The Sales Leader’s Guide to

What it Takes to Achieve

Extraordinary Sales Performance

ExSP White Paper

by
Howard Mager and Jerry Cahn
Managing Partners

May 2009

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com

 What it Takes to Achieve
Extraordinary Sales Performance
INTRODUCTION:

E very sales force consists of people with a range of skills, experiences and accomplishments. While
increasing everyone’s proficiency with core sales functions (e.g., prospecting, presenting and closing) is a
common leader’s goal, during economically challenging times like today, the highest sales ROI will result
by focusing on those sales people who generate the most sales. Based on our research, the top 15% of
sales people produce some 30% of sales. These top performers outperform their monthly, quarterly, and
annual sales goals by excelling in what we call The12 Attributes of Extraordinary Sales Performers.

Typical Company Sales The Attributes of Extraordinary Sales Performers

Mindset
Profile of Sales % of sales % of sales • Commit to be Extraordinary
people force revenue • Focus on the Customer’s Needs
ExSP’ers 5% 14% Skill Sets
Superior 10% 18% 1. Setting Sales Goals and Being Accountable
2. Selling the Right Buyer
Above Average 25% 33% 3. Powerfully Asking Questions and Listening
4. Presenting a Compelling Case
Average 40% 30% 5. Using Sales Demos and Proposals to Close
Below 20% 10% 6. Creating More Value to Negotiate the Best Sale
7. Selling Beyond the Immediate Transaction
8. Building Long-term and Committed Relationships
On average, the top15%
of a typical sales team contributes 30+% Enablers
• Master A Sales Process
of the team’s total sales • Use a Personal Sales Dashboard

Enabling these top performers to master and consistently apply these attributes has the greatest ROI
potential because (1) they already have demonstrated theirs sales prowess and (2) through consistent
mastery, they can have a “ripple effect” on the rest of the organization.

The Extraordinary Sales Performance (ExSP) team is dedicated to helping top performers consistently
demonstrate higher results. Our Intensive Training Program gives them the deliberate practice, education,
accountability and feedback needed to master ExSP’s focused mindset, skill-sets, and system enablers.

Our white-paper is designed for sales leaders committed to enabling their top sales people to consistently
demonstrate Extraordinary Sales Performance. In it, we pinpoint these attributes, so you can identify,
train and enable your top sales people. More information on our training and consulting programs
appears at the end of this paper. We look forward to your feedback.

May your sales force’s performance be truly extraordinary this year!

Howard Mager and Jerry Cahn

Managing Directors
Whitepaper1@extrasalesperformance.com

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 2

 Mindset
M 1.0 The Commitment to Be Extraordinary
Committing to extraordinary sales performance is both a psychological and
physical process. You need to have a vision and be relentless in achieving
your goals. It means you have to regularly audit your strengths and
weaknesses, commit to build on the strengths, and overcome the
weaknesses.

A professional sales person constantly engages in acquiring new sales skills

insights and practices by learning from the very best sales people. This
includes being inspired by the Masters and having an informal “advisory
group” of salespeople, sales managers, and buyers to meet regularly in
order to share experiences and ideas, learn from their fresh perspectives,
and be held accountable for commitments to improve sales strategies and
techniques.

Example

John, a communication solutions salesperson, is described as “The Best” by his customers, peers, and
managers. When John is asked why he consistently tops his sales goals and outperforms the other
salespeople in the company, John says it’s all about being the very best he can be for customers! And,
his customers say that John is the most professional person they know and that his pride in being a
salesperson is legendary. John will also tell you that his commitment to being the very best partner for his
customers is no different than the commitment that Tiger Woods or Derek Jeter thrives on! John’s day is
not any different than the typical day for Tiger or for Derek. These champions practice regularly and
almost to a fault. Tiger Woods has been seen practicing the same shots over and over again. He is
relentless in focusing on practicing those things that are critical to his success and practice them until he
feels/sees improvement. Derek Jeter has been seen at batting practice from dawn to dusk because he is
committed to being the best he can be! These champions have standards of excellence and are
committed to practicing to improve their success---whether it’s taking a stroke off of a golf game or
moving a batting average from .295 to .300.

Being an Extraordinary Sales Performer, John is committed to continuous improvement and would
practice and track his progress as he raises the bar continuously. He thoroughly enjoys and takes
immense pride in practicing his power questions with his peer group until he masters the delivery.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. What level of commitment do you have to being a leader in your market and on your team?
2. What do you do regularly that strengthens your sales skills and your understanding of your
customer’s workflow and pain points?
3. How can you best use an advisory group that meets regularly to provide you with guidance &
feedback?
4. What diagnostics do you use to profile your development areas?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 3

M 2.0 Focus on the Customer’s Needs

Extraordinary Sales Performers share one key mindset…that

is keeping the focus on the customer’s world…a truly
outside-in focus. They examine and analyze both the
professional and the personal side of the buyer.

Examples

Tom, who sells medical devices to dentists and oral

surgeons is an ExSP’er and attributes his own success to his
commitment to the success of his customers and to their
patients. He is very much aware that his customers’ world
revolves around the Dentists’ patients and their total
experience! His day starts in waiting rooms where he
observes best practices of dental offices---that is, how
patients are treated when they first arrive and while waiting for their appointment. He then shares best
practices of this check -in procedure with his clients. Tom also is dedicated to attending as many local and
regional dental seminars and conventions to learn how the best reduce their time spent on non-clinical
work , and shares these best practices with his dentist customers. At these conventions, he also checks
on the latest ways that Dental practices retain their patients (from sending Birthday cards to giving electric
toothbrushes).Tom does not think of himself as an equipment vendor. He sees himself as a business
partner and is committed to providing his customers with the latest on best practices. Tom also has a very
informal “advisory team”…folks in his field that regularly get together (usually at Dental conventions) to
compare what works and what fails.

Jeremy sells landscaping services to builders. As he qualifies his buyers, he makes sure to understand
the “total person”. Most sales people zero-in on the industry needs of the buyer. Jeremy goes out of his
way to understand the total person. In the case of builders, he wants to know if this person is working on
a legacy house or a fast profit type of house. If his prospective buyer is working on a “legacy” project,
then Jeremy will make sure that his approach is based on creating the most spectacular and long lasting
landscaping creation where the focus is on the buyer’s need of long lasting beauty. Conversely, when he
meets with builders that want to turn a quick profit, he uses grass seed and plantings that are very green
and are fast growing. While the offerings and benefits might be different for Jeremy, depending on who
the buyer is, the FOCUS is the same--FOCUS on the customer’s world-professional world and personal
world.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How do you determine what success looks like for the customer? For the customer’s customer?
2. What are the best ways to understand your customer’s workflow and what are the pain-points?
3. What type of personal achievements might be at stake with this buying decision? How can you best
frame-up your offering to be focused on these issues?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 4

 Skill sets
S 1.0 Setting Sales Goals and Being Accountable
The very first step of setting goals is the development of an
account strategy that will enable success for the customer. This
strategy always includes Smart Goals. ExSP’ers have SMART
goals and are disciplined in holding themselves accountable for
taking the necessary steps to achieve them.

SMART goals are:

S pecific
M easurable
A ttainable (by stretching)
R ealistic (given the current situation) and
T ime defined (Regular goals without deadlines are just wishes)

Sales Mangers typically focus on Outcome Goals, such as meeting financial quotas. But to get there you
need to start with SMART goals. The top performers will set SMART goals on sales process goals; such
as, creating a sense of urgency for the buyer to buy, now or delivering presentations that are more
concise and compelling, and/or listening more carefully to the customer’s full set of needs.

Example

A commercial real estate salesperson, Doris, has an overall sales strategy of growing her sales by
building deep relationships with a constantly growing % of the total New York based corporate real estate
market. She starts with estimating the number of corporate real estate people she knows, and then
calculates what % that represents of the total New York market. She then sets a realistic goal to know a
higher % in the next 6 months. Then she sets a 30 day goal for herself that 100% of those identified and
contacted will be qualified (that is qualified that they have a need for space in the next 18 months). She
then commits to specific networking activities that will help her identify the top corporate decision makers.
Doris then schedules a “Can we Talk?” meeting at a local Starbucks or Hotel to “eye to eye” qualify the
person by asking the right questions that will surface “pain points” and specific needs. She then
determines the “hot buttons” that will create a sense of urgency for the buyer and builds a compelling
presentation. She then commits to an action plan and holds herself accountable in several ways. She
sets alerts on her computer and Doris also has the benefit of having a great relationship with a former
boss who she meets with once a week for breakfast and they work together to set weekly goals and she
reports to him on her progress.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. What behaviors do you need to regularly fine-tune and polish in order to do things like:
• Be more customer-centric, rather than just selling features and benefits?
• Reach the top decision-makers, rather than their staff?
• Align this purchasing decision with client goals?
2. Who is holding you accountable for practicing a new style, reading about your customer, and making
the follow-up calls? How often?
3. Who helps you to build and implement a winning account strategy complete with goals, action plans,
and success measures?
4. How do you get the resources you need?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 5

S 2.0 Selling the Right Buyer

Identifying the real decision maker is a crucial beginning step to

the sale. Qualifying the right buyer is as simple as asking the
right questions about decision-making:
• Who is involved?
• How will this decision be made?
• Who owns the budget?
• Who benefits the most? And why?
• Who has the most at risk?
Without determining who the right buyer is, you run the risk of
selling the wrong person and not getting the sale. Top performers spend an inordinate amount of time
qualifying the right buyer as well as who might also influence the sale.

Example

Sarah, selling CRM solutions, identifies the right buyer by asking the right questions. She does not make
any assumptions. Her motto is, “Decision makers own the budget, non-decision-makers implement the
activities to spend the budget”. She also knows that just because a CFO is the buyer at one company,
does not mean that the CFO will be the buyer at another company. She makes NO assumptions! She
uses the above questions to find the right buyer and to understand who will impact the decision.

Sarah knows that with the Enterprise system she is offering, she would start with the CIO or Sales Ops
person and ask the right questions. From that point she gets the CIO to set up meetings with the Sales
Leader and the CFO. After she gets the facts from the Sales Leader regarding “usership” and facts from
the CFO on ROI expectations, she packages her compelling points and presents her
assessment/recommendation to the right buyer. From that point, she skillfully negotiates the best terms of
value/investment for her customer and her company and closes the sale.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How can you strengthen the questions you ask to determine who the right buyer is?
2. Once you identify the right buyer and buying influences, how do you follow-up?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 6

S 3.0 Powerfully Asking Questions and Listening

Top performers know that in order to get the right answers, they
need to ask the right questions and to LISTEN! They spend time
and energy in creating the right questions and in rehearsing how
they ask the questions. The right answers will get them totally
through the process so that they can successfully close the sale.
And, in asking questions powerfully, they set the perfect
environment for buying and selling.

Example

Brad, who sells analytical intelligence, has the highest close rate in his field. He attributes his success to
the powerful questions he asks at the very first meeting with his qualified buyer. Unlike his unsuccessful
competitors who do a product dump, Brad goes “Outside-In” with power questions to first determine the
“pain points” of his prospects and then to set the right environment for the prospect to ask for more!
Standard questions include:
• How important is it for your company to have a firm handle on the market forecast for the next 6
months? Year? Five years?
• What capital improvement decisions are based on this forecast?
• How do you currently forecast growth for your market segment, region, and territory?
• If the forecast is off by more than 5%, what are the implications?
• If the forecast is within 5% of actual, what are the benefits?
• How do you currently measure market potential? As well as your penetration of that market potential?
• How does your understanding of your market potential and penetration impact your success?

Using these questions, customizing them to the precise needs of the prospect and by listening, Brad has
consistently earned the “Top Gun” award from his firm.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. What standard questions do you ask to help the prospect understand his pain points?
2. How do your questions trigger answers which help you understand the impact of the buying decision in
terms of your customers’ “hot buttons” - i.e., productivity and / or greater profits?
3. Do your questions properly set the table for a rewarding Buying/Selling environment?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 7

S 4.0 Presenting a Compelling Case
Why should your customer buy from you, now? That’s what he/she is
thinking before you begin a pitch. It’s nice to think people are always
looking to GAIN from a new purchase; but behavioral economics has
demonstrated that the avoidance of PAIN - not missing out on an
opportunity their competitor may have - is a more powerful
determinant. So you need to address both issues. Many years ago,
IBM dominated the Office PC world because “you can’t go wrong by
buying an IBM”. Only after more people were buying Compaqs at
home, with great success (and saving money doing so), was the door
open to alternatives, and Dell offered the most compelling argument –
“get it your way, at a lower price” to get market dominance.

Buyers’ concerns go way beyond the product. From a business

perspective, trust of the company and the sales person is critical. How will the decision be aligned with
other short- and long-term decisions the company is making? How will other parties feel about the
decision (e.g., will they undermine the purchase because it is too risky or cost too much?)

From a personal perspective, how ready is the person to listen? How many other presentations is she/he
going to listen to? Does your presentation clearly differentiate itself from others and appear vastly
superior? Remember, elevator pitches should take less than 30 seconds, and great presentations should
be delivered in less than 30 minutes.

Example

A Fire Alarm Systems OEM salesperson, Karen, relies upon her knowledge of her prospects’ profile as
she builds and delivers her compelling sales pitch. She does her homework in asking her prospect
specific questions that will allow her to shape the offering. Is the person a “Controlling Dominant” type of
buyer who needs to make a choice between “X” and “Y” or is he/she a Studious/Adaptive type of person
who wants as many facts and references as you can deliver for each buying decision? In her field, she
will always focus on the RISK of selecting an inferior Fire Alarm system and reinforce the fact that the
decision is more than economic---it could be a matter of life or death!

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How much do you know about your prospects profile and how much do you shape the words and
format of the presentation to meet the specific communication needs of the prospect?
2. What steps do you take to better understand the context within which the presentation will be made?
3. What efforts do you take to make sure the complete value proposition (benefits of the product, sales
person, company, etc.) is compelling and concise?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 8

S 5.0 Using Sales Demos and Proposals to Close

Product demonstrations don’t introduce your product; rather they

are used to close a conditional sale. Extraordinary sales people
know that the key to a sale is to get the buyer to articulate the
needs and willingness to buy, subject to the sales person being
able to prove that the product/service can do as advertised and
the company stands behind it as promised. Then, the
demonstration proves it can do what was said, so the buyer
wants to purchase and immediately benefit from the investment.

Example

The power of doing this correctly happened once to Peggy, a VAR (Value Added Reseller) who was
selling an integrated graphic system to a set of buyers. When the buyers came in for the sales pitch and
demonstration, it turned out the monitor died, and a new one would have to be obtained – which would
take about 30 minutes. Rather than lose a minute, Peggy qualified the customer’s needs with very
specific questions and then started getting him to imagine what would happen on the screen if specific
steps were taken. This created excitement and enabled Peggy to ask the right trial close questions. And,
it gave the buyer an opportunity to conditionally approve the order. By the time the monitor arrived, the
buyer wanted to see if it did what was promised. The demo took less time than ever before, and led to an
immediate order. And, Peggy identified yet another way of using a new form of demo as a closing
technique by showing how the product/service would deliver on its promises!

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How do you best determine the customer’s full set of needs?

2. How have you encouraged a sense of anticipation to see the results you know you can deliver?
3. How can you improve your trial close questions?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 9

S 6.0 Creating More Value to Negotiate the Optimal Sale
Extraordinary sales people are expert negotiators, but ExSP’ers do not
consider themselves negotiators! They see themselves as extenders of
the value prop! They know they need to go beyond the specific issues
on the table – the products features and its cost – and include issues
not originally considered which increase the value of the transaction. By
expanding the pie, you often can both give and get more.

Example

The very best example of this is McDonalds. When a person orders a

hamburger, the person on the other side of the counter is trained to say,
“How about a Happy Meal. You not only get your hamburger, but you
get fries and a coke with that for only another 79 cents. Separately they
would cost you $1.59. So, can I get you a Happy Meal?

Two other examples help make the point.

First, a company wanted to license the rights to its TV series to a local station. The question of course
was how much? Both parties realized that the number of times that reruns would be shown per day would
affect the licensing fee, since the more often it showed, the less value it had to advertisers. While
struggling to come up with a deal, the licensor added value by noting that next year another series would
become available and, if they did a deal now, the TV station would get priority in bidding on that show.
That clinched the sale.

Second, a construction firm was bidding on a job. Among the competitors was a young firm which was
offering a very aggressive price in order to get the deal. The owner was leaning toward the save-now
opportunity. Recognizing that, the more established company focused the owner’s attention on the risks
of cost and time over-runs and concerns by neighbors about construction problems. It then strengthened
its value proposition by noting how its track record of meeting schedules and budgets, avoiding any costly
litigation from accidents during constructions, and its excellent relationship with neighbors in all its jobs. It
was awarded the deal.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. What steps do you take to look beyond the immediate issues on the table to find other items of value
for the buyer?
2. How do you communicate your Hamburger vs. Happy Meal offering?
3. What process do you follow to appreciate the longer-term relationship value?
4. Who helps you find the hidden costs and benefits that aren’t immediately visible, but can be quite
significant.

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 10

S 7.0 Selling Beyond the Predictable Transaction
Most salespeople perform towards a predictable goal, say, 5-
10% above last year. They stay in a historic “comfort zone”
using only incremental growth strategies. ExSP’ers set “stretch”
goals and achieve them by focusing on the future, putting
together and implementing winning strategies by expanding
their horizons of possibilities beyond the predictable transaction

Example

Dawn, who sold online advertising always operated in her peak performance zone. In fact, she never
thinks about her comfort zone was! She starts her day, week, month, and year determining what
performance possibilities could be for specific accounts and then built strategies around attaining these
30-50% growth levels. Rather than thinking about a renewal as “Gee, I hope I can get them to renew their
business and ‘accept’ the 3-5% rate increase”, she envisions what success would look like for that
customer if they invested 50% more in her service. Then she is able to work backwards and sell more
services at renewal based on the unusually high rate of return on the additional investments.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How do you visualize the horizon of possibilities of a future new sale?

2. What techniques do you use to “think the unthinkable” when assessing the scope of renewing
business at a 50% increase? How do you communicate these possibilities to your customers?
3. How often does your advisory group help you visualize possibilities?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 11

S 8.0 Building Long-Term and Committed Relationships
Building relationships generates repeat business and
referrals – the fast way to grow your sales pipeline. These
are Committed Relationships for ExSP’ers.

Networking is the first step and has neither a beginning nor

an end. It is an endless process and you probably don't even
realize you are doing it. It’s the art and science of
strengthening the relationship to the point where the
customer is buying more and volunteering referrals on your
behalf. It’s the skill set of helping your customer become a
HERO.

Turning a buyer into an evangelist is more than providing quality products and services; it’s earning the
“mind-share” that you are special, having the person understand what you do and being able to
communicate your value proposition easily to others. And, most important he/she wants to do so,
because it will help the person to whom he/she make the referral!

Examples

Melissa has developed many unusually strong relationships with the key buyers in the communication
services market. She will attend all appropriate communication industry conventions with these buyers. At
these sessions, her buyers will not only introduce her to other prospective buyers, but her buyers will also
give a very strong testimonial on how Melissa helped them solve an incredible problem and/or create a
fantastic growth opportunity. Melissa is not only getting introduced in person at these events, but is also
getting her buyer to endorse her in a most powerful way.

Linda sold a $1M educational assessment service to a State School Board. As an ExSP’er, she knew that
they were investing over $1M to get the state’s average test scores above “X” level. If scores were below
that level by the end of the school year, the members of the school board would probably be asked to
leave their positions. The assessment product performed beyond expectations and by the end of the
year, the assessment scores were 11% higher than what was expected and/or required. To celebrate her
customer’s success, she convinced her company to take out full page ads in the key newspapers of the
state, congratulating the school board on achieving record setting achievement score results. Her
customers loved it for the focus was on them and the people who voted for them and managed them
were seeing how successful they were. This celebration not only began building a strong long term
relationship but also triggered the members of the state school board to refer many of their fellow school
superintendents to reach out to Margarita to get a proven solution but also to work with someone who
knows how to have fun making her buyers look like heroes. Her customers, who now feel like HEROs,
passionately recommend her to the right people for the right reasons! And the strength of the committed
relationship positions her as a trusted partner who can make a hero out of her customers.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How do you help your customers measure their success?

2. What creative ways do you help them celebrate their successes?
3. How easy is it for your customers to communicate on their own what you do and why you do it to their
contacts?
4. Has your service been so extraordinary that the customer’s mind-share for what you do will prompt
them to recommend you to their clients and colleagues who would also benefit from working with
you?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 12

 Enablers
E 1.0 A Sales Process that is Precise Yet Flexible
Selling is a process. It’s not a one step transaction!

A personal sales process can consist of a number of steps,

anywhere between five and 10 steps. The process begins with
the full identification of a customer’s need (pain-point) and never
ends! The sale (transaction) takes place with the fulfillment of a
customer’s need and the post-sale process builds/strengthens
the relationship and starts the renewal process.

Example

Gary, an ExSP’er who sells Control Technologies to the

commercial and military aerospace industries, has a five step
process:

1. Identify and Qualify the Lead

2. Meet with Key Decision Makers
3. Design and Deliver a Successful Presentation
4. Submit the Proposal
5. Make the Sale and Keep the Customer Happy

In the above example, Gary utilizes his firm’s CRM to track the 5 phases of the sale. Once the opportunity
has been monetized, say $100,000, then each step carries a weighted opportunity. For example, if Gary
forecasts that the sale will be $100,000, he would enter $100K in step 2 and that would carry a 25% Win
Probability and move to a 50% Win Probability at step 3, and a 75% probability at step 4. At any given
point of time, Gary and his entire support team know what’s in his pipeline at what stages and at what
values. The amazing value here is that once they see the status of a pipeline opportunity, the team, under
Gary’s leadership, can then plan and implement the winning sales strategies to move from step to step
and ultimately close for the WIN! See example below

5 Steps to a Sales 1 2 3 4 5

Win Probability 1% 25% 50% 75% 100%

$-Opportunity TBD $100K $100K $100K $100K

Weighted $ to close $1K TBD $25K $50K $75K $100K

Close Date TBD TBD 7/1/09 7/1/09 7/1/09

Now on a regular basis, Gary reviews his pipeline and regularly strategizes (with members of his team)
how he can move opport unities to the Sale.

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How can your sales process be more effective ?

2. How do you better track leads as well as sell opportunities?
3. How do you work with your team to manage your pipeline?
4. How do you measure and benchmark: critical success measures in your pipeline?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 13

E 2.0 A Personal Sales Dashboard
It is a real-time analysis as to how a business is
operating, just like on an automobile where real
time information is displayed about the
performance and navigation of that vehicle. Think
about getting into your car, setting the navigation
and then with a quick glance, be able to tell where
you are in relationship to your destination (goal),
how fast you are going, the distance remaining,
and the directions to get there! In addition, you
know what milepost you are at.

The key is making sure that you are tracking the

right measures!

Examples

Linda, a role model ExSP’er, was the first on her sales team to have a computer---1989! Her home/office
set-up was mighty impressive! When she powered on his computer, the first thing that popped on her
screen was this message:

“Good Morning, Linda. Today is July 1, congrats! You have sold 63% of your annual goal. You need to
sell $47,000 this week to be on pace for meeting/exceeding your goal. Which opportunities can be closed
this week? How?”

Linda did not need a nagging manager to ask him how he was doing and ask him how he was going to
meet/exceed his goal---he had his greeting from his computer. He immediately clicked a few keys and
saw his dashboard---YTD Sales, Share of Market, # of 90% opportunities, his win %.

Within minutes, Don was able to instantly know how he was doing and chart out his course to
meet/exceed his goal.

Bob, Cal, and Steve are fellow salespeople at a

window manufacturing company. They work
directly with consumers who need new windows.
They are all avid users of a sales process and
their company has given each of them a world-
class dashboard.

When you look at each of their dashboards and examine their pipeline measures, the unaided eye might
conclude that each was extremely successful; even though they were tracking different measures. Bob
has a huge pipeline and is mighty proud of it! Steve has an incredibly high close rate and he considers
himself Top Gun. And Cal has the largest $ Sales with consistently high levels of leads and an enviable
close rate. By Bob’s standards, he is a huge success in that he has the largest pipeline but he is not
measuring his close rate which is low. Steve has the highest close rate of the team, but he has the
smallest number of opportunities. Cal is the only one tracking the right measures! And, Cal consistently
has the highest monthly sales!

Questions to answer to achieve ExSP

1. How do you upgrade your dashboard to be world-class??

2. How do you set SMART goals on key measures such as: win rates, referrals to qualified leads, and ytd
sales vs. ytd goal?
3. How do you use the metrics in the dashboard to communicate essential data through and to your
internal sales support team?
4. How do you use the metrics to determine what actions you should take now? And how do you hold
yourself accountable?

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 14

This white paper was produced by Howard Mager and Jerry Cahn, ExSP Managing Directors.

ExSP’s is dedicated to enabling sales people to achieve extraordinary sales performance, by using a holistic
approach which focuses on perfecting their skills through education, practice and accountability. ExSP Intensive
Coaching for Sales Professionals is its core program. Over a 4 months period, participants set both sales process
and outcome goals , and closely monitor their performance. Weekly, each person is held accountable by the team
members for perfecting strengths, overcoming weaknesses, capitalizing on opportunities and confronting threats. On
a weekly basis, our Sales Master teach meet with the entire group, using Webinar technology to review progress and
discuss the theme/attribute of the week. Through weekly homework assignments, each sales person gets to re-think
existing s trategies and techniques and adopt new ones to help them improve their sales processes and achieve
significantly higher sales outcomes

ExSP would be delighted to meet with you and offer a multi-step proposal for your team. We would develop a
proposal for your team which would:
1. Profile your sales team
2. Evaluate competency levels of groupings of your total team
3. Project goals
4. Outline how an intense program would drive over plan sales for 2009.

ExSP was founded by Jerry Cahn, Ph.D., J.D. and Howard Mager who leverage their (collective) 50+ years of sales
experience with large and small organizations to help stars become superstars.

The ExSP Managing Directors

Howard Mager Managing Director and co-founder of Extraordinary Sales Performance.
Previously, he was Senior Vice President of McGraw-Hill Construction.

Howard has extensive business experience in Publishing and Information

Services where he held senior General and Sales Management positions. He
is recognized for structuring and leading teams and individuals through large
and complex change initiatives. He was responsible for leading the launch and
execution of customer segmentation programs, the introduction of new
informational web-based products/services, the implementation of a business
development pipeline management processes, and talent management
initiatives. Over a span of 25 years, he was Publisher of Chemical Week,
Business Travel News, ENR, Architectural Record, and Group Publisher of 15 regional construction
publications. Howard formed the Strategic Alliances unit of the McGraw-Hill Construction Group where he
led the teams that designed and executed the original alliances with the American Institute of Architects
and with the Design-Build Institute of America. In 1997, Howard worked with the China International
Contractors Association to initiate the first China/U.S. Construction Summit and in 1998, he led the unit
that conducted the International Construction Summit in Rio de Janeiro. He also directed the team which
founded the Construction Industry Presidents Forum. Howard headed a cross-unit task force within the
McGraw-Hill Companies on Talent Management and achieved a Corporate Achievement Award for
Leadership.

He is an honorary member of the Construction Industry Roundtable, member of the International Coach
Federation, Director of the International Road Federation, Board Director of the New York Society of
Military Engineers, mentor with Women-Unlimited, Inc., and Executive Coach for Lee, Hecht, Harrison.

Howard graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a B.S. degree in Business Administration and
received a MBA from Michigan State University. He also completed case courses in marketing
management at Harvard University and participated in Creating the Market-Focused Organization at the
Kellogg School of Management.

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 15

 Jerry Cahn, Ph.D., J.D., is a presentation master, organizational strategist and
executive coach. He helps clients to design and implement effective business
strategies, sharpen sales and marketing performance, develop leadership skills and
performance cultures, and produce winning sales, marketing and investor
presentations.

Trained as a psychologist and attorney, he was a pioneer of the computer

presentation graphics industry; he cofounded and led Brilliant Image which, over 15
years, helped 5000+ clients, including investment bankers, VCs, Fortune 500
executives, and public/investor relations firms to produce winning presentations on
a 24/7 basis. He also served as president of the industry trade association, IAPP.
Previous career accomplishments include: turning-around a public (healthcare)
company with its stock price increasing tenfold in two years and serving as a
Legislative Assistant for Health and Environment on Capitol Hill.

Since 2000, he has served as CEO of Presentation Excellence, a resource center serving achievement-
oriented executives. Using his presentation expertise, strategic leadership skills and creative
organizational insights, the company’s team of consultants helps clients address a wide range of
business challenges through presentation training programs, consulting projects, Strategic Management
Advances, and Mentoring Programs. He also leads Company affiliates, Wall Street VIPs and Target 3
Communications, which provide branding, investor/public relations and corporate communication
services. He is now involved in two very interesting new ventures Leader Connections, where leaders
share, inspire and give back, and Extraordinary Sales Performance, a new sales training program
designed to help stars become superstars.

Dr. Cahn is a sought-after speaker, providing keynotes, webinars and workshops for corporate and
association audiences. Dedicated to education, he teaches courses in Business Strategy (BA),
Leadership Development (MBA) and Entrepreneurial Communications: Selling and Negotiations (MBA) at
Baruch College (CUNY). He also serves as a mentor for CUNY’s Executive on Campus Program and
operates his own intern program which has served 500+ students throughout his career (to date)!

For more information, visit www.extrasalesperformance.com or call 800-493-1334.

THANK YOU

© Extraordinary Sales Performance. 2009. www.extrasalesperformance.com 16