At Azione Unlimited's recent Sales Key Leader Meeting in Chicago, Ill., industry veterans like Richard Glikes, Dave Berman, and Larry Marcus provided members with a few key strategies to help approach sales problems in new ways. 

The Sales Key Leader Meeting is designed to increase sales acumen, generate innovative approaches, and share new selling tactics among attending members.

Hosted July 10th and 11th in Chicago, Ill., the Sales Key Leader Meeting was conceptualized to complement the sister education-focused Key Leader Meetings for system designers and operation managers that were held this year in March and July respectively.

“Our Key Leader Meetings were organized around for the unique job functions that may not typically receive the types of intensive training and education that a business owner gets from our main conferences,” says Patrick McCarthy, Azione Unlimited director of new business development and member services.

“The result is two days of focused conversations, keynotes, and two-way dialogue that retools our members with brand new ways to approach similar problems. In an ever-changing industry, a new perspective on the market can sometimes be a dealer's most valuable tool.”

The Spike Method and The Art of Negotiation 

Alongside the Sales Key Leader Meeting's strong emphasis on knowledge sharing and open conversations, keynote speakers Richard Glikes, president of Azione Unlimited, and Dave Berman, president of ESD Technologies, presented two unique perspectives on selling techniques that “share the same foundation, but provide two distinct results,” notes Glikes.

Sharing nearly 90 years of retail and consumer electronics sales experience, Glikes and Berman approached the group with passionate, open discussions that covered everything from “The Art of Negotiating” to “Managing Process with Selling Tools.”

“It's simultaneously a luxury and a responsibility to not only possess knowledge but to pass it along to others,” says Glikes.

“Over the past 47 years of selling electronics, I've crafted an organized methodology that I know will improve our member's closing ratio. Alongside David, a past partner in crime and his wealth of knowledge from years at Mitsubishi and Hitachi, we added a new energetic and engaged dimension to the conference.”

Berman's presentations resonated with “how to sell technology effectively,” making sure that dealers recognize the “unpredictable, emotional, and irrational glory” of a client and how to navigate those efficiently.

“Understanding relationship selling and how to differentiate yourself and the technologies you offer is vital to success,” notes Berman.

Glikes also presented the 'Spike Method' – a reinvented approach to the “logical progression behind a sales process” of a sales technique invented in the '70s.

The method involves qualifying a client, listening to their needs, and closing sales in a tangible way, creating a framework for dealers.

Additionally, Glikes presented his concepts on “The Art of Negotiation” which utilized Glikes' veteran experience to dissect the unconventional scenarios that stage a negotiation and how to manage those expectations to create a winning situation.

“What resonates with dealers is taking these tried and true methods and superimposing my own experiences,” Glikes says.

“Dealers today are hungry for creative techniques, and I can help deliver that message without reinventing the wheel. It all begins to click when dealers can apply these methods to real-world experiences, and that's what the Spike Method accomplishes.”

Selling to the 0.001%

Among the keynotes were a handful of vendor presentations and dealer presentations that helped paint the picture for solutions everyone could use.

Larry Marcus of Paragon Sight and Sound in Illinois presented a five-minute discussion on how sometimes the “biggest success means handing back a deposit” because he was able to identify who is his ideal customer.

Henry Johnson of Digital Home in New Jersey illustrated his methodology of selling solutions, not products by explaining success in the subtle mindset change.

The Sales Key Leader Meeting also hosted Azione Unlimited member Murray Kunis, whose extensive knowledge of handling “ultra-high net worth clientele” in Malibu, Calif. sparked an open conversation about changing your mindset from selling to the 1% to the .001%.

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His experience relayed strategic messaging about working with billionaire clients to sell not only more products but how to sell yourself as an authority in the smart home space.

The final day of the Sales Key Leader Meeting wrapped up with a message to the dealers that they are not alone in their situations. The two-day conference not only exemplified the similar issues faced when approaching clients but how to correctly navigate those problems and lean on dealer peers in the Azione Unlimited community.

“Our first-ever Sales Key Leader Meeting will undoubtedly be recognized as a success not just for Azione Unlimited members, but for the industry at large,” says McCarthy.

“We set very high expectations for our dealers, and it's our job to help them accomplish those goals. That's why an educational conference like this is so powerful. We not only create more profitable dealers, but we raise the industry's reputation as an authority in presentation and execution for solutions.”

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