BOOKS
“Life Happened Because I Turned The Pages”
I recommend a number of books for every Sales Engineer’s library. Some are Pre-Sales specific, some deal with demos and presentations, and others are regular business books. Having these books in your library can only make you a stronger, smarter, and more successful Sales Engineer. Although these are the English versions, many have been translated into other languages. Start reading!
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Download the Reading List in PDF format or Word format or click on any book cover below to visit Amazon.com (US)
The Sales (Engineer) Book Of The Month:
A Friendly Human In Presales
Ron Whitson
“How To Harness The Seven Timeless Behaviors To Drive Success In Technical Sales”
Let battle commence! It’s time for the October #salesengineer Book Of The Month and accompanying T-shirt. This month’s read is A Friendly Human In Presales by Ron Whitson. Ron speaks about the seven timeless behaviors, thereby one-upping Chris White’s Six Habits.
The book is an easy 200-page read, except it really isn’t – because of the wonderful suggestions and exercises that Ron provides at the end of each chapter. The Seven Timeless Behaviours are “Be Authentic, Listen Actively, Show Empathy, Have A Conversation, Practice Humility, Tell A Story, and Leave An Impression. You can initially look at that list and think, “Hey, I do all that!” The truth is that we do not.
After an intro chapter containing the fantastic phrase “Hi, my name is Ron, and I’m a Geek,” the following seven chapters focus on each behavior. They’re all relevant to the SE, yet my favourite was #1-Be Authentic. Ron provides a great definition of authenticity and then describes the emotions and actions required. I especially liked the piece about self-awareness, introspection, and trust. At the risk of inauthentic self-promotion, I’d suggest you pair this book with The Trusted Advisor Sales Engineer, especially if you are tired of reading about demos and discovery!!
I’d recommend this book for any SE at any stage of their career.
