Most people aren't "taught" sales at school, university or college. If you are like me, I fell into and lived and died by the sword. My late Father, David, was in software sales back in the day, and that provided the family with a comfortable lifestyle - hence it was the first job I took after university in London, telesales for a property company. We were never taught in the sense of a curriculum, you learned on the job. Some fell by the way side, others succeeded.
I then moved into recruitment, that (in)famous...
Most people aren't "taught" sales at school, university or college. If you are like me, I fell into and lived and died by the sword. My late Father, David, was in software sales back in the day, and that provided the family with a comfortable lifestyle - hence it was the first job I took after university in London, telesales for a property company. We were never taught in the sense of a curriculum, you learned on the job. Some fell by the way side, others succeeded.
I then moved into recruitment, that (in)famous Alec Baldwin scene from Glenngarry Glen Ross was more or less our training manual.
Put that coffee down.
Yes of course as the world of sales has matured, there are many disciples of different sales processes that are taught to sales teams - SPIN, TAS, BANT and The Challenger Sale. But these are all taught in flight as it were.
None of this is taught when we are students. And still isn't, not in the main anyway.
Here is what my guest on this episode wants to change, however with a twist that will resonate with the 21st-century student.
Greg Smith is passionate about "self enablement" and supporting those that are at university/college and entering the workforce. His vision is to enable them to begin their sales coaching journey whilst still learning - and then, more importantly, support their sales learning journey throughout their entire career.
Greg describes himself as "Sales and Marketing professional with over 10 years experience in Business Development and Sales Enablement within the SaaS industry. Successfully created, designed, marketed and sold the worlds first “sales practice field”. Acknowledged as a thought- leader and frequently invited to speak at industry events such as AA-ISP, Sales 3.0 and Sales Enablement Society. Possess the experience and awareness to identify problems and the prowess and tenacity to work through to a solution."
He is currently Product Manager, Digital Platforms at Imparta, which "is a global leader in performance improvement for customer-facing teams, including sales and account management, customer success, and customer experience. Imparta's 3D Advantage® methodology is based on more than 20 years of research and experience with leading global organisations. It powers a complete, modular, award-winning curriculum that covers the entire customer Buying Cycle from initial need to renewal, and every role from early tenure to Chief Revenue Officer across a wide range of industries."
From here Greg founded Mixdeck - it's like Spotify for sales training! Home | MixDeck
In this episode, we chat about all that he is doing and his vision of Mixdeck.
Why Greg created Mixdeck?
How it works.
The reaction that he is getting from the education sector.
What are the challenges faced with sales enablement generally.
What opportunity does this present for employers?
I throw him a curveball around the metaverse, because, why not.
and more.
We need to be talking more about this and how we can, dare I say it, make sales a profession, or even, make sales great again - it is a wonderful profession, it serves me well, and continues to do so. I believe many others in sales would agree.
Greg is on a mission to do just this.
To learn about how Mixdeck can support your sales career, sign up here : Home | MixDeck
If you would like to contribute your content to Mixdeck, pro-bono, get in touch with Greg here : (2) Greg Smith | LinkedIn
As ever, thank you for taking the time to listen.
