Nicola Cook Blog Posts

Sales Bible, Playbook, SOP – Sales Operational Manual – call it what you want, but you can’t scale your sales[...]

Anyone who placed a bet on what they’d be doing in 2020 were either delusional or psychic – or were[...]

It’s a simple enough concept - know your customer, but in my experience most growing businesses give this concept lip service when[...]

Whenever I start working with an ambitious business, the first question I always ask is; ‘What’s your UDP?’ and after[...]

It’s a question I’ve been asked a lot during the past couple of months, is it still ethical to sell[...]

“S’Marketing” Explained

Your Sales Engine is broken and here’s why... Occasionally at a networking event you’ll hear a bunch of old sales[...]

Defining a Successful Sales Growth Plan

As we enter not just a new year, but a new decade, it’s the perfect time to not only reflecton[...]

Focus On Growth

Have you picked a theme yet? And I don’t mean for your Christmas party’s fancy dress code – rather a[...]

Cut The Cake or Build a P.A.M?

One of the biggest decisions you will need to make as your sales team begins to grow is how to[...]

Avoiding Sales Recruitment Nightmares

Ask a room full of entrepreneurs if they've ever made a recruitment mistake and everyone will raise their hand before[...]

I spend all day everyday fine tuning my clients' Sales Engines and not surprisingly there are some common quick fixes'[...]

Last night I gave the keynote address at my old school's Speech Day... Apart from being an immensely humbling experience,[...]

So, the Brexit debate rumbles on and parliament remains paralysed. Meanwhile, we shall keep calm and carry on while the[...]

There’s An App For That

How many times have you heard one of your employees tell you about yet another App or piece of software[...]

Lessons From The Best In The World

Last month, during our family holiday to Walt Disney World in Florida, I took the opportunity to spend a day[...]

Not All Sales Engines Are Created Equal

One of the most popular parts of my live keynote is the explanation of the different types of buyers, their[...]

Avoiding Insanity

If like most ambitious business owners your focus is on growth, have you formulated a plan on how to achieve[...]

If you're a parent, imagine how you would feel if your thirteenyear-old, whilst sitting around the dinner table one evening,[...]

Are Good Sales People Born Or Bred?

How do we make our youth more employer ready and equip them with the necessary skills that our businesses need?[...]

Without a sale, no other department in the business need exist, so it's no surprise that capability and expertise in[...]

4 Killer Templates for sales growth from our Framework Library that our clients used to help them achieve an average[...]

Thank you to Club Member Derek Hill who shared this short video with me yesterday. It's a powerful demonstration of how[...]

When the cat’s away…

"When the cat's away the mice will play" (meaning when the cats not around to watch, the mice will get[...]

Avoiding the Competency Trap

“The honest answer is after we reach £1M I haven’t a clue what I’m meant to be doing!” That was[...]

The Ultimate Budget Planner Template

Are you ready? Making a budget - It’s that time of the year again when you should be digging out[...]

Are you intimidated by your bank?

Every growing business needs working capital and that may mean raising funds to cash flow growth. Knowing what capital you[...]

Are You Business Fit?

The first decision I made at the turn of the year, which I announced to the Company Shortcuts team at our[...]

Good strategy, Bad strategy…

is the name of the book I'm currently devouring... And it comes highly recommended. Suddenly so much of advice I've[...]

How Much Are You Prepared to Give Away?

… and no I’m not talking equity rather your role? I heard a great nugget recently from Anthony Fletcher, the CEO of fast-growing business[...]

There’s a reason why at Company Shortcuts, we keep banging on about the importance of creating ‘Your Sales Process Map’,[...]

We all know we want a team of A Grade Players for our businesses. A critical part of scaling our[...]

Navigating the commission maze

Commission schemes. Do you have one? Does it work – i.e. does it drive the team behaviours you want? And[...]

Do you stress test your marketing?

Last week I had the luxury of a couple of focused days with my Chairman Lara, reviewing business plans, current[...]

Solving the productivity puzzle

We’re used to seeing people walking down the street randomly talking into thin air – until you see the little[...]

So – how much of your team's resources last week was focused on income generating activities? 100% perfect, 50% or[...]

Can a man work in his wife’s business?

I first wrote a blog on this topic a few years ago and it definitely ruffled a few feathers so, in[...]

Earlier today I was standing in front of 200 young people (Year 11’s) sharing my story from school through to[...]

Do you own a Job or a Business?

If like me you have watched Dragon’s Den you will be familiar with the phrase “this is a lifestyle business[...]

Sales IS the heart of growth

Answer this ONE question…What is the single most important strategic sales activity, that if applied consistently by your business as[...]

3 ways to close a deal

Nicola Cook walks you through how to define when a deal is really closed and suggests how you might improve[...]

After closing, what at the time, was the biggest deal personally in our business Company Shortcuts, I celebrated in such[...]

The first sales hire may slow you down at first but get it right & adhere to these 4 strategic[...]

Build on your Natural Selling Style

It's important to be honest about both the strengths AND challenges different selling styles present. Nicola Cook explains in greater[...]

Know your selling style

Whether you approach it with fearless passion or like you do a chat with your best mate, everyone has a natural[...]

As you may have gathered from the content already covered on this topic, there is no one definitive successful style. In[...]

I watched a fascinating programme on the BBC recently. Essentially it asked what the Health Service could learn from other[...]

Avoid Recruitment Headaches

It’s the people who will build your business, therefore, recruit the best talent at the earliest possible opportunity. Never compromise[...]

Help us sell more!

"Tell us what we need to say to our prospective customers to make them want to buy." Less telling, more[...]

Adapting to changing buyer behaviour

The New Sales Function The latest research from Forrester demonstrates the critical need for businesses to adapt their sales function if they[...]

When is the deal really closed?

Have you ever been the salesperson feeling hugely disappointed that a piece of business you had considered ‘closed’ went to[...]

How to close like a ‘Geordie’

11 actions to implement today that will immediately secure more commitment from prospects.If you’re not a native of the North East[...]

When is a Sale a Sale?

When is a sale a sale? - depending on who you talk to in your organisation will depend on the answer[...]

It’s not that long ago that we all had Rolodexes (which doubled as our own personal CRM), phones were attached[...]

Is your customer buying experience digitally enabled? The final step of any business’s sales process is finalising the transaction with[...]

Is it possible to grow a global brand and deliver big business results, yet retain the juiciness and creativity that[...]

The Importance of Powerful Peers

It’s a fact that we become like the five people we spend the most time with, therefore it’s so important[...]

Or what we call Leadership Inside Out. What defines a successful leader? It’s a question often asked during our keynotes[...]

Answer this ONE question … What is the single most important strategic sales activity that if applied consistently by your[...]

Why Are You in Business?

Whenever I begin working with a new client, one of the very first questions I ask them is ‘why are[...]

Sales – or Sell More!

Recently I was lucky enough to be asked to do a presentation for the brilliant Julie Meyer at her Entrepreneur[...]

Cash is King

Having and keeping your staff is great but without a steady cash flow your company will not survive, One of[...]