Rainmaking Conversations: Influence, Persuade, and Sell in Any Situation

Conversations make or break everything in sales. Every conversation you have is an opportunity to find new prospects, win new customers, and increase sales. Rainmaking Conversations provides a proven system for leading masterful conversations that fill the pipeline, secure new deals, and maximize the potential of your account.

Rainmaking Conversations offers a research-based, field-tested, and practical selling approach that will help you master the art of the sales conversation. This proven system revolves around the acronym RAIN, which stands for Rapport, Aspirations and Afflictions, Impact, and New Reality. You'll learn how to ask your prospects and clients the right questions, and help them set the agenda for success.

Armed with the knowledge of the markets you serve, the common needs of prospects, and how your products and services can help, you can become a trusted advisor to your clients during and after the sale. With the RAIN system, you'll be able to:

• Build rapport and trust from the first contact
• Create conversations with prospects, referral sources, and clients using the telephone, email, and mail
• Uncover the real need behind client challenges
• Make the case for improved business impact and return on investment (ROI) for your prospects
• Understand and communicate your value proposition
• Apply the 16 principles of influence in sales
• Overcome and prevent all types of objections, including money
• Craft profitable solutions and close the deal

The world-class RAIN Selling methodology has helped tens of thousands of people lead powerful sales conversations and achieve breakthrough sales performance. Start bridging the gap between "hello" and profitable relationships today.

About the Authors

Co-president of RAIN Group Mike Schultz is world-renowned as a consultant and expert in sales training and performance improvement. Mike has worked with organizations such as John Hancock, Ryder, Quintiles, and dozens of others to improve sales performance and develop rainmakers. Along with his client work, Mike delivers dozens of keynotes and seminars per year for clients and leading industry conferences. Under Mike’s leadership, RAIN Group was recently listed in Inc. magazine’s list of the fastest growing companies in the country.

Mike is publisher of RAIN Group’s RainToday.com, one of the world’s largest online magazines (more than 100,000 subscribers) and membership sites for sales and marketing. He is also on the faculty in the marketing division of Babson College.

Along with the books Professional Services Marketing and Rainmaking Conversations, Mike has written hundreds of articles, case studies, research reports, and other publications in the areas of selling and marketing, writes for the RAIN Selling Blog, and produces RainToday’s popular podcast series. Mike’s thought leadership has been published, and he’s been quoted as an expert, in magazines and news outlets around the globe, including Business Week, Entrepreneur, Selling Power, and Sales and Marketing Management.

As co-president of RAIN Group, John Doerr draws on an extensive career in business leadership, which has included senior executive management, sales and marketing, and product and service development.

John has taught and coached thousands of sales professionals, helping them become top-performing salespeople through in-house training and public presentations, both domestically and abroad. He has worked with organizations such as PRTM, London Business School, DHL, Informatica, and dozens of others to improve sales performance. Under John’s leadership, RAIN Group was recently listed in Inc. magazine’s list of the fastest-growing companies in the country.

John speaks on the subject of sales and marketing for clients and conferences throughout the world, and is a frequent guest lecturer at Bentley University and Babson College. As a leader and rainmaker, John has sold millions of dollars of products and services to some of the world’s most prestigious organizations.

John’s international experience includes four years in Brussels, Belgium, where he was managing director of Management Centre Europe, the largest pan-European management development and training services firm in Europe. In addition, he has consulted and spoken at numerous events in Europe, including a three-year run as chair of Management Center Turkiye’s Human Resources Conferences in Istanbul.