Farquharson/Tedesco on Business Development: Make 'Wicked Easy' Sales Calls

A word of warning: The probability that the person you are talking to is the one who designed the piece or the system you are criticizing is in direct proportion to the amount and severity of said criticism. Layman's terms: Emphasize what's right about your idea, not what's wrong about theirs.

Rookie salespeople buy lists. Savvy, veteran salespeople look around them and generate leads from the opportunities that they come across on a day-to-day basis. The result of this sales curiosity is returned phone calls, appointments and orders earned on the basis of a good idea, and not the lowest price. Oh, and they get a free cup of coffee out of it to boot. Eventually. PI