Taegan Lion
“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
– Thomas Edison
Your sales skills, like any other business skills, is going to take a lot of hard work and practice to improve. That being said, if you don’t know where you should be improving then you’re not going to get very far.
Here are 16 books you should read to improve your sales skills.
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#1 Secrets of Successful Sales by Alison Edgar
The book details how to design a clear sales strategy and process - then adapt your personal behavior to sell with confidence - where the customer’s need matches your offer. It’s a refreshing and funny read too, with Alison’s personal experiences to touch the hearts and minds even in the toughest sales environment.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Debra Penrice from 27 Marketing
#2 How to Get Exploding Referrals by Ty Belknap
Referrals are, by far, the best way to get more sales and the book How to Get Exploding Referrals teaches great techniques on how to get referrals. There are sections for both beginners and for people that have been doing referral marketing for a long time.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Ty Belknap from Exploding Referrals
#3 What Great Salespeople Do by Michael Bosworth
Telling a story is easy. Telling a great story that people emotionally connect with isn't. This book is a perfect walkthrough of what it takes to craft a story that emotionally resonates with prospects and influences them in positive ways. No salesperson should enter a meeting without the knowledge of how to tell their company's story in a compelling and emotionally meaningful way.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Matt Chollet from Catapult New Business
#4 The 10x Rule by Grant Cardone
This isn't one of Grant's books that talks about sales specifically but it is huge for the mindset of a salesperson. This book is a healthy reminder that your sales success is all about the hustle. You have to hit those phones and get those appointments if you want to even get to the close, this book will get you up and going.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Sean Dudayev from Frootful Marketing
#5 The Challenger Sale by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson
I actually attended a couple of workshops on this book. The Challenger Sale helps you to understand different personalities and how to present yourself to each of them. The theory in this book is that there are 5 different types of sales reps and helps you to identify your own personality.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Doug Mitchell from Ogletree Financial Services
#6 Secrets of Closing the Sale by Zig Ziglar
This is one of my favorite books on sales. If you're already doing the work to get to the customers and need help closing, this book will help you in typical, entertaining Ziglar fashion. He delivers stories from his own sales career and gives you examples of what to do and what not to do. He's been then there, done that and this will book give you a ton of ideas on how to improve your sales pitch.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Sean Dudayev from Frootful Marketing
#7 The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes
This book is perfect for creating not just a great salesperson, but a sales culture. Holmes does a great job sharing strategies on mindset, hiring, operating meetings, and team building.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Michelle Ngome from Line 25 Consulting
#8 Influence by Robert Cialdini
If there is one single book that changed my sales game, it is this one and was a recommended read by my first ever sales leader early in my career. It explains the psychology of why people say, 'Yes' and how to apply these understandings. It is not only valuable in sales but in everyday life. Understanding people and how to influence the decisions they make is key to success in sales. It's a great 'Sales 101' read.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Shelly Doty from Talent Plus, Inc.
#9 Sell Or Be Sold by Grant Cardone
Sell Or Be Sold by Grant Cardone outlines the perfect sales process and reveals excellent strategies for staying positive and productive within the sales process.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Josh Braaten from Brandish Insights
#10 To Sell Is Human by Daniel Pink
The book helps you understand that really everyone is in sales. Daniel Pink writes about the evolution of sales and sales practices as well as breaks down the different parts of a sales cycle. This book really helped me to develop and refine my personal elevator pitch. A true inspiration for entrepreneurs.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Doug Mitchell from Ogletree Financial Services
#11 SPIN Selling by Neil Rackham
SPIN Selling is excellent because it teaches questioning skills and helping to understand a prospect's Situation, Problem(s), Implications of those Problems, and finally, the Need-Payoff of what resolving those problems looks like. It also delves into asking second and third level questions to gain a better understanding of the issues that are truly impacting your prospect.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
#12 Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It by Chris Voss is an effective tactical guide for how to close more deals as taught by a former FBI hostage negotiator.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Josh Braaten from Brandish Insights
#13 How to Become a Rainmaker by Jeffery J Fox
This is an older book by Jeffery Fox that my manager gave me over 20 years ago for joining his company. Many of the things in this book are outdated due to technology, but the principles are the same. Rainmaker is a very quick read and I used it as a reference book for many years. I still keep the book on the shelf in my office.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Doug Mitchell from Ogletree Financial Services
#14 The Little Red Book of Selling by Jeffrey Gitomer
It is a great book for salespeople who are already in the business, but the newcomers will also find it really useful (I first read it without having even one sale executed). Jeffrey depicts what is wrong in the behavior of 95% of salespeople and shows what to do to be in that other 5%. The most important lesson that I've learned from reading Gitomer's book is "value over everything". Contrary to what most people - salespeople especially - think, your main point while doing sales should not be selling itself.
At first, you should try to provide the value - if you show that what you are trying to sell will boost your customer's performance then he will be much more likely to buy. Also, what is really interesting Gitomer describes how you should build your sentences when trying to sell. Don't say you'll save on that, instead tell them you'll earn that much. It seems really simple, yet most of the salespeople still end up being 'that pushy salesman' who people are hating on.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Jakub Kliszczak from CrazyCall
#15 Closing The Whales by Bud Suse
Closing the whales is an essential read if you are involved with enterprise sales or complex sales in general. The sales skills required to close multi-million dollar deals are unique and require decades of experience and specialized knowledge. In this book, Bud Suse provides an event-based approach to enterprise sales and provides you with a detailed checklist as you go through the sales process. I have personally used the exact blueprint provided by Bud Suse to win high 6 figure deals.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Naz Ahm from MassageJoy
#16 Duct Tape Selling by John Jantsch
In his book, Jantsch explores the transition from old-school sales — cold calls, working door-to-door and schmoozing — to mining data for sales leads, from your typical sources and from potential customers’ social media. Jantsch teaches his readers how to ‘listen’ by monitoring Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to learn things about your leads than they would ever reveal directly.
Want to read more reviews of this book or buy it? Check out the links below:
Contributors: Frankie Russo from Potenza
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Great book a must for all in sales.
Great book written by Alison Edgar who really knows her stuff
Thank you for including my book. It is an honour to be included, an even more of an honour to be the only female author featured. #girlpower