Future-Proof Selling

A must-listen for B2B sales and business leaders, where Steven Norman discusses today’s world-class B2B sales strategies with global sales thought leaders, frontline sales professionals, coaches, Entrepreneurs, and industry influencers. Sales and buying have both dramatically changed... have you kept up the pace?

How to Influence Enterprise Buyers with Douglas Cole 03/06/2023

How to Influence Enterprise Buyers with Douglas Cole Douglas Cole is an Enterprise Sales Leader at LinkedIn, an advisor with start-up accelerators in Canada and the U.S., and a part-time university lecturer at The Rotman School of Management and The Schulich Executive Education Centre in Toronto. If that isn’t enough, he has also authored The Sales MBA: How to Influence Corporate Buyers. Doug joined the LinkedIn team because he believes in their vision and values, and he’s committed to refining his craft as a leader. Doug’s team helps B2B sales organisations thrive in our digital era. He is actively involved with internal education: as a faculty member of LinkedIn's Data-Driven University (DDU), creating professional development programs with institutional partners, and standing up a Mini-MBA for the global sales team. He’s also on the leadership team that sets direction for LinkedIn Canada. “My career spans consulting, education, and sales. Three interests are at the heart of this journey. I like big picture thinking and analysis. That’s the consultant in me. I like distilling first principles to help others improve. That’s the educator in me. I like driving growth and rallying around a common purpose. That’s the sales leader in me. In essence, I enjoy teasing out hidden sources of meaning in our personal and professional lives.” - Douglas Cole Key Points of our Discussion Douglas’s new book The Sales MBA: How to Influence Corporate Buyers The general lack of Business Acumen in Salespeople The saturated knowledge economy Understanding the external dynamics Getting to know the organisational dynamics Nailing the interpersonal dynamics Becoming a strategist for the industry Becoming a change agent for the company Becoming a decision architect for the customer Choosing language and messaging carefully Behavioural economics in sales To connect with Chris, you can find him here on Find More on his book: /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/26137275

Hiring Driven Top Sales Performers with Chris Croner 02/09/2023

Hiring Driven Top Sales Performers with Chris Croner Dr. Christopher Croner received his BA in Psychology from DePaul University, and his Masters and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Dr. Croner is co-author of the book, Never Hire a Bad Salesperson Again, detailing his research and practice in identifying the non-teachable personality traits common to top producers. Dr. Croner developed the proprietary DriveTest® online sales test and The Drive Interview, both used for hiring “Hunter” salespeople. Using this method, he has helped more than 1,400 companies worldwide to hire and develop top-performing salespeople. Dr. Croner has served as an adjunct faculty member at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, teaching personnel selection in the Industrial Psychology Master of Arts program. His is is an active member of the Consulting Section of the Illinois Psychological Association and former Co-Program Chair of Chicago Industrial/Organizational Psychologists (CIOP). “In 2002, I discovered there was a lack of assessment tools specifically targeting Drive in sales candidates, so I set out to develop my own sales assessment test. After years of research, development, and validity testing, I developed The DriveTest®: The only sales assessment that is scientifically designed to identify candidates that possess the three non-teachable traits common to top producers. Want to start hiring top sales talent? Let me offer you a free DriveTest® right now. Visit: to access a free test.” - Dr Christopher Croner Key Points of our Discussion Chris’s clinical psychology background and entry into sales The three key un-teachable personality traits that create “Drive” The cost and dangers of hiring on “gut feel” Best practice hiring processes to secure high performing hunters Tips to attracting high drive applicants in your ads Communicating culture and opportunity The well-constructed phone screening process The importance of a structured behavioural interview Designing the right interview questions The power of an assessment PRIOR to interview To connect with Chris, you can find him here on Find More on /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/25876830

Crush Your Quota with Ian Koniak 12/07/2022

Sales Hiring in a Candidates' Market with Dan Kijewski 09/26/2022

Developing The Sales Process For Founders with Brendan McAdams 09/04/2022

Sell Without Selling Out with Andy Paul 08/22/2022

Sell Without Selling Out with Andy Paul Andy Paul has been in sales for over four decades. In his professional career I’ve sold everything from computers to small businesses to complex communications systems that sold for tens of millions of dollars to some of the world’s largest enterprises. Andy has grown and managed large sales teams from scratch and coached average performers into being top producers. Andy closed hundreds of millions of dollars in products and services before starting his own company. Andy is ranked #8 on LinkedIn's list of Top 50 Global Sales Experts and more than 170,000 people have signed up to follow the knowledge he shares. His hit "Accelerate Your Sales" podcast was acquired by Revenue.io in 2020. Since re-named "Sales Enablement with Andy Paul", the show continues to inspire thousands of sales professionals each week. Andy has also written two award-winning sales books, "Zero-Time Selling" and "Amp Up Your Sales". As a bit of an introvert, Andy was not your typical salesperson. His first employer didn’t think he’d ever succeed because they believed he was “too analytical.” It’s his different approach to sales that inspired his new book “Sell Without Selling Out.” A proven framework to increase win rates and shorten decision cycles without the salesy behaviours that buyers hate. Key Points of our Discussion Are salespeople getting better at selling? Or perhaps worse Ask better questions and make deeper connections Selling out vs “selling in” The four pillars of “selling in” How we should view and approach our careers in sales What type of seller is really going to make it big? Could processes and playbooks be a constraint? Properly understanding the purpose and power of discovery The power of small talk The real meaning of providing value To connect with, and learn more about Andy you can find him here on Discover more about his offerings and his new book “Sell Without Selling Out” at /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/24127704

Accelerate Each Stage of the Buying Process with Patrick Baynes 08/17/2022

Applying Sports Coaching and Training Principles to Sales 07/20/2022

Advanced Outbound Calling Techniques with Chris Beall 07/11/2022

Advanced Outbound Calling Techniques with Chris Beall For the past 35 years, Chris has been participating in software startups as a founder or at the very early stages of development. His focus has been on consistently creating and taking to market simple products that can be used successfully the first time they are touched, without taking a course or needing to read a manual. Chris fully believes that the most powerful part of any software system is the human being that we inappropriately call a “user,” and that the value key in software is to let the computer do what it does well in order to free up human potential. The reality of serial dialing is that the average person can’t make more than 75-100 outbound dials a day to their intended targets, which may result in 6-8 conversations with decision-makers. can make that same number of dials in less than an hour. The result? Within 2-5 minutes ConnectAndSell allows you to speak with one of your intended targets: Conversations On Demand. Since 2007 ConnectAndSell has helped sales representatives at nearly 1000 companies, including hundreds of technology startups and several Fortune 500 companies, overcome the challenges of getting people on the phone. Chris’s solution helps companies grow their revenues faster than it’s practical to grow their sales teams, by allowing existing reps to have more sales conversations in 90 minutes than they would otherwise achieve in an entire week. Key Points of our Discussion The problems faced in outbound prospecting Calls vs Emails Manufacturing trust using the human voice The danger of top talent leaving if pushed too hard The importance of organic growth in sales capability Chris shares how Connect And Sell is working within his own team How to handle the “Ambush” feeling of cold calling Chris gives some great live examples of cold calling techniques To connect with, and learn more about Chris you can find him here on and learn more about the power of /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/23704502

Sourcing and Developing Sales Talent with Joseph Fung 05/09/2022

Corporate Storytelling Masterclass with Donna Griffit 04/11/2022

More than a Number - A Leader’s Guide with Scott Leese 03/02/2022

Personal Branding and Building Authority with Kasey Jones 02/14/2022

Personal Branding and Building Authority with Kasey Jones Kasey is a personal branding authority and growth strategy coach who helps Founders harness the power of what makes them unique, in order to build high growth businesses with impact. Her expertise is in early-stage growth strategy, demand generation, personal brand growth and relationship building at scale. Attract ideal customers, impress potential investors, and connect with other industry influencers. Kasey began her affinity for the startup life by working on political campaigns where she realized she thrives in chaos, and loves the challenge of being perpetually in over-her-head. “I founded A Better Jones with a mission and a dream to help founders build successful, high-growth businesses. And over the years, I’ve learned that my specialty is in helping founders and their teams leverage what makes them different to develop smart, scalable growth strategies that play to their strengths in every way. For years, my winding career journey made me insecure. It made me believe that my story, my work, and my expertise weren’t as impactful or impressive as those with a straight path. Bullsh#t! I’ve learned to harness my unusual story and my personal triumphs to build a more authentic, impactful, and inspiring personal brand that connects with my audience and builds my business. And now, that is what I help other founders do.” - Kasey Jones Key Points of our Discussion The role of personal branding for salespeople Building relationships and trust at scale The cost of failing to build your digital presence Company brand vs personal brand Targeting senior executives via LinkedIn Hooks in your LinkedIn descriptions and about section Using social media to better understand your prospects How to approach it if you feel like personal branding is “Bragging.” To learn more about Kasey and her business visit her website and you can find her here on /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/22121786

Reimagining Sales Using AI and Machine Learning with Adam Rubenstein 01/24/2022

Reimagining Sales Using AI and Machine Learning with Adam Rubenstein Adam Rubenstein is a serial entrepreneur, salesman, and sales manager. As an entrepreneur, he has centered all of his businesses around sales. While he will always use CRMs he wanted a better way to capture what matters most in sales — the human interactions. The conversations, the phone calls, the lunches. Adam is Co-Founder and CEO of Traq365. A company that leverages AI to effortlessly convert sales conversations into objective buyer insights, improving sales processes and revenue projections, while accelerating B2B sales. “I wanted technology to help my teams master the sales narrative. So I got my developers together and built a new sales tool for the future of sales. A system for mastering the human narrative in sales. Traq365 starts with a place to store your notes and emails, files, and recorded conversations. Then Traq365’s AI scans for opportunities, risks, tasks, highlights — things that are actionable, things that matter. And marks them as Insights.” - Adam Rubenstein Through machine learning, the more you work with Traq365, the smarter it gets. The Insights you create with the AI build a map of the narrative you create over time - with each prospect, for every sale...the ones you win, and the ones you don’t.” - Adam Rubenstein Key Points of our Discussion Overseeing sales conversations in a remote selling environment Reaching the buyer through over-crowded channels Getting more creative in prospecting and process Culture and professional development Some of Adams fundamental tips encouraged within his team How time-poor sales leaders can easily monitor sales calls AI and machine learning to gain valuable sales insights Creating more accurate forecasts leveraging AI Identifying and comparing characteristics of win/loss conversations Sales as a science vs sales as an art To learn more about Adam’s company, visit his website , and you can find him here on /episode/index/show/futureproofselling/id/21846278