Based in Reston, Virginia, Rob Persiano is an established staffing and HR executive who has extensive experience boosting corporate sales. An executive MBA graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Rob Persiano has completed Center for Creative Leadership coursework, as well as Sandler Training.
Sandler Training was developed by CEO Dave Mattson, who is also the author of The Sandler Rules: 49 Timeless Selling Principles and How to Apply Them. His integrity-driven methodology is based on foundational principles such as talking less and asking more questions, with the 70/30 rule defining the proper ratio of listening to talking.
This has to do with sales being a process that, even when initiated by the salesperson, involves a self-discovery period before a decision is made as to whether the product or service is needed. With resistance to the sales pitch pre-programmed, an optimal approach is to ask questions that lead to self-discovery and the underlying need that needs to be filled.
With the sales process framed as an open, honest conversation, the salesperson should be ready to provide informed advice and recommendations when they are requested. Third-person stories that demonstrate the utility of the product or service can be particularly effective. When the prospect comes to a conclusion on his own, resistance vanishes, as that person now feels that he “owns” it.
