Key Highlights
- With millions of sales managers, standing out is crucial, and simply labeling oneself as a thought leader is not enough. Hughes introduces the concept of gestalt thinking, which involves forming patterns and distinguishing oneself in a crowded space.
- The shift toward digital decision-making allows organizations to research, decide, and even place orders without direct interaction with salespeople. Sales teams then have the opportunity to control the narrative early in the sales process.
- Hughes stresses the importance of human connection and establishing oneself as an expert in a specific field. Build trust and help guide customers through the buying process.
- The size of buying teams has increased significantly, making it essential for sales professionals to connect with and build relationships with multiple organizational stakeholders.
- Hughes discusses the effectiveness of using social media, particularly LinkedIn, for sales. He suggests building a varied network and connecting with key influencers and decision-makers in target organizations.
Tim Hughes
Tim Hughes is universally recognized as the world leading pioneer and innovator of Social Selling. He is currently ranked Number 1 by Onalytica as the most influential social selling person in the world. In 2021, LinkedIn said he was one of the top 8 sales experts globally to follow and Brand 24 announced recently he was the 16th most influential person in marketing globally, based on measured social media influence. He is also Co-Founder and CEO of DLA Ignite. Tim is the co-author of bestselling books “Social Selling - Techniques to Influence Buyers and Changemakers - 2nd edition” and “Smarketing - How To Achieve Competitive Advantage through blended Sales and Marketing”. He has recently launched a second edition of “Social Selling - Techniques to Influence Buyers and Change Makers”. All three books published by Kogan Page.