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The English language fascinates me. Words can have different spellings but sound the same, the same spellings but sound different, and all have different meanings… and idioms can confound even native English speakers!

With this month’s Super Bowl, I was reminded of a phrase in football that works for many situations. A top-caliber quarterback knows when to “stay in the pocket,” meaning he doesn’t get distracted by the chaos coming toward him – instead keeping his eyes on the prize, and staying focused on getting the ball into the end zone.

You can also be “in someone’s pocket,” meaning under their control or influence (like a prospect or customer). Or in music “playing in the pocket,” meaning grooving, where the rhythm section is locked in and working as a unit.

Whatever pocket you find yourself in, give this song by Alanis Morissette a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying this week.

Keep your Sales Team in the Pocket

We’re halfway through Q1 – how focused is your sales team?

Here are some simple tactics to get your sales team on track for 2023 quotas:

• Fill your pipeline each week. This could mean weekly follow-ups to warm contacts, or daily – yes, daily – prospecting.
• Get curious! 74% of buyers say sellers don’t listen. Prove them wrong! Find out how you can provide value for your prospects, not just for your own bottom line.
• Lead a thorough needs discovery. Don’t pounce on the first need you hear from a prospect. Take the time to dig deeper… you might learn of additional needs that give you, the seller, a more compelling case.
• Set goals and develop an action plan to reach them. You’re much more likely to get where you need to go if you have a destination in mind and an action plan to reach it.

They may be simple and straightforward, but often those tactics are the best ones! Which tricks are you using to stay in the pocket and hit your and your sales team’s goals?

Now Hiring – Musicians Wanted!

Musical ability and playing in the pocket aren’t all that make a successful musician. According to DK Music Business Academy, musicians often owe their success to specific traits that are conducive to business. Maybe that’s why so many of them have side hustles (remember Ozzy’s CryptoBatz NFTs?).

What are some of these traits? To name a few:

• Being consistent and making time every single day to create
• Caring about their audience more than vanity metrics
• Exercising patience
• Being able to take the hard (and sometimes long) road

But surely not every person successful in business can also be a celebrated musician. So then, how does this impact B2B?

Hmm, well those traits sound familiar, don’t they? Why don’t you try bumping this list up beside that first one and see how things line up! Regardless of whether you’re a musician, you can certainly draw wisdom and apply it to your own work!

And maybe next time you’re hiring you should be looking for a musician to help fill out your B2B sales roster…

Hot Takes Live – Replays

Our friends at breadcrumbs.io ran ANOTHER kick-ass session of Hot Takes Live. From the death of marketing funnels to data generation and – somehow – fidget toys… there’s a whole lot to learn! Check out the replay here!

As always, don’t hesitate to call me to brainstorm or just say hello!

Looking forward,
Rick

Rick Endrulat, President | ricke@v-causeway.com | www.linkedin.com/in/rickendrulat

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