
In part 2 of their special live episode on navigating uncertain markets, Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale continue their discussion on essential skills for sales professionals. The guys emphasize the importance of utilizing free and low-cost tools already...
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Bill Caskey
Foreign.
Brian Neal
Welcome everybody to the advanced selling podcast, the longest running sales, training podcast and podcast history, live and in person. I'm Brian Neal.
Bill Caskey
I'm Bill Caskey.
Brian Neal
Here every week for your listening enjoyment. If you're new to the program, welcome. We've got, oh, I don't know, 1200 episodes for you to catch up on. Our voices have changed, but the. The content's the same, right? Still?
Bill Caskey
Exactly. It's just the same podcast. Literally the same.
Brian Neal
Just keep going over and over and over. We have a LinkedIn group. Some of you are here because you're live. We've got a live audience here today because you're in the LinkedIn group. So it's an easy to join. That's a free thing. And we have a thing that's not free but worth every dime. That's called the Insider program. That is live coaching with my good friend and co host Bill Caskey the first Friday of every month. Great group. Also just a cool community to be a part of. And the math on the return math on LinkedIn or on the Insider group is stupid. It's great. It's such a good value. So everybody should be in the Insider group.
Bill Caskey
And if you want to know some of the things that we talk about in Insider, we wrote a book here called 12 Bold Moves. If you want to go to 12 Bold Moves.com, a couple of you recognized us for it. It's the top 12 things from 2024 that we learned at Insider and it'll give you some background. So 1212 bold moves dot com.
Brian Neal
Okay.
Bill Caskey
I had a. Have you ever heard of the band Pure Prairie League?
Brian Neal
Of course, of course. Amy. Yeah.
Bill Caskey
Well, this, this is my story here.
Brian Neal
Oh, sorry.
Bill Caskey
That's my story. No, no, no, you didn't. Well, Pure Perry League was popular in the 70s, 80s, I think, and they were kind of. How would you describe them? A kind of a country. Country rock, steel guitar. Country rock had a unique sound. I mean, it really did have a unique sound. It was kind of undis indescribable in terms of how to define it. But country rock's good. Well, as far as I knew, they only had one song that was popular, and that was a song, as Brian said, called Amy. And it was spelled like a M.
Brian Neal
I E or a I M E.
Bill Caskey
E. No, I don't think so.
Brian Neal
What? It wasn't Aimee. Okay, keep going. That's fine.
Bill Caskey
Anyway, so knowing that you're going to a concert where the band plays only one familiar song to you, what do you do during the day of the concert. What do. What do you look for?
Brian Neal
Other songs that they sing.
Bill Caskey
That's right. You look for other songs for their.
Brian Neal
Songs that they sing. Yeah.
Bill Caskey
That you recognize.
Brian Neal
Yeah.
Bill Caskey
And. Or you look at their newest album because they will always play four to seven cuts from their newest album.
Brian Neal
Yeah.
Bill Caskey
And so I'm. I'm. I'm going back and I'm listening to Amy, which is a cool song, over and over and over, thinking, okay, if there's some words I don't know, I better capture the words because I got one shot at this. Give me four minutes. And sure enough, Amy is the last song they played.
Brian Neal
Of course.
Bill Caskey
And several times during the concert, the one of the original. Fine. I don't know his name, but it was funny. He goes, so why are you all here tonight? Right.
Brian Neal
I know you're here for that one song.
Bill Caskey
So he was true.
Brian Neal
I could stand corrected. It is a M, I, E. Did I say a I, M, I, E?
Bill Caskey
Yeah, you said. I thought it was a I, M E E. But it's a M, A.
Brian Neal
M I, E. Amy. And sidebar. Do you know what famous country singer was once a member of Pure Perry League?
Bill Caskey
Yeah, I do.
Brian Neal
So that gives it away. Does he went on the live now?
Bill Caskey
Yeah, go ahead.
Brian Neal
Vince Gill. Vince Gill was a member of Pure Purely. Right?
Bill Caskey
Still was. Yeah.
Brian Neal
Yeah. Okay, then.
Bill Caskey
And he got kicked out pretty quickly. I feel like he started to take over and they didn't. Yeah, I think I heard something about that. But anyway, Pure Prairie Leagues are great. It's a good concert. They were really cool. And they. They met. They stayed around outside for an hour. Oh, that's great, people. Which is unusual.
Brian Neal
Really nice.
Bill Caskey
Most of those guys are gone, so.
Brian Neal
All right, carry on from our last conversation. We were talking a little bit about slowness and skills that we need if we ended into this slow thing. And as I'm thinking about this, too, I always want to catch myself, too, because I'm thinking, because I get caught up. I'm doing what I told people not to do in the first episode, which is since we've been talking about it now for half an hour, 40 minutes, I'm fighting myself, getting, like, kind of like, oh, God. Energy. You know what I mean? Like, oh, no. Oh, no. This could be bad. You know, Are we ready? And I'm like, that's so silly. So we're going to keep going deep on that topic, but if I'm just coming clean with everybody.
Bill Caskey
Do we need to do some therapy?
Brian Neal
We could. I could do. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Bill Caskey
I mean, it's, you know, I, I'm the same way. I mean, I, I looked at it and I find the more I look at it, the more down I get about it. And so the, my lesson is we'll stop looking at it.
Brian Neal
Stop looking at it. Right.
Bill Caskey
Stop looking because it, it's not helpful. It's.
Brian Neal
Yeah, that's, that's good.
Bill Caskey
Look at, well, how are my customers going to be impacted and what can I do to help them be impacted less? I mean, start getting into your own world and saying, how can I, how can I help people? Yeah, you know, one of the, one of the prayers, I call it the Prayer of Solomon. I'm not sure it, I'm not sure you wrote it. I've probably talked about it before. But the prayer is, help me be strong enough to serve the people you've put me here to serve and, and, and do it with, you know, gusto and zest and passion. And I think we have to get back when these times are attempting to go down the rabbit hole of doom is to say, how am I serving people? What can I do to show up and serve?
Brian Neal
Right. Okay, so we're doing skills. Yeah, we're doing a couple more skills.
Bill Caskey
I got a couple more too.
Brian Neal
So. And it's ironic that we're doing a podcast and the podcast is available on LinkedIn live and Facebook and YouTube. Right. All those places is the skill of using, and I'm going to say this on purpose because they're not always, but the skill of using the free assets that are available to you. So this is even going backwards for some of you. Many of you use LinkedIn Premium or you pay for YouTube or whatever. There's a free version of a lot of things. You can do a lot of things for free. You LinkedIn for free. There are so many free. You can do chat GPT for free. And so the only excuse then is your interest in learning how to use these things, these tools. And I can't tell you, I had a friend slash former client a couple of weeks ago who got rift, as they say. Rift reduction.
Bill Caskey
Yeah, I love that term, rift.
Brian Neal
Who made a comment and said, I wish I had taken your LinkedIn advice back when you gave it to me many years ago, because all of a sudden they need it now and they've not done the things that we, I and you have been talking about. The only thing to know about that is the only thing that will do any harm. There is, is not starting or not doing the next thing. That's the only thing in front of you. And so a skill to develop as things maybe change or get more difficult or whatever label you want to put to it is a skill of using the free tools that are available to you. End of story. Now you go paid a little bit. So, okay, well, you got LinkedIn Premium or whatever. Or you say, well, it's not. Doing a podcast isn't free. It's pretty darn close, isn't it? I mean, you can get a podcast starter kit on ebay, you know, for 28 bucks, and then you can get it hosted for five bucks. It's just not. It's not a lot yet. People aren't using these tools because they haven't had to. And I don't want you to start using the tools when you have to. Like my friend did. Use the tools now because it's a skill to learn that will help you flourish in any economy, in any market.
Bill Caskey
And it's. And did your friends start or did you not?
Brian Neal
Yeah, started. Started it less. It was. It was less about starting. It was more about the next level of skill. That makes sense. So this particular person started to do videos, like just recently, but has been hurt, has been told by me for 10 years. Yeah, and video is great. It's great and it helps and it connects and use it to find connections. We have this whole tool teaches people how to find, connect. Just use the tool, it's there. You don't use the tool, it doesn't work. So that's a thing. That's a skill to have. Use the free tools that are available to you. And then if you want to get your, you know, credit card out and pay for LinkedIn Premium, I would do that too. But don't use that as an excuse. Well, you got LinkedIn Premium, you can do that. I don't have that so well.
Bill Caskey
But when you even. LinkedIn Premium, what, 100 bucks a month.
Brian Neal
Something I don't even know or navigate.
Bill Caskey
I mean, there's all sorts. I'm unclear about all the different things, and we don't use them here, so I probably shouldn't comment about it. But. But even $100 a month, so what. I mean, $100 a month to reach tens, hundreds or thousands of people and be able to direct message them. Do you know how much that would have cost 20 years ago, the notion of buying. You know, I'm probably in the market for a new DSLR camera this year because this. Mine's about 12 years old and still does pretty, pretty good video. But it doesn't have WI fi. And it's a pain, so I'm gonna have to drop a couple grand and I feel like, you know, do I really. Can I make, can I stretch the life of this one out? And then you think, wait a minute, $2,000 to be able to shoot a good video, to have people all over the world watch it, that's nothing.
Brian Neal
Right?
Bill Caskey
So I think we got to kind of get our mindset around investing in ourselves.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
And, and bring that up a little bit because these, these ten, twenty dollar a month things, Come on, don't worry about it.
Brian Neal
Seriously. And you got to use them. You got to use them.
Bill Caskey
Yeah, yeah, I like that. I like that. One of. Are you leveraging or taking advantage of the things that are out there, whether it's free or low cost?
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
Most people aren't.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
And a couple of comments here on, on the chat here, because we're live on these platforms is, you know, I use, I use AI every day. A couple people have said that. And, and most people don't use AI every day. Well, why not? If we say that it's really useful and helps you think through things and you've trained it properly and you know how to prompt which. I use AI every day. I use it several times a day.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
Or when I'm getting stuck on something, when I'm trying to figure out, I went to Grok the other day, I was asking it questions. It's a Twitter. It's an X product. You know, you, you just have to get in the habit of saying it's a tool. It's kind of like your phone is a tool. Use your phone every day.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
Oh, no. I refuse to use my phone. It's a new fangled technology. There's no way. Come on, use it every day. All right, here's mine. And this goes back to the skill of commanding a premium. And that is the. And we talked about that last episode. We talked about how if you are, if your prices are going to increase or the market is going to be a little bit more tepid about buying from you, you've got to command the process. You've got to command a premium. One way to do that is to build what I refer to as a customer roadmap. The customer roadmap is a, is a map. It's a journey map. It's a, this happens then this happens, and this happens after they engage with you. This is not the sales process. A lot of people say, well, but I got a sales pro. Nope, it's not sales process. Sales process gets you from where you are to them saying, okay, let's go. Engage. Sign on the bottom line. Sign on the line that is dotted. Our customer roadmap is what happens then. How are you going to get them to this promised land of where you say you can solve their problems and everything's going to be hunky dory, as we say in Indiana. Everything's going to be perfect. How are you going to get them there? Because you telling me it's going to be perfect. I don't believe you. I don't believe you. And I know you're trustworthy. I know you have a family. You don't lie to people. But salespeople and organizations who promise things are not the most trustworthy. They're just not.
Brian Neal
Yeah.
Bill Caskey
Along with our leaders and people who scare us and people where the media has a very low trust factor in the con in our country right now because they lie to us. And we just can't. We can't trust them. Well, salespeople lie. And prospects know that. I know you don't. I know you don't. But you are not all salespeople. And so when you walk in and say, hey, I can. I can solve these problems and I can get you here and you don't tell them how you're going to do it, they don't believe you.
Brian Neal
Yeah, right. Even if you don't, they still don't believe you even if you don't lie. Tell them the truth. Right. Don't be the only ones that say hunky dory. I. I've never thought about that. What does hunky dory even mean? That's. I gotta look that up after the show. Dory.
Bill Caskey
Been looking for a way to use it, though.
Brian Neal
Need to call fact checker Doug. Is he in the live? Is Doug Drozen in the live? Checker does.
Bill Caskey
No longer with us.
Brian Neal
Okay. Thank you. That's a call back from last show. He's no longer with us. That was great. Okay. Here's the skill already.
Bill Caskey
Yep.
Brian Neal
This is the skill of being a connector. Being a connector. Okay. And this is a skill that I didn't think was. I thought everybody sort of did this and had this. And I'm learning that people do not know how to do this. Being a connector is being able to see in a marketplace other people that need to know each other and putting them together. And I. It's one of the greatest karmic things you can do. It always makes. And I'll speak for myself, it always makes me Feel good to put people together. It's very low pressure. I don't have to do anything. It's not like if. If the relationship works out. I'm not worried about that. But what I noticed is it's a. This kind of karmic reciprocity law kicks in. And the more I do that, the more seems to just come my way. And it's not tit for tat, but by the person scorekeeping. And I think that's a skill that people can really work on because most people want to use LinkedIn and their connectors or some people call it C of I, circle of influence or center of influence. They want to use it to get. That's all they think about. Oh, if you ask for referral, you know what sales people suck at asking for referrals. You know what salespeople suck at is giving referrals. They suck worse at giving referrals than asking for referrals. And maybe if you gave a couple, you wouldn't have to ask for any because they would just show back up for you. I get real bent on this topic.
Bill Caskey
I could tell.
Brian Neal
Yeah, well, it's.
Bill Caskey
It's. You kind of steamed up the camera, the video, the.
Brian Neal
It's just such an easy thing to do. And what I'm learning is it's not natural for a lot of people. They don't have a skill in that and. Or then a process to do that. I. I keep just. I have one meeting a month. It's not even a meeting. It's a productivity pod called a connector productivity pod. And all I do, I take this big list, I pile it up over the month, and I just sit down for 40 minutes. And all I do is connect people. And it just feels so good to do that. And I don't keep score. Don't worry about that. But ask yourself, who have I connected? Who have I sent an unsolicited connection to? Hey, Bill, you need to know Tom. Tom, you need to know Bill. And just send people to people and don't worry about what happens with it. You're just doing good for others. So that's the skill I think needs developed. Connect.
Bill Caskey
We got a couple of. Couple of comments here, which I like that. I like that skill. Hunky. Hunky dory means fine or satisfactory from Terry. Mike Black says poor Doug Drozen. RIP Our regular listeners know they do.
Brian Neal
They don't factor.
Bill Caskey
Stop listening.
Brian Neal
That's funny.
Bill Caskey
Some other stupid podcast.
Brian Neal
Nothing are just stupid.
Bill Caskey
Harry says video skills to bring updated information to your clients. Works, exclamation point.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
Same thing with me telling everyone to use large language models. Now some, now some have that they are killing it. Sales will just go, you know, if your business is tariff impacted, meaning it is a, it is a concern in your marketplace, why don't you create a three part miniseries starting this Friday on, on. And you don't have to get political. Sometimes it, it's tempting to get play. Well, they shouldn't have. No, you're just saying, here's how to handle it. I've got a person in the logistics business and one of their colleagues, one of their salespeople who might be listening is very frustrated about the government's use of tariffs. And you can tell he's passionate about it. I mean, and rightfully so because in the logistics business, they're shipping globally, everybody's concerned. It's like it's on everybody's mind. I said, well, are you going to shoot a video sometime this week? Bringing resting assured, look, if you come with us, we got you covered. We're going to be good. We're wired in. We have people in Washington or whatever, whatever the case is.
Brian Neal
Yeah.
Bill Caskey
And he didn't respond. And that's okay. He probably won't.
Brian Neal
Yeah.
Bill Caskey
Because that's a little, that's a little stressful to start shooting a video talking. But all you have to do is shoot one talking about your perspective, how it's going to impact your industry. Here's some things you got to think about if you're going to call us to talk. Here's some things we need to know now that we didn't need to know a week ago. Just be helpful to people, literally.
Brian Neal
And I want to go, I want to pick out one tiny thing that Bill said. You don't even know you said this. Bill, you said shoot it this Friday. So if you're listening to this, it's not like, oh, that's a good idea. Bill said there freaking get your calendar out and book yourself the shoot tariff video from noon to one this Friday. And don't say, well, I got busy Friday. Baloney. You do not. Nobody's got busy Fridays. Just don't and, and do it. You don't have to release it, but just do it and you'll work. And to. If I'm going to shoot a tariff video on Friday, what do I have to do? Got to research a little bit and think about a little bit because I got the date set. And that's the part that people miss is they don't block it out. Say, oh, I'm going to think about it a lot. And they think about it for eight months and never do it. Meanwhile, Jeb Blunt writes a book on it in 10 seconds. And it just gets 3, 000 people an event to learn how to sell through tariffs. Because he takes action. Yeah, I love Jeb anyway, so I love that idea. And if you're the only one doing it, it doesn't have to be the best tariff video. It's the only video tariff video because no other logistics salesperson is going to do that.
Bill Caskey
Nobody's going to do it.
Brian Neal
No one's going to do it. So it just, it's like, that's a great idea. Who I, I, we can't say who cancel. No, but I'm like, come on, man, what are we doing?
Bill Caskey
But, but every one of their sales people should be doing a tariff video or a tariff video series because everybody has a different perspective. One guy does a lot of domestic shipping and handling. Well, his perspective will be different than a global international carrier.
Brian Neal
Yes.
Bill Caskey
And maybe you could get somebody on from one of your carriers to be on the video with. I mean, and you say, oh, well, now you know, I gotta have a studio. No, you got Zoom or you got Streamyard.
Brian Neal
Yeah, that's it.
Bill Caskey
Okay, so we have covered in the last two episodes quite a few things and, and maybe it feels to you like we are coming down a little harder on you, but I will tell you this. I made some big mistakes during COVID When that whole shutdown happened, I was, I was ill prepared. I was not ready. I guess that's what ill prepared means. I was hunky doraly not ready. And because of that, my business took a dive. And it didn't need to. I didn't get online as quickly as I needed to. And heck, I've got all. I mean, it wasn't like online. What the hell's that? I just didn't do it. I was asleep at the switch. And I'm not going to be asleep at the switch this time. You shouldn't be either. And if nothing happens, fine. You will grow your business exponentially this year. If you do these eight to ten things that Brian and I talked about.
Brian Neal
Just, just do them. It just won't be. And recessions aren't binary. It doesn't mean like we're going to stop producing goods and everyone's going to stop spending any money. They just, it just, it ebbs and flows. And if it's going to flow for 15 years straight, which it has for most of us. It's going to ebb a little bit and it'll flow again. Yeah, you just got to be as good as you can be in that eb. That's it.
Bill Caskey
Make sure if you want to watch this episode, you can go to LinkedIn and somewhere there in the advanced selling podcast group, you will see a link to this. And we really appreciate all the people who joined us. Mike G, Doug, Tom, Peeps V. Oh, no, that was the advanced selling point. Mike. I guess a Greg. Did I miss anybody? Surrender surrounding Kathy, Lisa.
Brian Neal
Okay, all the Peeps.
Bill Caskey
All right, guys, see you next time.
Brian Neal
Bye.
Podcast Summary: The Advanced Selling Podcast – "Thriving in an Uncertain Market: Leveraging Tools & Building Connections (Part 2)"
Release Date: April 28, 2025
In this engaging episode of The Advanced Selling Podcast, hosts Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale delve deeper into strategies for thriving in uncertain market conditions. Building upon their previous discussions, they explore the crucial roles of leveraging available tools and fostering meaningful connections to drive sales success.
Utilizing Free and Low-Cost Resources
Bryan emphasizes the importance of taking advantage of free tools that are accessible to all sales professionals. He states, “There are so many free. You can do chat GPT for free. And so the only excuse then is your interest in learning how to use these things, these tools” (06:42).
Bill echoes this sentiment by highlighting the affordability and effectiveness of modern tools compared to past investments. “$2,000 to be able to shoot a good video, to have people all over the world watch it, that's nothing” (09:43). Both hosts advocate for a mindset shift towards viewing these tools as essential investments in one’s professional growth.
Incorporating AI into Daily Practices
Bill discusses the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into daily sales activities. “[...] Use your phone every day. [...] I use AI every day. I use it several times a day” (10:31). He encourages listeners to adopt AI tools like ChatGPT and Grok to enhance productivity and problem-solving capabilities, likening AI to indispensable tools like smartphones.
The Art of Being a Connector
Bryan introduces the concept of being a connector, a skill often underestimated in its impact. “Being a connector is being able to see in a marketplace other people that need to know each other and putting them together” (13:11). He shares his personal practice of hosting a “connector productivity pod,” dedicating time each month to connect individuals within his network. This proactive approach not only fosters goodwill but also creates a ripple effect of opportunities and reciprocity.
Giving vs. Asking for Referrals
A significant point discussed is the common pitfall salespeople face when seeking referrals. Bryan points out, “salespeople suck at giving referrals” (14:35). He underscores the importance of proactively providing referrals to others as a way to build trust and encourage mutual support within professional circles. This practice diminishes the awkwardness of asking for referrals and enhances overall relationship quality.
Creating Relevant and Timely Content
Bill and Bryan stress the importance of producing content that addresses current market concerns. For instance, they discuss the relevance of creating a video series on tariffs for sales professionals in the logistics industry. Bryan encourages immediate action: “You don't have to release it, but just do it and you'll work” (17:01). This proactive content creation not only positions salespeople as thought leaders but also provides valuable information to their clients.
Overcoming Barriers to Content Production
Bryan acknowledges the common hesitations around content creation, such as fear of quality or technical challenges. However, he reassures listeners that tools like Zoom or Streamyard simplify the process: “And you say, oh, well, now you know, I gotta have a studio. No, you got Zoom or you got Streamyard” (19:03). The emphasis is on taking imperfect action to establish a presence and engage with the audience effectively.
Developing a Customer Roadmap
Bill introduces the concept of a customer roadmap, differentiating it from a traditional sales process. “Our customer roadmap is what happens then. How are you going to get them to this promised land of where you say you can solve their problems” (11:24). This roadmap outlines the ongoing relationship and value delivery post-sale, ensuring clients perceive continued support and effectiveness.
Building Trust Through Transparency
In an era of declining trust, Bill asserts the necessity of transparency in sales. “When you walk in and say, hey, I can solve these problems and I can get you here and you don't tell them how you're going to do it, they don't believe you” (12:17). By clearly articulating the steps and methods used to address client needs, sales professionals can enhance credibility and command higher value for their offerings.
Staying Prepared and Adaptable
Reflecting on past experiences, Bill shares his lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the importance of preparedness and adaptability. “I was not ready. I was hunky doraly not ready. And because of that, my business took a dive” (19:02). He urges listeners to avoid complacency and stay proactive in leveraging tools and connections to navigate market fluctuations effectively.
Maintaining Momentum During Ebb and Flow
Bryan adds that economic conditions are not static and will continually shift between highs and lows. “They just ebb and flow. [...] You just got to be as good as you can be in that ebb” (20:15). This perspective encourages sales professionals to maintain consistent efforts and adaptability to sustain growth regardless of market conditions.
Bryan Neale (04:37): “So we're going to keep going deep on that topic, but if I'm just coming clean with everybody.”
Bill Caskey (05:00): “Look at, well, how are my customers going to be impacted and what can I do to help them be impacted less?”
Bryan Neale (13:12): “This is the skill of being a connector.”
Bill Caskey (10:58): “$2,000 to be able to shoot a good video, to have people all over the world watch it, that's nothing.”
Bryan Neale (18:35): “Nobody's got busy Fridays. Just don't and do it.”
In this episode, Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale provide actionable insights for sales professionals aiming to thrive amidst market uncertainty. By leveraging free and accessible tools, fostering genuine connections, creating relevant content, and maintaining transparency to command a premium, listeners are equipped with strategies to enhance their sales effectiveness. The hosts remind audiences that adaptability and proactive engagement are key to navigating and succeeding in any economic climate.
Bryan Neale:
Bill Caskey:
Additional:
For more insights and to connect with the hosts, visit the Advanced Selling Podcast LinkedIn Group.