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New to Ascender, not to Sales
Hello All, My name is Nick Vassel and I have been in sales for over 20 years. I have always been a very hard worker but have recently seen the value in working smarter! I look forward to learning tips and knowledge about how to become a better salesperson. Talk to you all soon! NV
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Encouraging a Growth Mindset
It’s easy to get caught up in chasing results and forget the journey that gets us there. But when we focus only on outcomes, we miss a crucial opportunity to foster growth, both in ourselves and in those around us. Encouraging a growth mindset means embracing challenges, learning from mistakes, and constantly seeking…
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December 6, 2024 - Ascender Insights: Selling to Experienced Buyers [Event Recap]
Antonella O'Day joined us to help you identify, gain access, and better sell to experienced buyers. This was a really interactive group with lots of questions! If you have questions to follow up with, please leave them in the comments and we'll work with Antonella to get you answers. Talking points included: Level-setting…
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Delivering clear and constructive feedback
The most important part to get right with Carefrontation is creating a feedback loop that actually has an impact. There are two really big issues with feedback delivery that occur in most organizations. It either, A, gets delivered too harsh where it’s impossible to hear where growth can be achieved because it just sounds…
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Close the Excuse Department Door and Open the Door to Growth
Here’s the thing—excuses might make you feel better in the moment, but they won’t get you anywhere. When things aren’t going well, it’s tempting to lean on reasons why: the market is tough, the lead list wasn’t great, timing didn’t work out. I get it. But I’ve been in sales long enough to know that real growth starts when…
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November 21, 2024 - Ascender Insights: Beating a Slow Economy with Value-Based Selling [Event Recap]
Jörn Wozny joined the Ascender team to talk about how he tailors Value-Based Selling to his approach. This event covered some insight from someone who's located in EMEA (Germany), as well, so if you have questions or want to hear more from Jörn, be sure to tag him in the comments! Talking points included: Framing your…
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Build trust through authenticity
If you want people to be vulnerable and share the hard truths, you’ll likely have to lead the way. This is easier when your manager has set the standard, but you can still impact team culture as an individual contributor. Here are three ways that you can help create a culture of better communication, no matter what level…
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Buyer Alignment is Non-Negotiable
Aligning with your buyers isn’t just a best practice - it’s essential. I recently read this article here on Ascender and had to jump in and reiterate the importance of this for Q4. We’re in the final quarter of the year, our buyers are facing pressures to justify every investment, and they need partners who understand…
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Embracing Radical Candor (or Carefrontation)
I have spent a lot of time recently thinking about Radical Candor, the concept popularized by Kim Scott. If you’re not familiar, it’s about caring personally while challenging directly, creating an environment where feedback is both kind and straightforward. There’s a real balancing act that we need to consider when…
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The Power of Practice
Staying at the top of our sales game requires the same level of dedication as elite athletes. Just like the pro players hit the gym after hours or run extra drills when the stands are empty, we have to commit to practicing our craft when no one is watching. It’s the work you put in after the workday that separates the good…
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November 1, 2024 - Ascender Insights: Differentiating Yourself as a Salesperson [Event Recap]
Diana Sheley dropped serious knowledge on our Ascender Insights webinar that was all about "Differentiating Yourself as a Salesperson". From setting the tone to coaching your team, Diana's got the best ways you can actually stand apart from the crowd. Check out the recap, recording, and deck below. Talking points included:…
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Best Practices for Disqualifying Deals?
Does anyone have any best practices around disqualifying deals? I'm guilty of holding onto deals to long. I'm trying to get better, but sometimes it's difficult when things are tight.
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Good questions to ask
I just saw this on LinkedIn and thought it was worth sharing.
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Critical decision criteria
Today I have a question for everyone here. Our solutions require changes to the procurement process at the target customers. However, as the current procurement processes of large customers are often not so easy to adapt, one of the purchasing department's decision criteria is very often that the purchasing process must…
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October 4, 2024 - Ascender Insights: Building Consensus with Metrics [Event Recap]
John Boney joined us to talk about Building Consensus with Metrics. We covered the why and the how, discussing the reasons you need to ensure that everyone is on board with your solution and how it will help them reach their goals. Check out the recap, recording, and deck below. Talking points included: How to frame your…
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How Do You Prep Others to Join Your Sales Calls?
Would love to hear ways you like to make sure everyone joining a call with your prospect is prepared. We shared some tips in this article. Share the ones you would add!
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Take the Stairs: The Only Path to Real Success
Last week, I shared a quick video about how the only way to get to the top is to climb. Throughout my career, I've learned there are no shortcuts to success. You can’t bypass the grind, skip the failures, or leap past the challenges. The truth is, there’s no elevator to success—every step you take is necessary, and every…
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Value pyramid
I am looking for materials or examples regarding Value Pyramids. Can someone help or is something planned here within Ascender?
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Relationship Mapping Tools
What tools are folks using for building usable relationship maps? I’d like to mimic the example provided in the Ascender Account Planning training module (attached). Haven’t been able to find a good way to create in this format with color coding and key detail. Any thoughts and direction are greatly appreciated. Thank you.…
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What are some resources you're looking for?
We're always on the lookout for ideas on webinars and resources to build. We just saw a great discussion today and are looking into a relationship map and whether or not we can build one for Ascender use! What are some ideas you have for us that you'd like to see completed?
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Best Ways to Follow Up
This is one of my favorite topics to write about because I think it's an often overlooked way you can differentiate yourself as a salesperson. Curious to hear others' tips on following up on sales meetings.
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Objection Handling
What’s the best rebuttal for “ we heard about your company and we aren’t impressed. Our friend said she used you and she wasn’t happy with the process but she enjoys the process.”
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Templates?
I'm curious if anyone has some standard document templates for the following: Account Plan Opportunity Qualifier (MEDDICC) Meeting Planner I'm building a team and have the opportunity to set the standard to build from. I'd rather edit good existing templates than create my own from scratch. Thank you! Lance @Joe Huber
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Prospects withholding details of pain
We have a new logo team of mostly young sellers. They are mostly new to Force Management and are improving. We are noticing a trend of prospects withholding hard numbers. An AE had a call yesterday with a COO of a small company (under 200 employees). The first TED question around the pain was answered a bit vaguely as…
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Reducing Buyer’s Remorse: Creating a Differentiated Buying Experience
This article calls out a trend that many of us have noticed with customers increasingly preferring a self-serve form of purchasing with less interaction with an actual rep. Unassisted buying can often lead a higher purchase regret. This can be avoided by offering a more meaningful, differentiated buying experience. In the…
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New here🙋🏿♀️
Hello, I'm Takii (Tuh-k-eye) I am from re:WORK training program transitioning from healthcare into tech sales. Thanks to Joe I will be using the Ascender platform to expand my knowledge of sale methodologies and prospecting to have a solid foundation when I start my role as a BDR/SDR at a company. Let's connect on…
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How to revisit our "Selling to the C-Suite" series
Be sure to check out the tag for "Selling to the C-Suite" should you wish to revisit our series from last year when we interviewed C-level executives about tips and best practices on how to sell into each level. From CMO to CFO to CEO, we covered it all!
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September 6, 2024 - Ascender Insights: Objections Throughout the Sales Process [Event Recap]
Antonella O'Day was live to talk about objections and what they can look like throughout the sales process. This one had a lot of great questions and we dug deep on how you can overcome nearly any objection thrown your way. Check out the recap, recording, and deck below. Talking points included: Anchors and how to use them…
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Attaching your solution to a business problem/initiative
What is the best approach to determine who to speak with that holds this information? We sell into construction, and our best initial point of contact isn't usually our champion (lacking influence at big companies). Lets say I've done a good discovery but they can only provide insights into their problems, not the…
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August 21, 2024 - Ascender Live: MEDDICC in EMEA [Event Recap]
Tim Caito came on to talk about selling in EMEA, what some of the cultural differences are, and how some differences get exaggerated. Check out the recap and the recording below. Talking points included: Level-Setting on how EMEA is different Noting that EMEA is NOT a monolith How selling is still about problem-solving…