Woeful Tales of Misdirected Salesmanship

Ten Habits of Highly Ineffective Salespeople

Here is my “Top 10” pet peeves list of bad salesmanship.


(Photo: Gary Hernbroth)

1. Salespeople not listening. Hearing, maybe, but not listening

2. Not paying attention to details

4. Choosing to take the "path of least resistance" rather than the right/better path

Woeful Tales of Misdirected Salesmanship

Meeting planners should demand more from their supplier partners in these tough times

by GARY R. HERNBROTH

Plenty of people responsible for leading sales teams and hospitality organizations tell me that their people are really working as hard as they can, doing everything possible to dig up business in these lean, recessionary times. I’m sure that they want to think that. It is only natural that they want to believe in their sales team’s efforts being up to the challenge in the murky economic doldrums we find ourselves in.

But sadly, I don’t believe that all salespeople are doing everything possible to corral the fewer clients having meetings and events these days. They can’t be, given the stories and examples that have been relayed to me within the last several months.

When Lynne Valentic, CMP, a longtime planner currently working as a conference director at Custom Management in Charlottesville, Va., tells me the major problem she sees today from salespeople “is getting them to call me back,” there is something really, really wrong. And she is only one of many planners that have made similar comments in this economy.

Lame sales efforts—in a recession? Wait a minute! Stop the presses! Something is wrong with that picture!

The Word on the Street
But before you jump to conclusions that I might just be another cynical author...

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6. Trying to be slick or smooth

7. Not evolving their skill set beyond what the basics are—being "good enough to get by"

8. Not keeping their word

9. Sloppy work

10. Mortgaging the future for the quick sale now