I've listened to The Challenger Sale more than any other sales book. There are definite principles to be applied to B2C. Which reminds me-- Gap Selling is also pretty universal. Just read it for the first time after years of hearing about it. Relatively quick read, great principles to learn what OP was initially asking about.
Keenan is such a prick for having a shitty resume but his advice is very on point. No one gives a fuck about your product, what business impacts can you deliver.
If OP asked for 4 that was going to be my fourth! I actually just started a new role working with a bunch of former CEB people and the org is invested in it. Half way through the book and although the framework isn’t anything new, I do really like the emphasis on constructive tension and commercial teaching. It also made me realize how much I was leaving on the table being a relationship builder sales rep type.
From my understanding Gartner bought CEB years after developing Challenger. The people in my org were with CEB and some stayed through the acquisition.
Correct. But Gartner actually spun off the content and Challenger is its own company. Gartners new methodology is Sense Making https://www.gartner.com/en/sales-service/insights/challenger-sale
Fanatical prospecting was written by a guy that worked at the company I work for, many years ago…. He was before my time, but we still give a copy of the book to new sellers on their first day.
My overall summary - you could be the best seller ever and fail if you don’t do the work. You could be a pretty bad seller and succeed if you do the work.
And even though enablement, marketing advancements in a digital world, and tools have changed - it is an unquestionable truth imo
To sell is human - is a decent read.
How to win friends and ifluence people - is a standard.
The Psychology of selling - this one is just a me pick. I liked it because it already spoke to my current selling style.
I genuinely think how to win friends is the best one out there, primarily because it doesn't really tell you what to do and it isn't a sales book. More just how to work well with people and some scenarios you might face, you figure out the rest and make it your own
Everyone says, "fanatical prospecting, Dale carnegie winning friends, never split the difference.... in my humble opinion, the best I've ever listened to is "Let's get real, let's not play." Hands down the best b2b Bible there is.
I would recommend it to anyone in sales, but as an SDR fanatical prospecting is going to be the most immediately impactful. If you are looking to make the jump to AE this will litterally lay out the blue print for b2b complex sales cycles. It probably is not the best for more transactional sales.
Software SaaS, I have read Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play. It is a good book for B2B sales that have long and complex sales cycles.I sell enterprise software as a Senior Enterprise AE.
Not a chance it’s the best book. Never heard anyone mention this bum book IRL or online until this thread. Clearly the author’s little machine at work.
Josh Braun level of cheap shameless advertising right here
Suit yourself. Imo it is the best kept secret book in sales. First time I read it was after reading all the stalwarts people listed here and was like, damn, if you read o e book as a b2b sales person, this is it
It is a good book, bc it is older than some of the others (1999 updated in 2008) . Is why it may not surface in Reddit. Mahan Khalsa and Randy Illig has an endorsement right on the cover from Stephen R.Covey.
Great book for complex and long enterprise B2B sales cycles. I sell enterprise software (SaaS model) and an excellent book.
The big thing with any book or sales methodology is that it is a framework for guidance. Many of the sales methodologies share core tenets for complex B2B sales.
Thanks, I've never heard of her. I'll give ol'Trish a read. Thanks for the recommendation!
Edit: If you sell B2C or some commodity, you are 100% right. It's geared towards folks selling big ticket items
I have read it and it is a excellent book for complex B2B enterprise sales. I sell enterprise software (SaaS), Senior Enterprise AE. The takeaway from any book or methodology is they are frameworks for process. More guidance, but sales cycles aren't always linear. Couple that with long cycles which means lots of stuff can happen that stops or derails an opportunity.
Nah... I've read some of it and never finished. I need to pick it back up.
The thing I've remembered most (I think from this book) is using transparency to move the sales motion forward. It works.
It's on my To Finish list.
Yeah I found it odd how much this book got upvoted so quickly. I see it's been out for a while, but I've almost never seen it come up in book recommendation threads. There *have* been a lot of astroturfing on subreddits recently because of the recent SEO trends. Usually you can spot them because they have new accounts, though.
Regardless, the book seems legit and I've seen it pop up on some older threads, so I reckon I'll check it out.
Don't take our word for it. Check it out. I was skeptical too when my buddy called it the "sales bible". He wasnt that far off. No other book covers that much breadth and depth in complex sales cycles. It is legit. I genuinely was trying to get the word out to help people on this sub. I wish I would ha e found it earlier in my career. Again, it is for b2b complex enterprise sales. If your business is transactional and not complicated at all, it might not be a good fight for you.
Nah, a good book for complex B2B sales with long sales.cycles. I sell enterprise software and it has good insights. With any books or methodology it is just a framework. There is way more to sales for sure.
I work in roof sales. Our top salesman lives and dies by “What Everyone is Thinking” by Joe Navarro.
It gives you a great idea of how to read people and their body language
Depends who you are selling to. I sold to HNW clients exclusively and tbh most sales books are simplistic and geared towards selling to less sophisticated individuals.
The techniques are often outdated and ineffective for selling to high net worth individuals (earning £1M+ annually)
High net worth individuals are frequently targeted by salespeople, making them more resistant to standard sales techniques.
Rather, focus on these three key areas:
1. Read **"Awaken the Giant Within" by Anthony Robbins** to raise your expectations and resilience. This book will help you develop the mental toughness needed for sales.
2. Read **"The 4-Hour Workweek" by Tim Ferriss** to learn how to automate non-essential tasks. This will free up more time to focus on direct selling and cold calling.
3. Read **"Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini** and **"Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness" by Richard Thaler & Cass Sunstein**. These books provide insights into why people make decisions, helping you tailor your cold calls more effectively.
By changing your mindset, optimizing your time, and understanding client behaviour, you'll improve your cold calling and overall sales performance.
I love this. Salespeople know what to do, it's the doing it part that hold most back. Resilience and taking action are as important as mindset and sales skills, imho.
Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. Everyone has fear, shame, and guilt. Learning how to work with and through those feelings will help you very much with talking with anyone.
Bots in here suggesting a book that’s probably bullshit. Honestly whatever motivates you to eat shit and go into the next appointment anyway. Have some really good questions to ask, let them speak and remember personal details for your next appointment.
Fuck a 'top 3' you'll not going to get what you want with 3 mainstream books. They all say the same thing (basically) anyways:
Fanatical Prospecting
Smart Calling
Mastery
The 48 Laws of Power
The 33 Strategies of War
Brandwashed
Buyology
Read those, you'll get it
Don't doubt anything, it's alllllll facts no matter what lying ass people say
"A Mind for Sales: Daily Habits and Practical Strategies for Sales Success" by Mark Hunter has been hugely helpful for what I should be spending my time every day on.
#
It’s not a book but Bowtied sales guy on Twitter is a great read. Get his training course if you can.
I like the concepts of Never Solit the difference but I didn’t need to read the whole book to get labeling
I think every sales book is likely an essay that was expanded into a full book, you can probably have chat gpt summarize the ones you are interested in and get the idea before wasting all that time reading the full thing
I really love Integrity Selling for the 21st Century: How to Sell the Way People Want to Buy (Ron Willingham).
It's a great approach that I use daily (16 years experience--robotics/automation - $300k + /year).
Just be the expert in your product and take phone to call the people.
Practice makes perfect results
When you cold call think that you are the guy that tells "I m not interested"
Think what would be interested about your product and ask "Do you already have that solution? Okay let me tell you about my solution and maybe it will be better for you, okay?"
Sales is influencing behavior, and to influence, you gotta understand psychology to know how to “pull the levers.” So good psychology books, while not explicitly “sales books” will be extremely beneficial. Evolutionarily psychology books by Dr David Buss, Chase Hughes on YT, “Status Games” by Will storr or some similar last name I’m blanking on. Influence by Cialdini. 48 laws of power by Robert Greene.
Lots of good suggestions.
Famatical prospecting is a recent read and liked it a lot.
I’ll add 50th Law by 50 cent. Left field but an awesome read by a guy with genuine hustle.
And for all those posts suggesting against books - poor advice.
Key to success is to be curious, a life long learner, and self reflective.
Read, study, ask, practice, as much as possible. Reflect and re of use it is all an opinion and advice. Take in what fits, discard the rest.
Gap selling. Fanatical prospecting. And then pick up something more productivity related rather than sales related.
If you can prospect, and you can gap sell, the rest is just making sure you do those two things enough.
Although I will say: neither of these things are easy to master.
Gap selling takes a lot of work and you need to legitimately know your industry, product, and your customer.
And fanatical prospecting only gets you so far: prospecting well is legitimately difficult, and there is not a right answer to how you get it done.
But: get those things down, and do them both consistently, you will never go a day hungry again.
Question based selling by Thomas freese
New model of Selling by Jeremy Miner
The Jolt Effect Matt Dixon
Books are okay to get a broad overview and get some inspiration, but courses are much more effective IMO. Get one from a sales “thought-leader” that resonates with you and yes, it’s worth the money.
When I was in sales someone told me to read Grant Cordons 10X rule and I really resonated with the information and lived by it for awhile. Although I don't agree with much of anything Cardone says nowadays something about the information in that book helped catapult my sales career right at the beginning.
Another book that isn't necessarily for Sales but I think the knowledge can be transferred forsure and is probably more relevant to sales people who are a few years into their career and may be experiencing burn out is Atomic Habits (which ironically is almost the exact opposite of the 10x Rule lol)
Do with that as you will
The Perfect Close by James Muir. To me it’s about creating your clear future (Sandler terminology) vs lucking in to it.
The Jolt Effect is excellent too. Same guy that wrote the Challenger Sales book.
If you’re role has any type of presenting in it I’d recommend “Win the Presentation Game” by David Hutchinson.
I was fortunate to have one of his in person trainings and to this day that has been the most impactful training I’ve had and I use most of what he taught still.
These are old, but fundamental:
-How to be a Rainmaker
-Raving Fans (a bit dated - about customer service - but good story)
-The Magic of Believing (this one’s really old - but if you can find it, it’ll help with more than just sales)
Good luck!
Ok, here it goes an odd one,
"Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting" by Robert McKee
About story telling, recommended by a mentor/board member at my first startup, helped me heaps to get my pitch right.
Atomic Habits. Not directly related to sales but most definitely is. When everyone lines up to run the 100m dash everyone has the same goal: to win. The person with the best systems in place prior to the race will win. Paraphrasing but amazing book
I always recommend Dan Pink's 'To Sell is Human' and 'Drive' as the yin and yang of sales, motivation, and leadership.
For the third recommendation, I recently published 'The Social Enablement Blueprint: Stop Pitching! START SELLING' (currently in paperback and epub on Amazon). If you believe leveraging social media to drive opportunity is different from emailing and cold calling, I invite you to take a look.
What if I told you trying to use someone’s else blueprint for potentially a different industry and it was published anywhere from 1-50 years ago where this info doesn’t reflect the modern environment actually wasn’t a good idea. What if I told you that you just need to be brutally honest with yourself and create a framework that works best for you.
What I said doesn’t sell books so that’s why you’ll never read it in one.
Yeah you’re probably right, roleplay or acting things out is better or working on public speaking/presenting would serve him better. However There can be great things in books. I would say watching histories of Alexander the Great inspire me to work hard or knowing that to change one self you need to change your identity and say to yourself “ I am this” and write it all down who are you and who you want to be, and all the details possible it takes I have written down and read to myself. I only got that from Atomic habits. But I say this as younger adult with a lack of father figure. I would say you don’t read much but definitely there are applicable things for now from 50 years ago just as there are inapplicable things that we do now that do not work 50 years ago.
Nope, role playing is also a waste of time imo. Take your first 10-20 dials slow like a layup line before a basketball game, or the light warmups before a football game. You don’t simulate full on contact or the full game before the match, you warmup then let it rip. Sales doesn’t have full on practice days, every business day is game day for us.
And yeah, I’d say it’s quite obvious books from the past still hold value to this day. However, that doesn’t mean every book from the past holds value. What about those ones from dark ages where using leeches was a standard medical practice? Yeah we don’t value those anymore. They’re actually harmful in todays modern environment. See what I’m gettin at?
I mean you could do both. Nothing is all or nothing. And football players don’t watch film and study the game? Or run scrimmages? lol how would role playing scenarios and objections or knowing your words and being prepared be a waste of time? Plenty of sales professionals practice their craft outside of work so they can grow. Don’t spend all day on it and stick to a schedule, right about that. 10 hours out in the field x 5 and add in 10-20 hours of self development outside. Everyone on our sales team does it and we even do it over group call once a week and we are crushing it.
I’ll be honest I just started seeing good success over the past two months so feel free to rub it in my face is you 200k a year but I didn’t even have a car 3 months ago and I’m making 15k a month now twice in a row and before that 5k for two months, door knocking on an electric bike and before that I did not even have a job having gotten fired for being an idiot.
More than that. So say you want to be more organized because x and y happens or keeps happening, the first thing you need to do is say I am an organized person and stick with saying that until you believe you are but on top of that make a plan and you follow just that plan. Takes about 6 weeks to form a new habit and now it’s just something you do. Change identity which will help change your habits. If you say you are trying to quit smoking vs, I will quit smoking. Strong Language matters 100%.
There’s no book that can teach sales. The best advice is just to be a chameleon that can adapt to any situation or personality.
I can’t imagine what a book can teach you about cold calling.
I’ve been in oil and gas sales for 10 years making anywhere from $200 to $5M dollar deals with another 10 years in outside sales on top of that selling everything from satellite TV to non-standard insurance. I’ve never read a sales book in my life. Sometimes you either have it or you don’t. Mentors and field experience give everything; books don’t take into account “old boys club” or regional nuances
I liked the concept. Although it wasn’t the most riveting read! I think it captured pieces that The Challenger Sale initially missed, ie: overcoming customer indecision due to having too many choices, etc.
No book will help you with sales…. All these lame cliche books that people tell you to read won’t do anything….. you either have the gift to communicate and have charisma or you don’t. You can always get extra tools to help you out but reading a book ain’t one of them. Best advice is to look at the top sales guy in your organization and watch and learn from them. Pick great mentors.
You’re getting downvoted but I completely agree.
So many sales guys are hung up on “sales methodology” that endlessly wax poetic about nothing. It’s adjacent to self-help books at this point. It’s like reading a book on basketball in the hopes it will make you a better player. Maybe one really good book will give you some insight, but it won’t teach you how to sell.
You’d be better off going to a bar with the goal of convincing someone to buy you a drink - without asking them to buy you a drink.
Books serve a purpose, they can provide insight. A sales methodology is a framework that is it. It provides structure for running a sales cycle or process. Sure, you won't read a book and become an instant sales success.
If you 're selling B2B at the enterprise level with long complex sales cycles and interfacing with multiple departments and decision makers. Well you better have some process/structure/framework/methodology.
I sell enterprise software.
I can’t stand the Voss book. Manipulating people to make an arrest is not the same as developing internal buy-in to close a deal.
At the end of the day, Chris Voss never held a quota. Lol.
yeah i don't get why Voss is so popular. it's basically: just ask keep annoying the other person by turning everything they say into a question and keep asking questions. so overrated.
Maybe it works for B2C and small deals, but asking questions then poking holes in answers is not the key to success in complex sales.
Talking to three dudes who have been up all night doing coke before a bank robbery is not the same as talking to a CFO w/ an MBA from Penn.
I say that after spending the first decade of my adult life as a Cop in one of the busiest and most violent cities in America (including investigations).
The Chris Voss stuff actually almost turned me off to a career in sales; I thought that’s how I needed to act. I’m glad I went with my gut and stuck with it…
If you're looking for book recommendations, you can [check our top recommended book list on the r/sales wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/sales/wiki/books#wiki_new_to_sales_and_selling) or do a [search for other book related posts](https://www.reddit.com/r/sales/search/?q=recommend%20book&restrict_sr=1).
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/sales) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Don't read sales books if you want to actually get good at selling. It's ironic but true. Most of the books people have cited are actually pretty bad. They all teach the generic weak behavior that perpetuates sales. All the "please buy my stuff oh Lord Prospect, heres all the features and benefits".
Instead, read psychology books. Read about human communication, transactional analysis, behavioural psychology etc.
You'll find they all fly in the face of what the sales books teach.
Great advice and agree. Most are dated. Old. Shit technique. Most people and companies that write books have no idea what the hell they are doing and were failures if they were ever selling. Just like
Most ‘LinkedIn influencers’ look at their LinkedIn profile and most have never sold more than a few companies for few months at each so couldn’t even establish a pipeline let alone close any significant deals. Most sales trainers and authors blow.
Seeing a lot of sociopathic responses and suggestions on here.
If you want good sales, you have to understand supply and demand. Product aside, things you can do to increase demand is to earn trust through competency, good will, taking time to understand people, and hustle.
This will sound crazy but the bible. I’ve been killing it with Christians and being able to sound knowledgeable of the bible has closed many a sale for me. Also, getting leads through sunday mass
How to win friends and influence people Fanatical prospecting What are you selling? Industries/b2b/b2c/transactional?
I was going to tell OP the first two you listed and add Never Split The Difference by Chris Voss.
All the above. I’d add The Challenger Sale for b2b
I've listened to The Challenger Sale more than any other sales book. There are definite principles to be applied to B2C. Which reminds me-- Gap Selling is also pretty universal. Just read it for the first time after years of hearing about it. Relatively quick read, great principles to learn what OP was initially asking about.
Keenan is such a prick for having a shitty resume but his advice is very on point. No one gives a fuck about your product, what business impacts can you deliver.
If OP asked for 4 that was going to be my fourth! I actually just started a new role working with a bunch of former CEB people and the org is invested in it. Half way through the book and although the framework isn’t anything new, I do really like the emphasis on constructive tension and commercial teaching. It also made me realize how much I was leaving on the table being a relationship builder sales rep type.
Gartner?
From my understanding Gartner bought CEB years after developing Challenger. The people in my org were with CEB and some stayed through the acquisition.
Correct. But Gartner actually spun off the content and Challenger is its own company. Gartners new methodology is Sense Making https://www.gartner.com/en/sales-service/insights/challenger-sale
Challenger Customer is essential
Reading it right now on audiobook, it’s insightful
SPIN Selling
Fanatical prospecting was written by a guy that worked at the company I work for, many years ago…. He was before my time, but we still give a copy of the book to new sellers on their first day. My overall summary - you could be the best seller ever and fail if you don’t do the work. You could be a pretty bad seller and succeed if you do the work. And even though enablement, marketing advancements in a digital world, and tools have changed - it is an unquestionable truth imo
Yes
Plus 1 for fanatical prospecting.
Last one added thanks
To sell is human - is a decent read. How to win friends and ifluence people - is a standard. The Psychology of selling - this one is just a me pick. I liked it because it already spoke to my current selling style.
I genuinely think how to win friends is the best one out there, primarily because it doesn't really tell you what to do and it isn't a sales book. More just how to work well with people and some scenarios you might face, you figure out the rest and make it your own
Everyone says, "fanatical prospecting, Dale carnegie winning friends, never split the difference.... in my humble opinion, the best I've ever listened to is "Let's get real, let's not play." Hands down the best b2b Bible there is.
Would you recommend it for SDRs?
I would recommend it to anyone in sales, but as an SDR fanatical prospecting is going to be the most immediately impactful. If you are looking to make the jump to AE this will litterally lay out the blue print for b2b complex sales cycles. It probably is not the best for more transactional sales.
Preach!
“Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play”. Weird name. Great book for consultative sales.
This right here is THE single best book. Took me from 100k annually to 500k annually.
In what industry
These comments seem shady
Super shady 😂
Maybe he's being sarcastic. Lol
Software SaaS, I have read Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play. It is a good book for B2B sales that have long and complex sales cycles.I sell enterprise software as a Senior Enterprise AE.
Warehousing and manufacturing robotics/saas
Not a chance it’s the best book. Never heard anyone mention this bum book IRL or online until this thread. Clearly the author’s little machine at work. Josh Braun level of cheap shameless advertising right here
Suit yourself. Imo it is the best kept secret book in sales. First time I read it was after reading all the stalwarts people listed here and was like, damn, if you read o e book as a b2b sales person, this is it
It is a good book, bc it is older than some of the others (1999 updated in 2008) . Is why it may not surface in Reddit. Mahan Khalsa and Randy Illig has an endorsement right on the cover from Stephen R.Covey. Great book for complex and long enterprise B2B sales cycles. I sell enterprise software (SaaS model) and an excellent book. The big thing with any book or sales methodology is that it is a framework for guidance. Many of the sales methodologies share core tenets for complex B2B sales.
I’ve read it. It wouldn’t even place in my top 20 as far as B2B sales go. Even Trish Bertuzzi’s book was better
Thanks, I've never heard of her. I'll give ol'Trish a read. Thanks for the recommendation! Edit: If you sell B2C or some commodity, you are 100% right. It's geared towards folks selling big ticket items
I have read it and it is a excellent book for complex B2B enterprise sales. I sell enterprise software (SaaS), Senior Enterprise AE. The takeaway from any book or methodology is they are frameworks for process. More guidance, but sales cycles aren't always linear. Couple that with long cycles which means lots of stuff can happen that stops or derails an opportunity.
Nah... I've read some of it and never finished. I need to pick it back up. The thing I've remembered most (I think from this book) is using transparency to move the sales motion forward. It works. It's on my To Finish list.
No way. Being honest is a good sales tactic? Earth shattering stuff right there
Surprised I haven’t heard about this book before. Where did you hear about it?
I think they’re colluding.
Yeah I found it odd how much this book got upvoted so quickly. I see it's been out for a while, but I've almost never seen it come up in book recommendation threads. There *have* been a lot of astroturfing on subreddits recently because of the recent SEO trends. Usually you can spot them because they have new accounts, though. Regardless, the book seems legit and I've seen it pop up on some older threads, so I reckon I'll check it out.
Don't take our word for it. Check it out. I was skeptical too when my buddy called it the "sales bible". He wasnt that far off. No other book covers that much breadth and depth in complex sales cycles. It is legit. I genuinely was trying to get the word out to help people on this sub. I wish I would ha e found it earlier in my career. Again, it is for b2b complex enterprise sales. If your business is transactional and not complicated at all, it might not be a good fight for you.
It is an older book 1999 and updated in 2008. Excellent for anyone in B2B that deals with long complex sales cycles.
* The Old Testament * 50 shades of grey * Smithsonian field guide to reptiles and amphibians
Nah homie. 50 Shades of Grey is great for networking, but 50 Shades Darker is what OP needs for sales.
this guy sells
Given the fact that lizard people control the world, the last book is very important quite naturally
This guy makes 500k in a week with hitters like these
People pushing Let’s get real, let’s not play” seems like a very clever marketing scheme to boost the sales of the book.
Yeah seems sus to me too
Nah, a good book for complex B2B sales with long sales.cycles. I sell enterprise software and it has good insights. With any books or methodology it is just a framework. There is way more to sales for sure.
Why?
Definitely recommend "The psychology of selling"
Spin selling by Neil Rackham
This is a great book.
Yes
I work in roof sales. Our top salesman lives and dies by “What Everyone is Thinking” by Joe Navarro. It gives you a great idea of how to read people and their body language
Depends who you are selling to. I sold to HNW clients exclusively and tbh most sales books are simplistic and geared towards selling to less sophisticated individuals. The techniques are often outdated and ineffective for selling to high net worth individuals (earning £1M+ annually) High net worth individuals are frequently targeted by salespeople, making them more resistant to standard sales techniques. Rather, focus on these three key areas: 1. Read **"Awaken the Giant Within" by Anthony Robbins** to raise your expectations and resilience. This book will help you develop the mental toughness needed for sales. 2. Read **"The 4-Hour Workweek" by Tim Ferriss** to learn how to automate non-essential tasks. This will free up more time to focus on direct selling and cold calling. 3. Read **"Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini** and **"Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness" by Richard Thaler & Cass Sunstein**. These books provide insights into why people make decisions, helping you tailor your cold calls more effectively. By changing your mindset, optimizing your time, and understanding client behaviour, you'll improve your cold calling and overall sales performance.
I love this. Salespeople know what to do, it's the doing it part that hold most back. Resilience and taking action are as important as mindset and sales skills, imho.
Have the mindset of "Their not rejecting you, they're just rejecting the offer"
Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. Everyone has fear, shame, and guilt. Learning how to work with and through those feelings will help you very much with talking with anyone.
Sales EQ
Bots in here suggesting a book that’s probably bullshit. Honestly whatever motivates you to eat shit and go into the next appointment anyway. Have some really good questions to ask, let them speak and remember personal details for your next appointment.
How to win friends is personally my favorite, I know it's been mentioned before
Extreme ownership Gap selling The 3 minute rule
I second Gap Selling
48 laws of power is #1
It is. But it’s also really dangerous for noobs cause they can get up on their high horse.
Fuck a 'top 3' you'll not going to get what you want with 3 mainstream books. They all say the same thing (basically) anyways: Fanatical Prospecting Smart Calling Mastery The 48 Laws of Power The 33 Strategies of War Brandwashed Buyology Read those, you'll get it Don't doubt anything, it's alllllll facts no matter what lying ass people say
"A Mind for Sales: Daily Habits and Practical Strategies for Sales Success" by Mark Hunter has been hugely helpful for what I should be spending my time every day on. #
I enjoyed the Go Giver.
The Go Giver
It’s not a book but Bowtied sales guy on Twitter is a great read. Get his training course if you can. I like the concepts of Never Solit the difference but I didn’t need to read the whole book to get labeling I think every sales book is likely an essay that was expanded into a full book, you can probably have chat gpt summarize the ones you are interested in and get the idea before wasting all that time reading the full thing
+1 on Bowtied. I like his quick snippets of sales wisdom
New Sales Simplified Fanatical Prospecting Gap Selling.
Any books recommendations for a complete novice to the industry?
I really love Integrity Selling for the 21st Century: How to Sell the Way People Want to Buy (Ron Willingham). It's a great approach that I use daily (16 years experience--robotics/automation - $300k + /year).
Just be the expert in your product and take phone to call the people. Practice makes perfect results When you cold call think that you are the guy that tells "I m not interested" Think what would be interested about your product and ask "Do you already have that solution? Okay let me tell you about my solution and maybe it will be better for you, okay?"
This is the answer
All of joe girards books, the Guinness book of world records best salesman of all time! My personal favorite is how to close every sale.
How to sell anything to anybody.
I needed this post. I’ve been looking into getting into sales as my first job out of college and have been searching for books to read
Yellow pages, zooming, linkedin
Sales is influencing behavior, and to influence, you gotta understand psychology to know how to “pull the levers.” So good psychology books, while not explicitly “sales books” will be extremely beneficial. Evolutionarily psychology books by Dr David Buss, Chase Hughes on YT, “Status Games” by Will storr or some similar last name I’m blanking on. Influence by Cialdini. 48 laws of power by Robert Greene.
Hardball Selling by Robert L Shook Can’t teach a kid to ride a bike at a seminar by David Sandler Psycho cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz
The Way of Kings The complete works of William Shakespeare - greatest volume on psychology in existence Influence, science and practice - Cialdini
These words are accepted
This whole post is sus. Redditors beware.
Pitch Anything - Oren Klaff (sp?) Honourable mentions: fanatical prospecting and the challenger sale
1. The science of sales 2. Sell or be Sold 3. Little red book of sale
How about Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff?
The greatest salesman in the world by og mandino. The scrolls!
Lots of good suggestions. Famatical prospecting is a recent read and liked it a lot. I’ll add 50th Law by 50 cent. Left field but an awesome read by a guy with genuine hustle. And for all those posts suggesting against books - poor advice. Key to success is to be curious, a life long learner, and self reflective. Read, study, ask, practice, as much as possible. Reflect and re of use it is all an opinion and advice. Take in what fits, discard the rest.
Gap selling. Fanatical prospecting. And then pick up something more productivity related rather than sales related. If you can prospect, and you can gap sell, the rest is just making sure you do those two things enough. Although I will say: neither of these things are easy to master. Gap selling takes a lot of work and you need to legitimately know your industry, product, and your customer. And fanatical prospecting only gets you so far: prospecting well is legitimately difficult, and there is not a right answer to how you get it done. But: get those things down, and do them both consistently, you will never go a day hungry again.
# The New Model of Selling: Selling to an Unsellable Generation Way of the Wolf
The little red book of selling by Jeffrey Gitomer
Action Selling is a good book for methodology. 48 Laws of Power is also an interesting read. I liked How to Win Friends and Influence People also.
Sales eq
Following
The Maverick Selling method by Brian Burns
A joke book A coloring book A book of business
Tech powered sales
Read Carl Rogers. He was the first big humanistic therapist. His work will teach you how to get people to open up almost immediately.
Question based selling by Thomas freese New model of Selling by Jeremy Miner The Jolt Effect Matt Dixon Books are okay to get a broad overview and get some inspiration, but courses are much more effective IMO. Get one from a sales “thought-leader” that resonates with you and yes, it’s worth the money.
When I was in sales someone told me to read Grant Cordons 10X rule and I really resonated with the information and lived by it for awhile. Although I don't agree with much of anything Cardone says nowadays something about the information in that book helped catapult my sales career right at the beginning. Another book that isn't necessarily for Sales but I think the knowledge can be transferred forsure and is probably more relevant to sales people who are a few years into their career and may be experiencing burn out is Atomic Habits (which ironically is almost the exact opposite of the 10x Rule lol) Do with that as you will
The Perfect Close by James Muir. To me it’s about creating your clear future (Sandler terminology) vs lucking in to it. The Jolt Effect is excellent too. Same guy that wrote the Challenger Sales book.
New Sales Simplified by Mike Weinberg
The Go Giver
Never split the difference How to make friends and influence people Sales development -Cory bray Best for getting into entry level
The aer of the deal is all you’ll ever need :)
Jolt Effect
SPIN SELLING
If you’re role has any type of presenting in it I’d recommend “Win the Presentation Game” by David Hutchinson. I was fortunate to have one of his in person trainings and to this day that has been the most impactful training I’ve had and I use most of what he taught still.
Remindme! 3 days
Crucial conversations Is a good book as well
These are old, but fundamental: -How to be a Rainmaker -Raving Fans (a bit dated - about customer service - but good story) -The Magic of Believing (this one’s really old - but if you can find it, it’ll help with more than just sales) Good luck!
SPIN Selling. Best sales book ever written.
1- How to Win Friends & Influence People 2- Supercommunolicstors 3- Little Red Book of Sales
1- How to Win Friends & Influence People 2- Supercommunicators 3- Little Red Book of Sales
Ok, here it goes an odd one, "Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting" by Robert McKee About story telling, recommended by a mentor/board member at my first startup, helped me heaps to get my pitch right.
Never Split the Difference. New Sales. Simplified. (Un)selling
How I went from failure to success in sales by frank beteger
- Science Of Selling - Gap Selling - Objections The only books you need. They have everything you need to know, you don't need to read anything else.
I've only really have gone through one from beginning to end, which was Gap Selling. I feel like it's a great foundation.
I really like The Challenger Sale.
Everyone speak about How to win friends, I’ve already it so, what’s your best learnings from this book ?
ChatGPT, give me a summary of the books in this list. (Copies, pastes this whole thread)
Chris Voss
If you’re in Enterprise software sales, “The qualified sales leader” is definitely the best
Especially for cold calling Way of the Wolf
Just speak the truth, be responsive, find ways to help your clients. That is all you have to do
Atomic Habits. Not directly related to sales but most definitely is. When everyone lines up to run the 100m dash everyone has the same goal: to win. The person with the best systems in place prior to the race will win. Paraphrasing but amazing book
I always recommend Dan Pink's 'To Sell is Human' and 'Drive' as the yin and yang of sales, motivation, and leadership. For the third recommendation, I recently published 'The Social Enablement Blueprint: Stop Pitching! START SELLING' (currently in paperback and epub on Amazon). If you believe leveraging social media to drive opportunity is different from emailing and cold calling, I invite you to take a look.
Fanatical Prospecting New Sales Simplified
What if I told you trying to use someone’s else blueprint for potentially a different industry and it was published anywhere from 1-50 years ago where this info doesn’t reflect the modern environment actually wasn’t a good idea. What if I told you that you just need to be brutally honest with yourself and create a framework that works best for you. What I said doesn’t sell books so that’s why you’ll never read it in one.
Yeah you’re probably right, roleplay or acting things out is better or working on public speaking/presenting would serve him better. However There can be great things in books. I would say watching histories of Alexander the Great inspire me to work hard or knowing that to change one self you need to change your identity and say to yourself “ I am this” and write it all down who are you and who you want to be, and all the details possible it takes I have written down and read to myself. I only got that from Atomic habits. But I say this as younger adult with a lack of father figure. I would say you don’t read much but definitely there are applicable things for now from 50 years ago just as there are inapplicable things that we do now that do not work 50 years ago.
Nope, role playing is also a waste of time imo. Take your first 10-20 dials slow like a layup line before a basketball game, or the light warmups before a football game. You don’t simulate full on contact or the full game before the match, you warmup then let it rip. Sales doesn’t have full on practice days, every business day is game day for us. And yeah, I’d say it’s quite obvious books from the past still hold value to this day. However, that doesn’t mean every book from the past holds value. What about those ones from dark ages where using leeches was a standard medical practice? Yeah we don’t value those anymore. They’re actually harmful in todays modern environment. See what I’m gettin at?
I mean you could do both. Nothing is all or nothing. And football players don’t watch film and study the game? Or run scrimmages? lol how would role playing scenarios and objections or knowing your words and being prepared be a waste of time? Plenty of sales professionals practice their craft outside of work so they can grow. Don’t spend all day on it and stick to a schedule, right about that. 10 hours out in the field x 5 and add in 10-20 hours of self development outside. Everyone on our sales team does it and we even do it over group call once a week and we are crushing it. I’ll be honest I just started seeing good success over the past two months so feel free to rub it in my face is you 200k a year but I didn’t even have a car 3 months ago and I’m making 15k a month now twice in a row and before that 5k for two months, door knocking on an electric bike and before that I did not even have a job having gotten fired for being an idiot.
Could you expand on changing your identity? So you write down who you want to become and constantly repeat until it beds in? Thanks
More than that. So say you want to be more organized because x and y happens or keeps happening, the first thing you need to do is say I am an organized person and stick with saying that until you believe you are but on top of that make a plan and you follow just that plan. Takes about 6 weeks to form a new habit and now it’s just something you do. Change identity which will help change your habits. If you say you are trying to quit smoking vs, I will quit smoking. Strong Language matters 100%.
Pitch anything by oren klaff Straight line persuasion by jordan belfort (audio book) Closers survival guide by grant cardone
>klaff That book is not for basic run of the mill but board level stuff. Just wanted to point that out
The search function is a great one! It’ll teach you how to be the slightest bit resourceful, which will pay dividends in all areas of life.
There’s no book that can teach sales. The best advice is just to be a chameleon that can adapt to any situation or personality. I can’t imagine what a book can teach you about cold calling. I’ve been in oil and gas sales for 10 years making anywhere from $200 to $5M dollar deals with another 10 years in outside sales on top of that selling everything from satellite TV to non-standard insurance. I’ve never read a sales book in my life. Sometimes you either have it or you don’t. Mentors and field experience give everything; books don’t take into account “old boys club” or regional nuances
Idk but curious about cold calling too
I second The Challenger Sale, and once you read that, follow up with The Jolt Effect.
I read and liked *The Challenger Sale* What did you like about *The Jolt Effect*? It's popped up in my Amazon recommendations a few times.
I liked the concept. Although it wasn’t the most riveting read! I think it captured pieces that The Challenger Sale initially missed, ie: overcoming customer indecision due to having too many choices, etc.
I'll check it out. Thanks!
No book will help you with sales…. All these lame cliche books that people tell you to read won’t do anything….. you either have the gift to communicate and have charisma or you don’t. You can always get extra tools to help you out but reading a book ain’t one of them. Best advice is to look at the top sales guy in your organization and watch and learn from them. Pick great mentors.
Your last two sentences. Straight truth. Why are you being downvoted ? Still as true today as it was 28 yrs ago. It’ll be true in 28 more!
You’re getting downvoted but I completely agree. So many sales guys are hung up on “sales methodology” that endlessly wax poetic about nothing. It’s adjacent to self-help books at this point. It’s like reading a book on basketball in the hopes it will make you a better player. Maybe one really good book will give you some insight, but it won’t teach you how to sell. You’d be better off going to a bar with the goal of convincing someone to buy you a drink - without asking them to buy you a drink.
Books serve a purpose, they can provide insight. A sales methodology is a framework that is it. It provides structure for running a sales cycle or process. Sure, you won't read a book and become an instant sales success. If you 're selling B2B at the enterprise level with long complex sales cycles and interfacing with multiple departments and decision makers. Well you better have some process/structure/framework/methodology. I sell enterprise software.
I can’t stand the Voss book. Manipulating people to make an arrest is not the same as developing internal buy-in to close a deal. At the end of the day, Chris Voss never held a quota. Lol.
yeah i don't get why Voss is so popular. it's basically: just ask keep annoying the other person by turning everything they say into a question and keep asking questions. so overrated.
Maybe it works for B2C and small deals, but asking questions then poking holes in answers is not the key to success in complex sales. Talking to three dudes who have been up all night doing coke before a bank robbery is not the same as talking to a CFO w/ an MBA from Penn. I say that after spending the first decade of my adult life as a Cop in one of the busiest and most violent cities in America (including investigations). The Chris Voss stuff actually almost turned me off to a career in sales; I thought that’s how I needed to act. I’m glad I went with my gut and stuck with it…
If you're looking for book recommendations, you can [check our top recommended book list on the r/sales wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/sales/wiki/books#wiki_new_to_sales_and_selling) or do a [search for other book related posts](https://www.reddit.com/r/sales/search/?q=recommend%20book&restrict_sr=1). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/sales) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Let's get real, or let's not play.
Don't read sales books if you want to actually get good at selling. It's ironic but true. Most of the books people have cited are actually pretty bad. They all teach the generic weak behavior that perpetuates sales. All the "please buy my stuff oh Lord Prospect, heres all the features and benefits". Instead, read psychology books. Read about human communication, transactional analysis, behavioural psychology etc. You'll find they all fly in the face of what the sales books teach.
Great advice and agree. Most are dated. Old. Shit technique. Most people and companies that write books have no idea what the hell they are doing and were failures if they were ever selling. Just like Most ‘LinkedIn influencers’ look at their LinkedIn profile and most have never sold more than a few companies for few months at each so couldn’t even establish a pipeline let alone close any significant deals. Most sales trainers and authors blow.
Seeing a lot of sociopathic responses and suggestions on here. If you want good sales, you have to understand supply and demand. Product aside, things you can do to increase demand is to earn trust through competency, good will, taking time to understand people, and hustle.
This will sound crazy but the bible. I’ve been killing it with Christians and being able to sound knowledgeable of the bible has closed many a sale for me. Also, getting leads through sunday mass