We are now in an economy where all the energies and efforts of the organization have to be focused on selling, sales and sales training. You are in serious trouble if you don't like the 'S' word. Marketing, advertising, organizing, planning will not get you through this business cycle; selling products and services is the critical make break point of every organization in today's economy! Literally nothing else matters except selling. The sales efforts must dominate the energy and resources of every company at this time from the very top of the organization down to the part time employees with complete focus and dedication on moving the company's products and services into the marketplace. If this is not done the company will cease to exist!
This is a new for most business people today coming out of decades of expansion, easy money and consumer confidence. This is a different time where all of us from the CEO to the receptionist must make the shift into selling. Wikipedia states that, "one of the oldest human activities is selling and it has been recorded in every civilization."
The Egyptians built one of the first empires based on trade. Later, during his conquest of much of the east, Alexander the Great was able to open route of trade. In my book Sell to Survive, I stated, "selling is the engine of the company, whole industries, economies and entire civilizations and each will cease to exist when unable to sell their products and services in quantities great enough and at prices high enough."
The fact is there is no reason to plan and organize if you can't sell your products. There is no reason to purchase more inventory if you are unable to sell out of the inventory you have. While cutting budgets and expenses is the popular action of executive management today, budgets can only be cut so deep before management realizes that in order to generate revenue you have to sell products.
You cannot save your way into a expansion, but you can cut your way into oblivion!
Companies that can't sell what they have will not be able to justify advertising and marketing. If you can't sell what you have now you can't afford to develop new products for tomorrow. The point is when free money, easy credit and consumer confidence disappears each of us are force to realize that our futures depend on selling. Selling is the core of every organization and is the single most important skill needed of both the employed and the unemployed. Those that are able to sell the products and services will never be without work and never be without the ability to create income.
While the CEO may be the top dog in the organization he/she needs to wear the hat of top sales person like he/she has never worn it before. This idea of selling MUST become the mantra of the organization and bleed through to every employee of the organization. Selling is no longer limited to a sales team and or to 'certain' people. The individual and organization's survival is dependent upon the organization's ability to sell products despite the economy. From accounting to management the skill of selling must be made the heartbeat of the organization and this can only be done through consistent and daily sales training where the group is reminded daily that selling is everyone's job and the only way out!