Counter-Intuitive Selling: Mastering the Art of the Unexpected

By Bill Byron Concevitch

In today's highly competitive selling world, changing old habits has never been more important. It's been said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again, while expecting... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1419593293
• ISBN13: 9781419593291
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Kaplan Publishing
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.6" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Sales guide to arousing the curiosity of your prospects

Bill Byron Concevitch believes that to make it as a salesperson, you must distinguish yourself from the pack. So, he suggests changing your behavior and doing something different simply because it's different. He mixes tried-and-true sales advice, such as making sure you're talking to the person who actually makes the purchasing decisions, with razzle-dazzle. His style is folksy and informal, almost associative, and he's a great believer in mnemonics, acronyms and list making - each chapter ends with a list of "successful seven" action steps you can take to reinforce his suggestions. Some of his ideas may be more than "counterintuitive" - they're probably counterproductive. (For example, that assistant who puts your call through because you convince him or her that the boss is expecting it will not make the mistake a second time.) But his book is a useful reminder to question your assumptions and to get out of your day-to-day rut. getAbstract recommends this book to both new and experienced salespeople, and their managers, who want to branch out and retrain themselves.

Counter-intuitive is accurate... This book fills a missing gap.

As a seasoned sales, sales management and sales training leader who has spent 18+ years helping companies improve sales performance, I've read literally hundreds of books on sales over the years... some absolutely great; many absolutely worthless; most just floating in the mundane middle. In comparison to most, I found this book refreshing and insightful. Admittedly, maybe it's because, like Concevitch, I've spent time leading both sales teams and training teams, and tend to focus on creating lasting behavior change (it's the only way to tap into the huge potential of the 70% of sales performers in the middle... who are neither the top 20%, nor the bottom 10%). But that is a big focus of the book - so it's had to ignore - and frankly, it's right on target and much needed in most of the sales forces I've observed. If you want to create some lasting, positive change in your sales force, there are some good tips here. As a training pro, it's also hard to ignore the mnemonic acronyms, like G.U.I.D.O., N.E.R.D., H.E.R.B and H.A.N.K. - all part of the Decision-Maker Rater system. Okay, perhaps they foster a slight wry grin, but in doing that, they also stick in your memory. More importantly, the concepts make sense... a sort of account development primer for how to identify the decision roles within accounts and navigate appropriately. Those who enjoy the story-telling style made popular by other business authors in recent years will also easily follow the sales rep, Ken, through his journey learning from his sales mentor, Frank. Somewhat subliminally, this also underscores the critical element of coaching and mentoring - also missing elements in some of the sales forces with which I've worked or consulted. Now, having said all that, you won't find sales training basics here. It's not a treatise on basic selling skills, territory management strategies, or pipeline/opportunity management. If you need those basics, there are other places to learn them. But if you're seeking to break out of the mold, think solidly about account development, and change some behaviors to increase your major-account (maybe "tough" account) selling prowess, you'll pick up some food for thought and actionable ideas here.