Rick Davis

The advantage of being an LBM sales representative is that you sell products customers need and are guaranteed to buy. The job is half done for you.

I’m not so sure history repeats itself as much as people repeat the same mistakes. Therefore, as we enter 2020, it feels like a good time for a history lesson in sales to avoid the mistakes of the past.

If you want to build a quality sales team, you have two routes to choose. One is to hire and hope, and the other is to build a funnel of talent from within. Of the two options, the latter has proven to be more successful.

Inspect what you expect. It’s an old rule of leadership and yet, many managers never take the time to follow this simple piece of advice when it comes to managing outside sales representatives.

The problem for LBM dealers is the false expectation that you can “hire” sales. The best way to build sales is through planning.

The "backward sale" happened again as it does thousands of times each day throughout the world. The checkout clerk attempted to embellish my purchase at the last minute by shoving the extended warranty brochure into my hand.

“Why do people negotiate constantly with us, but would never expect to negotiate on the price of milk or a stick of butter at a grocery store?” The answer is easy: You tell them to!

Get to give. That is the answer to the price objection and, yet, many salespeople have never learned this fundamental lesson in Sales Negotiations...

You will never know the joy, power, and satisfaction of holding your price and winning a sale until you’ve held your price and lost...

Don't underestimate the order taker. It took me a while to accept this valuable idea because, early in my career, I kept feeling guilty after...