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Selling is dead. So what are companies doing to survive?

After all, s ales pays for everything in every company. So why is it that in a recent study, 92% of sellers were judged by those who manage them to be selling at extremely low levels? The study pointed to ineffective management of sales opportunities as the principal cause.

Count on it: An unskilled sales force, or one that isn't aligned with the market, results in:

1. Resistance, skepticism and even distrust;
2. Difficulty attracting and converting new prospects;
3. Much longer prospecting and sales cycles; and
4. Sales and opportunity costs that are too high and take too long to develop.

Research shows that there is a revolution occurring in sales which every executive needs to understand. The research is based on scientific study instead of opinion-based surveys. The new models uncover a transformation in the way we view selling, leading to a new framework and skills that make a quantum leap by becoming more aligned with current realities.

More importantly, companies adopting the new, 21st century models find remarkable success as soon as they draw on the research to change the way they relate to customers or clients.

Five Key Success Points

Conclusions from the research lead to five key findings, creating the new framework and skills needed to compete successfully in 2008.

Team Synergy: It was discovered that team synergy and cooperation rank among the highest reasons for successful selling. Team synergy is a total alignment between a strategic marketing plan, the selling team and upper management, each working to achieve and support the other's goals using empowering processes and relationships.

Dealing With Active and Dormant Demand: Active Demand is a dissatisfaction that is intense enough to kick-start the buying process. Dormant Demand is a dissatisfaction that is perceived to be low on the prospect's priority list and therefore not acted upon until circumstances require it to become a priority. It's important to note that top sellers work with dormant dissatisfaction; order takers much of what passes for sales today work with active dissatisfaction.

Top sellers are able to identify dormant dissatisfaction that relates to their goods and services. They are able to transform it into active dissatisfaction, elevating it on the prospect's priority list and thus leading them to take action.

Implementing Demand Creation Programs: The new, scientific-based research led to the virtual elimination of the most dreaded,

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