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Rainmaking Conversations: Influence, Persuade, and Sell in Any Situation
Master the conversations that can make or break everything in complex sales
Every conversation presents opportunity to find new opportunities, win new customers, and increase sales. Rainmaking Conversations gives you a proven system to uncover and leverage these opportunities and achieve maximum revenue results, robust relationships, and deep trust.
Rainmaking Conversations is the first book to offer a research-based selling approach that can help you master the art of the sales conversation. From start to finish of each conversation, you'll make every client contact you have count towards developing sustainable sales success.
Build rapport and trust from the first handshake Learn the 7 keys for leading successful business development conversations Develop winning value propositions that gets prospects excited to buy Craft winning solutions and close the deal Speed up the sales cycle Lead conversations that persuade and influence the prospect to choose youRainmaking Conversations walks you through RAIN SellingSM -a world-class sales methodology that has helped tens of thousands of people lead powerful sales conversations and achieve breakthrough sales performance.
- GenresBusinessNonfiction
ebook
First published February 23, 2011
65 people are currently reading
277 people want to read
About the author
Mike Schultz
6 books5 followersMike Schultz is a world-renowned speaker, researcher, and sales expert. He is author of several books, including WSJ Best-seller Rainmaking Conversations (Wiley, 2011).
As President of RAIN Group, Mike has grown the firm into a global leader, named a Top 20 Sales Training Company by Selling Power and Training Industry. In 2020, superior client results earned RAIN Group a Brandon Hall Award for Best Unique or Innovative Sales Training Program and four Gold Stevie Awards for Sales Training Practice of the Year, Sales Training Program of the Year, Sales Training Professional of the Year, and Business Development Achievement of the Year.
Mike and the team at RAIN Group have worked with national and international organizations such as Toyota, Citibank, Canon, Bright Horizons, BDO, Hitachi, Lee Hecht Harrison, Hologic, Optus, and hundreds of others to unleash sales performance.
As Director of the RAIN Group Center for Sales Research, Mike and an analyst team study buying and selling relentlessly. Studies include Virtual Buying and Selling Challenges, Top Performance in Sales Negotiation, Extreme Productivity Benchmark Report, Top Performance in Sales Prospecting, The Value-Driving Sales Organization, What Sales Winners Do Differently, Top Performance in Strategic Account Management, Top Sales Leadership Challenges and Priorities, and The Top-Performing Sales Organization.
Business Week, Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, MSNBC, and hundreds of others have interviewed and featured Mike's articles, research, and white papers. He frequently appears on top-ranked radio, TV, and podcast programs to discuss various sales topics and new research findings.
Named an influential sales professional by LinkedIn, Mike has presented at major events, including HubSpot INBOUND, Strategic Account Management Association’s Annual Conferences, Sales Leadership Conference, and Sales Operations Institute. In 2019, he was honored as a leading keynote speaker by Top Sales World.
Passionate about raising awareness of congenital heart defects (CHD) and organ donation, blogging at www.echoofhope.org, the American Heart Association (AHA) of Central Massachusetts honored Mike with the Heart of Gold Award in 2018.
Mike is a graduate of Brandeis University in Waltham, MA with a B.A. in American Studies, and holds an MBA from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College. He was an adjunct professor at both schools, teaching courses in marketing and sales.
You can download his free white papers, guides, and eBooks at www.raingroup.com/resources and watch his videos at www.youtube.com/raingroup. Follow Mike on Twitter at @Mike_Schultz and LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mikeschultz50/
In addition to Rainmaking Conversations, his other top ranked sales books for sellers and sales leaders include:
• Professional Services Marketing (Wiley, 2013)
• Insight Selling (Wiley, 2014)
• Virtual Selling: How to Build Relationships, Differentiate, and Win Sales Remotely (2020)
•Not Today: The Productivity Code Revealed (2021)
As President of RAIN Group, Mike has grown the firm into a global leader, named a Top 20 Sales Training Company by Selling Power and Training Industry. In 2020, superior client results earned RAIN Group a Brandon Hall Award for Best Unique or Innovative Sales Training Program and four Gold Stevie Awards for Sales Training Practice of the Year, Sales Training Program of the Year, Sales Training Professional of the Year, and Business Development Achievement of the Year.
Mike and the team at RAIN Group have worked with national and international organizations such as Toyota, Citibank, Canon, Bright Horizons, BDO, Hitachi, Lee Hecht Harrison, Hologic, Optus, and hundreds of others to unleash sales performance.
As Director of the RAIN Group Center for Sales Research, Mike and an analyst team study buying and selling relentlessly. Studies include Virtual Buying and Selling Challenges, Top Performance in Sales Negotiation, Extreme Productivity Benchmark Report, Top Performance in Sales Prospecting, The Value-Driving Sales Organization, What Sales Winners Do Differently, Top Performance in Strategic Account Management, Top Sales Leadership Challenges and Priorities, and The Top-Performing Sales Organization.
Business Week, Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, MSNBC, and hundreds of others have interviewed and featured Mike's articles, research, and white papers. He frequently appears on top-ranked radio, TV, and podcast programs to discuss various sales topics and new research findings.
Named an influential sales professional by LinkedIn, Mike has presented at major events, including HubSpot INBOUND, Strategic Account Management Association’s Annual Conferences, Sales Leadership Conference, and Sales Operations Institute. In 2019, he was honored as a leading keynote speaker by Top Sales World.
Passionate about raising awareness of congenital heart defects (CHD) and organ donation, blogging at www.echoofhope.org, the American Heart Association (AHA) of Central Massachusetts honored Mike with the Heart of Gold Award in 2018.
Mike is a graduate of Brandeis University in Waltham, MA with a B.A. in American Studies, and holds an MBA from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College. He was an adjunct professor at both schools, teaching courses in marketing and sales.
You can download his free white papers, guides, and eBooks at www.raingroup.com/resources and watch his videos at www.youtube.com/raingroup. Follow Mike on Twitter at @Mike_Schultz and LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mikeschultz50/
In addition to Rainmaking Conversations, his other top ranked sales books for sellers and sales leaders include:
• Professional Services Marketing (Wiley, 2013)
• Insight Selling (Wiley, 2014)
• Virtual Selling: How to Build Relationships, Differentiate, and Win Sales Remotely (2020)
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Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
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February 18, 2018"Rainmakers recommend, advise, and assist. They are change agents who are not afraid to push when it's in the best interest of the customer" (17).
"The road to success is always under repair" (28).
"A value proposition positioning statement is a compelling, tangible statement of how a company or individual will benefit from buying from you" (37).
"The collection of reasons why people buy fall into three major buckets:
1. Prospects have to want and need what you're selling. You have to resonate.
2. Potential buyers have to see why you stand out from the other available options. You have to differentiate.
3. Potential buyers have to believe that you can deliver on your promises. You have to substantiate" (38).
"There are two core buyer mind-sets you will encounter when selling: problem solving and future seeking" (60).
"When you think about providing value, don't just think about the value you will provide after they buy from you. Think about the value they'll get from speaking with you. Eventually, you'll sell your company, your offering, and yourself. At first, sell the idea that the prospects' time will be well spent if they elect to speak with you" (163).
"Whichever approach you choose, the prospect has to see value in the meeting itself. Eventually the prospect may get value out of your products and services, but for now, you need to sell the value of a first conversation" (166).
"Anticipate and raise objections that may be below the surface. Don't think that just because objections haven't been raised they aren't there. You take a risk when you bring up possible objections (welcome to sales), but if you're not the front-runner by far, the risk is often worth taking. At the same time, you build the relationship with your honesty and openness. Buyers appreciate that" (193).
"The road to success is always under repair" (28).
"A value proposition positioning statement is a compelling, tangible statement of how a company or individual will benefit from buying from you" (37).
"The collection of reasons why people buy fall into three major buckets:
1. Prospects have to want and need what you're selling. You have to resonate.
2. Potential buyers have to see why you stand out from the other available options. You have to differentiate.
3. Potential buyers have to believe that you can deliver on your promises. You have to substantiate" (38).
"There are two core buyer mind-sets you will encounter when selling: problem solving and future seeking" (60).
"When you think about providing value, don't just think about the value you will provide after they buy from you. Think about the value they'll get from speaking with you. Eventually, you'll sell your company, your offering, and yourself. At first, sell the idea that the prospects' time will be well spent if they elect to speak with you" (163).
"Whichever approach you choose, the prospect has to see value in the meeting itself. Eventually the prospect may get value out of your products and services, but for now, you need to sell the value of a first conversation" (166).
"Anticipate and raise objections that may be below the surface. Don't think that just because objections haven't been raised they aren't there. You take a risk when you bring up possible objections (welcome to sales), but if you're not the front-runner by far, the risk is often worth taking. At the same time, you build the relationship with your honesty and openness. Buyers appreciate that" (193).
November 4, 2022
Great book to give show and teach how to become an effective salesperson. And not just in sales, in any other field, if the lessons in this book are applied, they will help you succeed at whatever it is that you do.
December 26, 2017
Frameworks, and a little theory. Build rapport and then focus on the advantages of a particular product framed for your audience, essentially.
December 25, 2018
Достаточно базовая книжка по навыкам продаж. Еще и от консалтеров
July 21, 2012
It seems like the sales/presentation classes that you see at work are like quick seminars on specific issues. This book is like a semester class covering many of the issues I've seen in sales and presentation classes over the past 10+ years. There are plenty of recommendations that really sound familiar, and often that's because they are. But, this book provides a good overall selection of to-do lists for how to sell. While the book promised to share ideas on selling using demonstrations, there really wasn't much specific to that kind of presenting, so I didn't feel this book covered everything. I listened on audio, and there were really too many lists to keep track of, there were lists within lists. I'd suggest not listening to this one, read it instead.
October 28, 2020
As a business owner, responsible for many rainmaking conversations, this book struck a chord with me before I even opened it. Since this is an area I always want to improve in, I opened it with hopeful expectancy.
At the same time, I have read many sales books and realized I could be disappointed or finish the book feeling I had not learned anything new.
While I’m not sure I had massive thunderbolts of insight, I am certainly glad I read this book.
- See more at: http://blog.kevineikenberry.com/leade...
At the same time, I have read many sales books and realized I could be disappointed or finish the book feeling I had not learned anything new.
While I’m not sure I had massive thunderbolts of insight, I am certainly glad I read this book.
- See more at: http://blog.kevineikenberry.com/leade...
August 15, 2014
A how-to-book to be a top 10% sales person (i.e, rainmaker). Book explains the RAIN framework (Rapport, Aspirations and afflictions, impact, and New reality) and walks you through a common sense sales approach that focuses in on conversations to build trust, uncover issues, and frame impact in an understandable way. There is a chapter towards the end of the book called "How to Kill a Sales Conversation" that is especially concise. Generally a quick read.
A reminder for product people to look not only to solve problems for today, but to meet hopes for tomorrow.
A reminder for product people to look not only to solve problems for today, but to meet hopes for tomorrow.
April 13, 2012
Nothing earth shattering as far as new ideas and approaches but an exceptional book that really reinforced the basics and covered everything from motivation to tactics in a no nonsense and practical way. One of the best sales books that I have read in a while.
September 28, 2012
Selling, selling, selling. Some good points for non-sales people but not up my alley. For example: know what you are going to say, and have visuals to help people see what you are driving at. Got about 1/3 way through.
Want to read
June 1, 2012Joe Nezi spoke at the 2012 annual PRISM conference in Vegas at this session: "Accounts Strategy & the Sales Call" and recommended this book.
May 31, 2014
Some good tips, but it seemed like a pitch for me to buy their services more than a book for how to generate greater sales.
March 17, 2015
Definitely has some useful points in it, unfortunately the framework used to deliver the information detracts strongly from the content.
May 18, 2016
I had high expectations for this book based on who gave me the recommendation but it fell short for me personally. Maybe another listen in a year will yield more.
July 20, 2012
A necessary book for everyone to read again, and again...
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews