Advice for Aligning Sales & Marketing

I’m publishing a series of Q&A excerpts from my interviews with Sales 2.0 leaders, which will appear in my next book. This is an excerpt from my interview with Mark Burton, former VP of sales at MySQL (acquired by Sun Microsystems), where he was responsible for growing and managing MySQL AB's entire international corporate sales force, indirect channels and partnership alliances. He has been involved in enterprise-level sales leadership for 30 years. My first question for Mark: What were your "failures," or things that didn’t go…  Read this blog >

What's your V.I.T.A.L Vision for Success?

I recall when, back in 1989, I was a few years into the growth of my first software company. Having bootstrapped the business and eked out survival through the first year or two, things were beginning to take shape. Each year I grew revenue levels over the previous year – but not by a lot. I used to approach planning from a position of "Where am I now, and how can I improve on this?" The result was steady-but-not-spectacular growth. As I was entering my fifth year, I was struck by the realization that with this growth curve, it was going to take me a long time to create…  Read this blog >

If you want more referrals for your business, the key is to be top-of-mind. But if people only have a vague idea of who you are and what you do, you're not likely to stand out. When you're building a relationship, offering a simple description of what you do isn't enough. Communicating a unique sales story to prospects is a fine art that any successful person strives to master. Download this Executive Editorial and get expert advice on how to: 1) identify the main point you want to make. 2) effectively describe who you are and what you do…  Read this executive editorial >

This white paper outlines the 5 top inefficiencies commonly found in sales organizations. You will learn how to recognize the causes of these inefficiencies and about the steps you can take to resolve those conflicts in your sales organization. You'll learn ways to: 1) Prioritize & act upon 'hot' leads 2) Improve communications within sales 3) Harness the best practices of your sales team…  Read this white paper >