In this episode, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mike DeCorso, VP of Sales at THNKS. He shared with us his best sales tips, experiences, and more! Watch the full video or read the interview below.
What’s your name? Where do you work?
My name is Mike DeCorso. I am the VP of Sales at THNKS.
Craziest thing that happened to you during a demo
The craziest thing that’s happened to me during a demo is a recent demo. The prospect’s child actually walked by in the background and gave me the finger and I had to eat it. There’s nothing you can do there.
Your most genius move to save a deal
I had a prospect who actually gave me a verbal commit and then just completely disappeared so after endless follow-up emails and calls I actually sent them a bundle of the Carly Rae Jepsen song “Call Me Maybe” with some ghost hot sauce. I knew the prospect liked spicy things from previous conversations. I sent that to them with a personalized message. I ended up closing the deal later that week.
The worst mistake to avoid during a demo
This was actually told to me by an old sales manager: It’s not what you know that will hurt you, it’s what you think you know that’s actually wrong that will get you into trouble. So I tell my sales team all the time if somebody asks you a question you don’t know the answer to, don’t make it up because it can get you into trouble. In the future, as you get to contracting and getting them to sign up.
Your best sales tip
My best sales tip… I have two for you. The first one is to sell the solution, not the product. People want the hole, not the shovel. The second one, and this is kind of a small thing but it really goes a long way, is to address the prospect or the client by their name and do it multiple times throughout the pitch. It’ll get noticed.
Sell me a walnut
Well, let’s see. How long have you been looking for a walnut? About two weeks now… okay. When you ate it, how did it make you feel? Felt great? Okay… do you want to feel that way again? Are you ready to buy this walnut?
