Jeb Blount - INKED: The Ultimate Guide to Powerful Closing and Sales Negotiation Tactics that Unlock YES and Seal the Deal

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO POWERFUL CLOSING AND SALES

NEGOTIATION TACTICS THAT UNLOCK YES AND SEAL THE DEAL

JEB BLOUNT

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Copyright 2020 by Jeb Blount. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Names: Blount, Jeb, author.

Title: Inked : the ultimate guide to powerful closing and sales negotiation

tactics that unlock yes and seal the deal / Jeb Blount.

Description: Hoboken, New Jersey : Wiley, [2020] | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2019051504 (print) | LCCN 2019051505 (ebook) | ISBN

9781119540519 (hardback) | ISBN 9781119540540 (adobe pdf) | ISBN

9781119540557 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Deals. | Negotiation in business.

Classification: LCC HD58.6 .B58 2020 (print) | LCC HD58.6 (ebook) | DDC

658.85dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019051504

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019051505

For Jeb Blount, Jr. I'm so proud of you. Put your
sunglasses on son. Your future is very bright!

Its been aptly stated that all of life is a negotiation, and nowhere is that more true than in sales! That reality is exactly why it is perplexing that so few of us in sales have ever been properly trained in negotiation.

In this brilliant, necessary, and perfectly titled book, Jeb Blount has provided us the ultimate guide on sales negotiation. INKED will accomplish more than turning you into a master negotiator; it will deliver on its promise to help you ink many more dealsand youll close those deals on more favorable terms and at higher margins.

Too many sales teams and individual salespeople are perceived and treated by todays buyers as nothing more than vendors or commodity sellers. These sellers neither own their sales process nor set themselves apart as value-creators, and this ineptitude causes them to fall into what I call the procurement pit, where theyre forced to acquiesce to processes and terms dictated by buyers or to sell on price. These ineffective salespeople are unable to differentiate themselves and their solutions and, as a result, also hurt their chance of winning (profitable) business.

I have been a top sales producer for thirty years and have read dozens of sales books, but I gained more keen insights and takeaways about successful negotiating from INKED than from all of the others combined and am confident you will, too! That is because the book you are holding (or listening to) was written by todays most in-demand sales trainer specifically for sales professionals.

INKED is real, powerful, and packed with concepts you can implement in your closing call. If you are looking to close more deals, earn higher commissions, crush quota, and qualify for Presidents Club, then this is the book for you.

The reason Jeb Blount is in such high demand, spends more nights in hotels than anyone I know, and is affectionately known as the hardest-working man in sales is that what he teaches works! And one of the main themes running through INKED that Jeb wants readers to grasp is that sales negotiation is woven into the sales process, rather than separate from it. Jeb beautifully demonstrates that negotiation isnt a single thing or simply a trick or technique. Successful sales negotiation requires mastery of the sales process, the right attitude, planning, tactics, technique, and emotional intelligence.

Prepare to be challenged and entertained. Lower your defense shield, and open your mind. INKED lays bare harsh truths. One of the most revealing (and personally convicting) is that effective negotiating begins and ends with emotional discipline and that we sellers hurt our position when we dont rise above the disruptive emotions that emerge during a negotiation. If, like me, your emotional responses often derail your negotiating, you will profusely appreciate Jebs strong coaching to overcome those emotions and stay focused on the task at hand.

Its never been more imperative for salespeople to raise their negotiating acumen. Todays buyers and procurement professionals are receiving extensive training on leveling the playing field and strictly controlling the buying process. The concepts from INKED will help you avoid getting commoditized and help you to outsell your competition.

This book is classic Jeb Blountlong on practical advice and examples and short on cheese and gimmicks. Implement the concepts in this book, and youll become a master sales negotiator. Happy reading (or listening)!

Mike Weinberg,
author of New Sales. Simplified.

It was a dark night. No stars. Black. Cold. Snow was falling. The only connection we had to the gunman inside the small mobile home was a cell phone. He was holding three hostages and threatening to kill them all.