Sales can be a challenging industry. It’s important always to try and learn new strategies and techniques that can help in your selling efforts.
If you’re looking for tips, advice, and strategies that can help you in your career, there are countless resources available. From podcasts and YouTube videos to e-books and blogs, you can access advice on any medium, but sometimes you just can’t beat a good book.
Whether you’re just starting out in your sales career, or would like to learn something new that can take your existing skills to the next level, you’re sure to find some useful tips and tricks in our favorite sales books shortlisted below.
Some recommendations are classics that will help you master the fundamentals, but we’ve also included some newer offerings addressing challenges that today’s sales professionals face. They all have something in common though – they’ll help make you a better salesperson.
1. Phone Genius: The Art of Non-Visual Communication Paperback by Michelle Mills-Porter
With any sales role, the quickest and easiest way to close a deal is to pick up the phone and speak directly to the prospect. However, the fear of rejection can make people hesitant to make the call and lead them to take the less effective option of sending an email instead.
In Phone Genius, you’ll discover why talking to someone you can’t see is so much harder than in person, how to recognize behavior and language patterns to pre-empt the needs and wants of others, and how to increase your effectiveness over the phone and gain better results.
Using stories and lessons gathered over 25 years of making calls, building business relationships, and securing high-level appointments, this is the perfect manual to teach you how to communicate effectively using this highly significant piece of office equipment.
Who should read this? Anyone who lacks confidence when it comes to talking on the phone and wants to learn how to become a phone guru.
2. How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie
Originally published in 1936, How to Win Friends has sold millions of copies worldwide and remains a classic. It’s full of practical advice and useful techniques packaged together in an easy-to-read, conversational style. The information contained within has stood the test of time, and the book continues to top bestseller lists today.
Regardless of what stage you’re at in your career, Dale Carnegie’s principles will help you achieve your maximum potential in the complex and competitive modern age we find ourselves in. Learn how to develop your relationships and improve your interactions with people, at home and work, persuade people to follow your way of thinking, and win new clients and customers.
While technically a self-help book, it contains lessons that have influenced thousands of hugely successful people, like Warren Buffett, and is ideally suited to the industry, so we had to include it in our shortlist of great sales books.
What’s in it for you? You will successfully close more sales once you’ve developed your people skills and amplified your powers of persuasion.
3. Fanatical Prospecting: The Ultimate Guide to Opening Sales Conversations and Filling the Pipeline by Leveraging Social Selling, Telephone, Email, Text, and Cold Calling, Jeb Blount
Jeb Blount takes on arguably the most critical aspect of sales and business development in Fanatical Prospecting. The number one reason for failure in this job is an empty pipeline, and the cause of an empty pipeline is the failure to prospect consistently. No matter how good you are at closing the deal, you won’t even get the chance to if you have an empty pipeline.
An Amazon bestseller, this book reveals the techniques and tips of top earners that you can put into practice to fill your pipeline with high-quality opportunities. You’ll discover how to power through resistance and objections, gain more appointments, start more conversations, and close more deals.
The author shares his innovative approach to prospecting that works for real people with real prospects. Discover his balanced prospecting methodology that addresses multiple prospecting channels, from telephone and email to text and social media, that can improve sales productivity, grow your income, and avoid debilitating sales slumps.
What will you get out of it? Do you dream of breaking away from the feast or famine sales rollercoaster? Discover tips and techniques to keep your pipeline consistent.
4. Secrets of Closing the Sale, Zig Ziglar
Zig Ziglar uses wit and wisdom to teach readers how to sell effectively and shares his proven techniques to close the sale in his classic book, Secrets of Closing the Sale.
This ultimate how-to sales guide will take you through every stage of the journey step-by-step. Full of entertaining stories, Secrets of Closing the Sale will give you strategies and tactics that will enable you to increase productivity and professionalism, overcome the basic reasons people will not buy, and deal respectfully with challenging prospects.
The principles of success contained within the pages of Zig Ziglar’s book are easy to understand and apply, yet have a far-reaching impact. Take these lessons and apply them to your career and see your results grow exponentially.
Who will this book benefit? Someone who is just starting out in their sales career or, equally, an experienced sales professional who wants to improve their chances of closing a deal.
5. To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others, Daniel H. Pink
To Sell Is Human offers a fresh look at the art and science of selling. Daniel H. Pink shares his counterintuitive insights, reveals the new ABCs of moving others, and explains why extroverts don’t always make the best salespeople.
Pink addresses some more traditional sales techniques that aren’t as relevant for today, for example, the elevator pitch. He brings this concept into the 21st Century by sharing his six successors to the elevator pitch, including the subject line pitch and the 140-character Twitter pitch. This is just one instance where you can find some practical advice that you can implement in your sales role instantly.
Helpfully, this book is a very convenient option as it contains about 40 exercises to help you learn to understand other people’s perspectives, prep yourself for a sale, ask questions, pitch, improvise, and much more.
What will you learn? A fresh perspective on classic sales techniques with actionable takeaways.
While sales can be a challenging role, it can also be a fulfilling career, and it’s up to you to make the most of the opportunities that come your way. Our shortlist of sales books that every salesperson should read is just the starting point. Keep learning and pushing yourself to be the best you can be.
Hopefully, you’ve found a few new books to add to your reading list that will help give you the edge over the competition. Happy reading.
