at it himself after spelling it, it's certainly OK to react in some way. I make a point to spell my name, SO--BC-ZAK. Then I say, "I used to start out with 'SOB--' but too many sales people commented on how descriptive that was."

That breaks the ice and elicits some laughter and small talk.

The safe rule: absent of their self-deprecating comment, say...nothing.

I took a call from a guy, and he very slowly recited his name: "Buddy Bunne." And he pronounced it BUN-EE. Like a little rabbit (but he didn't say that). I admit, I bit my lip and paused--you could almost feel him bracing for the anticipated wise-guy response. "And your address, Buddy?" I continued, not commenting on the name.

Pssst, here's a secret. Those of us with unusual names already KNOW our name is different. Some of us good natured folks just blow off comments with humor. But others view their name as sensitively as they would if they had a third ear protruding from their head. You wouldn't comment on that, so why take a chance of offending someone?

Here are a few sales tips for you on name pronunciation:

1. Here's a website where you can enter names and hear an audio with the pronunciation: http://www.pronouncenames.com/
You can also add pronunciations that you know to be correct, and perhaps variations of others.

2. Best yet, before reaching the sales prospect, ask someone at the sales prospect's company how to pronounce the name. (And please, do NOT say, "What is the correct pronunciation of Bill's name?" Like you would be looking for the incorrect way to say it?)

3. Also ask others how the sales prospect prefers to be addressed. Robert, Bob, Mr. Smith, etc.

4. Do not rename them. Use their name the way it is written, and the way they say it when they greet you. For example, one of my customers, David, said that people will often call him Dave even after he answers the phone with, "This is David."

Source: Art Sobczak link

Related: Sales Seminars

Back to Sales Training Seminars and Tips