The Top 10 Sales Training Companies in 2010

One of the few great generals in history who never lost a battle was the Russian general Alexander Suvorov, who explained the roots of his success with his memorable motto: "Train hard and fight easy." The sales profession is fortunate to have effective thought leaders who have created powerful sales-training and development solutions that help sales managers and salespeople improve their skills. And better skills translate to more valuable customer relationships and increased value to the company”s bottom line. These 10 top sales training solutions can help you and your company create more sales than you ever thought possible.

Action Selling
Action Selling content is based on 5 Critical Selling Skills (Buyer/Seller Relationship, Sales Call Planning, Questioning Skills, Presentation Skills, and Gaining Commitment). Salespeople are taught how to marry their sales process with the customer”s buying-decision process. Salespeople love this training, because it is tailored to their business situations and helps them achieve sales rates that are six times larger. Managers and trainers appreciate the training transfer tools for reinforcement and assessment, which make this program stick. www.actionselling.com

The Brooks Group
Since the 1970s, The Brooks Group has helped clients develop top-performing salespeople using the consistent, principles-based IMPACT Selling System as a platform for growth. Each engagement is fully customized, incorporating the comprehensive, whole-person TriMetrix assessment to identify strengths and critical development areas within the six-step IMPACT process. New skills are taught via face-to-face classroom delivery, distance learning, or the state-of-the-art IMPACT Virtual Training options, and then reinforced through IMPACT Sales Coaching to ensure long-term improvement and sustainable behavior change. www.brooksgroup.com

General Physics
General Physics Corporation creates effective sales professionals through custom learning solutions. The company leverages blended-learning methodologies to develop product and brand advocates. GP”s creative process is aligned exactly with customer expectations, and its approach is proven to increase sales by building product knowledge, sales skills, and sales operations skills. Finally, notes senior VP Dan Miller, GP actually drives the sale by increasing customer brand loyalty with presale product information, after-sale product support, and creative communication campaigns. http://salestraining.gpworldwide.com/

Miller Heiman
Miller Heiman helps strengthen an organization”s competitive advantage by improving the effectiveness of the sales force.This year, sales forces will be under intense scrutiny as organizations must raise productivity to deliver top-line results. Miller Heiman”s proven processes, tools, and consulting enable sales transformation initiatives that address this challenge. In the second quarter of 2010, the firm will introduce a new multimedia tool — based on Miller Heiman”s experience and understanding of how salespeople learn — designed to support sales-process adoption. www.millerheiman.com

PI Worldwide
PI Worldwide”s Selling Skills Assessment Tool assesses your company”s skills, your sales group”s skills, and those of each individual. "If you have two million-dollar producers, they get there in different ways," emphasizes CEO Nancy Martini. "This tool gives you insights for better coaching." With experience in training hundreds of sales forces around the world, PI customizes training to meet any need and fit any restrictions. "When experienced reps are in the room, do not waste their time." www.piworldwide.com

Profit Builders
Keith Rosen is fanatical about increasing your sales. That”s why almost half of the Fortune 1000 companies and the top companies in six major industries chose his training and coaching solutions. Profit Builders addresses the specific challenges that are unique to your company and then moves beyond traditional training by coaching your salespeople around best practices and best thinking to develop true champions. While Keith”s programs and books have won numerous awards, his bragging rights are earned through more sales and long-lasting results. www.profitbuilders.com

Richardson
Richardson is a global sales-performance company that helps leading organizations improve sales results. "We do this in three ways," says senior VP Frank Donny. "We analyze the structure and talent of your sales force. We train and develop your sales team. We continue development through coaching and reinforcement." Richardson equips sales leaders and the sales force with skills and strategies needed to win today”s complex sales. Uniquely Richardson creates truly customized solutions that change behavior and provide measurable results. www.richardson.com

Sales Readiness Group
Sales Readiness Group is a leading provider of live, online training programs for sales professionals and sales managers. SRG”s virtual training programs offer fast, effective, and flexible skills-based training solutions for organizations looking to maximize their training budgets and minimize time out of the field. Combining live facilitators, innovative instructional design, and its state-of-the-art Live Virtual Classroom training platform, SRG”s training programs provide learners with a highly engaging, interactive "classroom" experience while leveraging the benefits of virtual training. www.salesreadinessgroup.com

The TAS Group
Over the years, The TAS Group has trained more than 650,000 sales professionals. Three years ago, TAS put all of its training skill and experience into on-demand software — Dealmaker — that integrates with the customer relationship management (CRM) systems reps and managers use every day. "This takes training into the real world, making it measurable, reinforceable, and coachable," says executive VP York Baur. "You get the ongoing reinforcement and results that the classroom does not allow." www.thetasgroup.com

ValueSelling Associates
"Clients love the ValueSelling Framework because it”s pragmatic," emphasizes ValueSelling Associates president and CEO Julie Thomas. "Sales reps love our approach. They can implement it, and it makes an immediate, positive impact. Every ValueSelling facilitator is a world-class sales executive who can role-model ValueSelling in the classroom." ValueSelling programs are customizable and global and available in many languages. The firm pioneered e-learning for sales in the 1990s and can leverage e-learning for any sales-training program. www.valueselling.com