Kelley Robertson

Some cold calling experts suggest that you leave a message when you receive a prospect's voice mail. Unfortunately, many salespeople feel that this is an exercise in futility, because most of the time their prospect does not call them back. If that sounds familiar, here are six reasons why your prospects might not return your calls.

Many managers think that money is the prime motivator for their employees. However, according to surveys by several companies, money is consistently ranked fifth or lower.

As a business owner, I receive my share of sales calls in a given month. More often than not, I'm away from my desk or out of the office, which means I end up listening to voice mails instead of speaking directly with salespeople.

It's a known fact that salespeople who consistently follow up generate higher sales than their colleagues who don't. However, mastering the art of effective sales follow-up is challenging.

During a recent sales training workshop I conducted with a client, we were discussing the importance of asking the right questions—high-value, high-impact, penetrating questions. One person spoke up and said, "When I'm talking to a new prospect I like to ask, 'What do you know about us?'"

Many people wonder what separates top-performing salespeople from the rest of the pack. In most cases, it's because they apply a number of best practices in their daily routines. Here are 17 best practices of top-performing salespeople.