Pardon the pun, but sales and marketing often function like oil and water. But why? In a lot of cases, these two departments are rarely in sync, often operating under different strategies, KPI’s (key performance indicators), and a different understanding of the customer profile and buyer persona. If we look at this recent survey it shows “51 percent of marketers are not satisfied with the level of communication between the teams and 53 percent of sales professionals are not pleased with marketing’s support.” This may also be why 90% of the content created for sales by marketing is never used by sales. These challenges stem from miscommunication and conflicting goals between the two teams.

When people hear the word “improv” they tend to think about improv comedy, like you may have seen on Whose Line Is It Anyway? But you don’t need to be a comedian to do improv. The underlying principles of improvisation are about listening, support, and coming to an agreement. In my experience studying improv at the iO Theatre, the birthplace of long form improvisation, I found that many of the concepts and principles I’ve learned in improv applies to sales and has helped improve my skills and confidence as a result. Here are 3 things every salesperson can start incorporating today:

Everyone could benefit from showing a little more gratitude and appreciation.

Throughout the past few years, the need for digital sales training continues to grow. The most significant change we’ve observed after training salespeople from all across the media space is that all media sellers need to be knowledgeable about the latest digital developments to have a “typical” sales conversation with the “average” advertiser.

All salespeople have received at least one piece of awesome advice that sticks with them as they sell. It’s something that resonates with them, and opens their minds to new ways of consistently being more productive, helping more prospects, and closing more deals.

Once you’ve identified a reason or need for sales training, the next step is navigating the myriad of options available. When making a sales training investment, you need to be more systematic in your selection process than just selecting a company that seems to be easy to work with. There are many considerations, such as experience in your industry, their track record for success, and how they sell themselves to you. This post will walk through how to find a sales trainer or consultant that’s a good fit for YOUR company, and how to choose the best one. As you consider investing in a digital ad sales training program, be sure to ask yourself these questions before making your decision.