Customer Reviews

The 25 Sales Habits of Highly Successful Salespeople

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The 25 Sales Habits of Highly Successful Salespeople is a concise book on how successful salespeople go about their profession. The 25 'habits' are quite basic and hardly represent a revelation to anyone but the most novice of salespersons.
Nevertheless, the 130-odd pages can be a fast and quick review, or check list if you wish, for anyone interested in covering the basics.
The book's title might or might not be referring to Steven Covey's famous series. Either way, The 25 Sales Habits can apply to more than just salespeople.
Pro: A quick read with a quick reference summary at the end.
Con: Too basic for most and a partially dated entry in the ocean of sales collateral designed to launch a training career.

The best thing about Stephan's 25 Habits book is that it summarizes what it takes to be a successful sales person.

It's easy to read, and even when you're an experienced sales pro like some of us grizzled old veterans are, you'll still find that there's things you could improve upon in what's explained.. so it's a great "self check" and tune-up, for all levels of sales reps.

Schiffmans' books (and Gitomers) are ones that I recommend all my clients read, as they're important, and their techniques work.

This one is useful, a good overview and primer of what sales success is all about. Nice work.


Ken Calhoun

Sales is a profession where motivation is essential. The biggest problem that professionals encounter is their own negativity. This book is inspirational. It reminds you to challenge yourself.

I like this book. It's has simple, workable, common sense actions. The book does spark the thought. After 23 years as a successful sales professional, with 4 years prior when I wasn't successful, this book is the tool I keep in my case at all times.
When in the midst of a sales action (cold call, needs investigation, presentation/demo or close) it is hard to remember the solid things that work. This book is that reminder. It helps to refer to it before a call, after a rejection or just to start the day.

Advanced stuff is great when you have blown your quota away and have lots of time to experiment with NLP, Hypnosis, slight of mouth, etc. However, if you haven't brought home the checks you deserve, read this book. You will certainly get your money worth on this one!

See you at club!

I must say that I disagree with the previous comments. I have justed started a career in sales, and when I discovered there was a lot of money to be made in this line of work, I bought a few sales books to help me. This one was by far the best, detailing essential points in a very consumable way. That was only 12 weeks ago. My salary has already tripled from my last job. And belive it or not I have surpassed my peers already! A great book!!

I am not a negative person, however I do have some negative feelings about this book. I have what I consider "moderate" sales experience, selling everything from shoes, to real estate, which is my current profession. If you are looking for a book that gives you practical, applicable advice, this is not it. It is more of a feel good, hey heres a few ideas that may help you in general type book. Basically a lot of mush. I found myself having to sell my own self on even finishing the end of the book. I made it, but my eyelids were heavy and I was totally uninspired. I am truthfully surprised that this book has recieved such positive reviews. In summary, it was a book of broad, unconnected ideas that will have little to no effect on actual sales performance or customer satisfaction.

I just finished reading The 25 Habits of Highly Successful Salespeople by Stephan Schiffman, and I found it not only to be a helpful and informative book, but also highly entertaining. I was afraid that this would be a dry, technical book that I would have to "choke down" in order to get the information that I needed, kind of like a kid eating spinach for the vitamins! But boy, was I wrong! I really enjoyed Mr. Schiffman's style, and I learned a lot from the information he included; a lot of it is common sense if you think about it, but he triggered the thought process. This is a handy and enjoyable reference book that I plan to keep handy, and have with me on so I can refer to it as I make my sales visits. I especially liked his summary of the 25 habits at the end -- a great "quick reference" to give you a last minute "pep talk"!

This book is more like an oversized pamphlet. It has about a 6th grade level of language and I read it in a couple of hours. Chances are, you know the information already. You know that you need to look and act professional, call people back and make sure you aren't trying to sell a grand piano to a pauper.
This book is less helpful for those of us who work selling *a* product. It's less helpful when you, say, work in general retail. That's not to say it's awful... you just need to be a very abstract thinker to apply it.
The thing that turned me off about the book was the tone of the language. The language was unusually aggressive and I felt like I'd been beaten up by the time I finished. I appreciate directness, but I definitely got the feeling that this book was transposed from speeches. The problem with that is what works in colloquial speech does not work well in writing. Written language gives one the opportunity to expand in detail on one's ideas. The writer did none of this.
In the end, if you are new to sales and are in a hurry for a kick start, this book is fine.

Great book, it just tells you the tools you need to keep your customers with you at all times and ofcourse gain new ones. A must have for a salesperson and I may say that it is a very strong entry to be the bible of the sales bussines. I Very strongly recommend it from expert to beginner.

Funny, but people seem to believe all show business folks know each other (they don't). Same for sales trainers (we don't either!). So Stephan Schiffman and I, both successful sales trainers/authors/speakers/consultants, somehow managed to avoid each other out on the road for almost 40 years - before finally doing a sales training seminar together just a few months ago. As for me, I was impressed! He had the audience in stiches, while teaching them some very solid sales information.

Understand, "The 25 Sales Habits of Highly Successful Salespeople" is not one of Steve's deeper works (he has plenty of those!). But it a wonderful tool for new salespeople who must first learn the basics of selling, and for any established salesperson who needs to get "re-threaded" (as we all do from time-to-time).

And don't get distracted by some of the negative reviews I saw about Steve's book. Those people are, in my humble opinion, missing the point. Even my material ("The Closers" series of books/audios/videos/newsletters/seminars) gets rapped on occasion. But as does Steve, I find solace in knowing how many salespeople have gotten rich using my material!

Note: You may have noticed that all of my book reviews carry "5 Star" ratings (*****). But that's not the sign of a "soft reviewer." I only review books to which I can honestly give a "5 Star" rating. You may assume, therefore, that any sales training/self-improvement book without my "5 Star" rating is either something less than "5 Star," or I simply haven't gotten to it yet . . . and there are certainly plenty of those!