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Hi there!

I am Janine Clarice Yap, 26 years old and from the Philippines. I am currently a Team Lead in Roots Canada and a Game Facilitator in Enigma Escape Room.

I graduated during the pandemic which is the year 2020, and I have a bachelor's degree in Business Administration majoring in Entrepreneurship from Ateneo de Zamboanga University.

I had one year of sales experience and one year in retail banking in the Philippines before I moved here to Canada to study.

A little something about me... I love to sing even tho I don't have a nice voice, I love to dance even tho I'm not good at dancing. But I am an athletic person and I love sports. I was a swimmer at the university I graduated from, I like hiking in the mountains and I love going to the beaches.

Skills that I have are:

1. I am an organized person

2. I am a very punctual person

3. I can manage my time.

My dream job is in line with the courses I took in the Philippines and here in Canada. I want to become a sales entrepreneur because I just realized that I don't want to settle in the corporate world. I want to have something that I can call mine and I know I can grow as an individual as well.

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Being a sales entrepreneur is a principle of entrepreneurship with a focus on sales. Essentially, a sales entrepreneur is someone who not only starts and runs a business but does so with a keen focus on sales and growth.

Communication is the root of success because it is the ability to gather and provide information in a way that makes your prospect want to do business with you.

Here are some communication skills that are crucial to sales success:

1. Pay Full Attention - is being focused and making sure that you are fully engaged with the conversation. It is about being present and responsive to whatever topic and conversation you're having.

2. Being Empathetic - you don't necessarily need to agree with everything your prospect is saying, but you should at least try to see things from their point of view.

3. Speak in Specifics - great communications are not persuasive because they speak dramatic, sweeping rhetoric. They're able to convince people because they can point to specific examples or anecdotes that support the point they're trying to make.

https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/communication-skills-sales

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15 Communication Skills That Are Crucial to Sales Success

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Hone these sales communication skills to be a better salesperson, coworker, and employee.

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Sales culture is the attitude, values, and habits that define the entire team.

The term is not quantified by metrics. Instead, sales leaders use descriptors such as "supportive, competitive, and democratic" to qualitatively summarize a company's sales value.

Maintaining a healthy workplace culture contributes to employee well-being and reduces stress. Undue stress at work can lead to negative consequences for your employees.

https://www.pipedrive.com/en/blog/sales-culture

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Mastering Sales Culture | Essential Tips for Success

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What makes a successful sales culture, why it is important and how do you know when you need to make changes? Learn 9 tips to develop a positive sales culture.

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I love working in sales because it allows me to improve my communication and selling skills. Also, sales makes me excited everyday because I need to strategize on how I'll reach my target.

Sales is more than just selling to me. What I love about sales also is that I am able to build rapport to my clients and it fulfills me that I am able to cater and satisfy their needs and contribute to their "good day".

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When it comes to sales, active listening is imperative as it is impossible to sell anything that you aren't in agreement on the problem and solution by the end of the conversation.

https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/active-listening-guide

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Listening: it sounds simple-we do it without even trying. But that's also what makes us take it for granted.

Too often, we are waiting for our turn to talk or thinking about what to say next, instead of truly listening to the other side. To eliminate this habit, I've taught the sales reps who have reported to me over the years a very specific skill: Active listening.

Table of Contents:
What is active listening? Active Listening Framework Techniques to Improve Your Active Listening Examples of Active Listening
Active listening is important because it has the goal of achieving common ground between two or more parties. In sales, active listening is imperative as it's nearly impossible to sell anything if you aren't in agreement on the problem and solution by the end of the conversation.

But active listening is not as simple as turning our ears on and repeating everything we hear back to the other person like a mockingbird. There's a framework for doing active listening well, and I'll walk you through it in the next section.

As we tried to convince marketers that they needed to adopt a new way of marketing, I found it valuable to dig deeper into a prospect's needs with relevant follow-up questions, using this three-step framework as a guide.

1. Acknowledge the prospect's needs.

Let'e be honest for a second: Sometimes during a conversation, we listen for a specific word or topic that segues perfectly into our next thought.

While this isn't rude, offensive, or otherwise problematic, it does limit our ability to have thought-provoking conversations.

When salespeople do this, in particular, prospects can sense it, and they come to the conclusion that the rep simply wants to sell them something regardless of whether they need it or not. It's a downward spiral that usually leads nowhere.

But the best salespeople listen differently. They forget about the script (and maybe even their own agenda), and really listen to the words and feelings that a prospect is conveying in their language, tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language.

By observing auditory, visual, and physical clues as well as the prospect's words, a salesperson can truly begin to understand the plight of their prospect and put themselves in the buyer's shoes.

And this type of listening-active listening-can make a huge difference by encouraging prospects to open up more, fostering trust and commitment.

So when you're on the phone or in a meeting with a prospect, ignore the distractions around you, throw out the script, stop worrying about what you're going to say next, and really pay attention.

2. Confirm your understanding of the prospect's needs.

This critical step is often overlooked. After you've paraphrased what your prospect has said, simply ask "Did I communicate that effectively?" or "Do you believe I understand what you have shared with me?" If the prospect says "no" you now have an opportunity to clarify your understanding by asking "Could you clarify for me what I might have missed or got wrong?"

Notice how those questions create an opening for them to give you honest feedback. In contrast, I don't recommend saying "Does that make sense?" or "Could you explain that better?" or any other question that puts the blame on the prospect for not communicating effectively.

Michelle Adams, VP of Gordon Training says, "When you nail it, you know it and the other person tells you that you did by saying things like: 'Yes! That's it!' or 'Exactly, you've nailed it.' Or they will begin nodding their head emphatically. If you miss on your active listening, they will tell you that too with: 'Well, no, it's not that. It's more like this ... ' or they will look at you like you're nuts."

The following video from Gordon Training shows this step in action.

Once you get good at this part of the process, you'll be able to create a confirmation bias in your prospect's mind. By repeating what this person has said and then confirming that you're on the same page, the confirmation bias starts to form, and trust begins to develop.

3. Clarify your understanding of their needs.

After you confirm that you understand the prospect, your next step is to ask follow up questions.

Resist the temptation to ask closed-ended questions that might make the prospect think that you're only interested in making the sale. Instead, I recommend asking an open-ended question that encourages your prospect to share more about their goals, challenges, and current plans.

As Saul McLeod points out, open-ended questions allow the person to express what they think in their own words. If you ask the right question, prospects might come to the right conclusions themselves, solving their own problem, or at least starting to believe that a solution exists to help solve their problems. They might even conclude that your solution is the right one. In addition, by getting your prospect to continue thinking critically about their situation (out loud), you stand a better chance of uncovering the compelling reasons your prospect will (or won't) buy from you.

This active listening framework will give you the basic tools to start listening actively on your next call, but the techniques below will help you cross the finish line and close the deal.

Techniques to Improve Your Active Listening

1. Set the tone

Before the conversation gets started, clearly state what you and the other person will discuss. This should level-set expectations for yourself and them so that neither party walks away feeling like their time was poorly spent. Remember, active listening is about mutual understanding, and what better way to achieve this than through setting the tone in the beginning?

2. Focus on body language

Body language says what the voice cannot. This goes both ways-how you use body language can influence the conversation as well as clue you into how they're feeling. Be sure to pay attention to their eyes, facial expressions, and body movements. But also keep a pulse on the energy you're displaying as well. Maintaining an open, relaxed, and interested demeanor can go a long way toward reaching common ground.

3. Find connections between concepts

Rather than listening to respond, active listening focuses on identifying the needs of the other party and coming up with a path forward, together. Finding connections between concepts not only shows the other person that you are listening to them, but it positions you as an expert in your field with lots of experience successfully handling problems like theirs.

4. Look for opportunities rather than discrepancies

Passing judgment is the fastest way to a dead end in a conversation. Even if you're sure the prospect is making a poor choice, try to redirect the conversation in a positive way toward opportunities. For example, consider asking questions about what led them to their decisions and what resources they used to validate them. Then present an opportunity to look at the product or service you sell through that same lens.

Next, let's look at some examples of active listening and see the framework and techniques in action.

5 Examples of Active Listening

Here are a few scenarios in which active listening is particularly useful, and how to apply it in these circumstances.

1. Addressing Resistance Early On A Sales Call

The best way to avoid an objection is to anticipate and address it proactively. Effective application of active listening can help you do just that.

Nonetheless, it's rare that you can anticipate and address every objection before closing time. Not to worry-active listening shines here too.

I advise salespeople to use active listening early in the sales process to communicate to prospects that they're there to really listen and help them-not just sell them something.

Here's what a very early conversation might sound like.
Prospect: I don't really need help with X. Salesperson: So, you're feeling okay with X and aren't looking for any help with it. Can you say more about that? Prospect: Well ... I don't have a lot of time. Salesperson: Seems like I caught you in the middle of something and your time is short. Prospect: Yeah, but I guess I have a few minutes. Salesperson: Okay. I often hear one of a few things in situations like yours: A, B, and sometimes C. If any of those are relevant, I have some ideas I could share with you that you might find valuable. Maybe we could talk for a few minutes now and schedule another meeting when you have more time?
Too often, salespeople rush to spit out another question or pitch their value. By repeating back what a prospect expressed (both words and feelings) and asking for clarification, you show that you're actively listening to them. This clears the way to begin asking questions or positioning value.

2. Identifying Solutions to Challenges

Perhaps the best time to use active listening is when a prospect reveals a challenge they're having.

Here's an example:
Prospect: I'm very frustrated that we didn't achieve our goal of A this year. I thought about it all last month. This really set us back. Worse, I'm just stuck on what to do next year. Salesperson: Hmmm. I see. I can see how that would be frustrating. Prospect. Yeah. Salesperson: So, it sounds like it's really important to you that you achieve goal A this year. It really set you back when you didn't achieve it this year and you're at a loss on what to do differently next year. Did I get that right? Prospect: Yes. Exactly right. Salesperson: Well, what are you considering doing next year? Prospect: Well, we've considered implementing plan B. But, I'm just not sure it'll work given we don't know how to execute plan B yet. We just don't have the right skills within our team. Salesperson: Have you considered getting some advice from someone who has implemented plan B at other companies like yours? Prospect: That seems like it'd be a good idea.
3. Recapping an Exploratory Call

While it's never too early to restate the goals and challenges that a prospect has shared with you, empathize, confirm your understanding, and probe further, I find that the end of an exploratory conversation is a great time to showcase that you've heard them throughout the call.

Using HubSpot's qualification framework, I often summarize what I've learned from the conversation like so:
Salesperson: We're coming up on time. We can schedule more time if it makes sense. But, at this point, I suggest we review what we've discussed today. Prospect: That'd be great. Salesperson: As I understand it, your current goal is A. In order to achieve your goal, you implemented plan B - a plan that didn't work this year despite your best efforts. You anticipate that challenge C may, once again, get in the way of implementing plan B and achieving goal A within timeline D and budget E. Prospect: That's exactly right. Impressive recap, actually. Salesperson: We also discussed how plan F - a component of our solution - might be able to help you overcome challenge C. Prospect: Well ... I'm not sure I completely understand plan F. Salesperson: Okay. We went through some of the aspects of plan F, but I agree that we haven't fully covered it. In our next call, would you like to go into more depth on plan F, really sketch it out, and make sure that we're in full agreement that it'll help you achieve goal A? Prospect: That sounds great. Thank you for your help so far. Salesperson: You're welcome. When would you like to schedule our next call?
4. Closing Business

Dave Kurlan invented my favorite closing technique: " The Inoffensive Close." If you've done everything correctly during your sales process, closing should be something that just happens. If you need a little nudge, the Inoffensive Close is the simplest way to ask for the business.

As Dave describes in his book Baseline Selling, there are three questions involved in the Inoffensive Close:

Do you believe I understand your issues, your problems, and your concerns?

Do you believe I/we have the expertise to solve your problem effectively?

Would you like my/our help?

As you can see, listening during the sales process as well as confirming understanding are necessary steps if you want to use this closing approach.

But even when you've run a great sales process, prospects don't always answer with an emphatic "yes" after each of these questions. That's when active listening can be very handy, once again.
Prospect: I'm not quite positive that you have the right expertise. I'm concerned that you're not the best provider for a company like ours. Salesperson: Okay. Let me make sure I understand. You're concerned we wouldn't be the best provider. Is there a competitor of ours that you think might have more experience in your industry? Prospect: Well, not so much in the industry, but they've had more experience with cultures like ours. At least, that's my opinion. Salesperson: So it's more about the culture of your organization as opposed to your industry? Prospect: Yes. Exactly. Salesperson: But it sounds like the rest of the team might disagree with you a bit? Prospect: A bit would be an understatement. Some of my colleagues speak very highly of the work you've already done for us. Salesperson: I see. So, it sounds like my company has some mega fans amongst your team. And we certainly have done a lot to help them over the years. But you think that our competitor is better suited to help you, given the culture of your organization. Would it help if I could demonstrate to you what we've done for other companies with similar cultures to yours? Prospect: Yes. I think that would make the decision a lot easier. Salesperson: If I can do that effectively, would you hire us to help you instead of the other firm? Prospect: Yes.
Improving Your Active Listening Skills

As you can see from these examples, Active Listening is a skill that can be used in almost any stage of the sales process, from the first interaction all the way to closing the deal.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in April 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

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Active Listening in Sales: The Ultimate Guide

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It's nearly impossible to sell without active listening. Learn what it is, the framework for it, and how to start active listening on your next call.

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Sales involve persuading potential customers to buy your products or services. Business writing is one method to make people believe they need your product.

Business writing takes many forms. It could be an email, a white paper, a case study, or a blog post – practically every possible touchpoint between your business and your customer.

https://www.autoklose.com/business-writing-skills/#:~:text=The%20art%20of%20sales%20involves,Now%E2%80%9D%20and%20seal%20the%20deal.

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Nonverbal communication often referred to as body language is very important in getting what you want in life, especially in selling.

The message you convey in a sales conversation is 55% body language and nonverbal communication, 38% tone of voice, and only 7% in the words that you use.

1. Your First Impression

When you meet a prospect for the first time, offer your hand, look the prospect directly in the eye and say, “How do you do?” This initial verbal first impression is like the kickoff in a football game. If it is done properly, it can move you a long way down the field toward the goalposts of a successful sale.

2. Use Positive Body Language

Crossed legs can be sending the same message. When a customer’s legs are crossed, it usually is nonverbal communication that means that they are holding back information. If their legs are crossed at the ankle, it means that they are not telling you everything that you need to know.

Your prospect will tend to mimic your own body language, so make sure that you are using body language to sell. When you deliberately keep your arms unfolded and your hands open, with your feet flat on the floor, ankles uncrossed, you prospect will often engage in the same body language.

When you lean slightly forward, listen attentively to what the prospect is saying, nod, smile, and listen, the prospect will often engage in the same behaviors. He or she will soon begin speaking, asking questions, and listening more attentively as well.

3. Understanding body language is very important, even when you are walking. When you walk, imagine that your head is dangling from a string, holding your entire body erect. You should breathe deeply with your shoulders and your spine straight. Raise your chin and look straight ahead.

Walk and move with strength and confidence. Pick up the pace. Don’t shuffle along. Move fast, as if you have places to go and people to see. Your overall body language should be one of a busy, active, confident and effective person.

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Sales communication skills are the abilities that sales professionals use when interacting with potential customers. Active listening, persistence, curiosity, empathy, and product knowledge can help salespeople understand what products or services a consumer needs, pitch them effectively, and have the consumer purchase them. While some customers may buy a product or service regardless of the salesperson's communication skills, developing them can increase the likelihood of a purchase from unsure customers.

1. Active listening

Developing active listening skills can help you listen to customers and identify their needs. It involves hearing what a person says, considering the information, and remembering it. Active listening can help you have engaging conversations with potential customers, which may increase the chance they purchase a product or service from you. You can develop this skill by paying attention when another person speaks and thinking about the information they share.

2. Empathy

Being empathetic in sales can mean you try to see the situation from a potential customer's point of view and understand their unique circumstances. When you show consumers you're interested in their needs by asking questions and discussing their concerns, they may view you as likable, increasing the chance they decide to purchase. Some strategies for practising empathy in sales include validating a consumer's emotions, being vulnerable, and prioritizing the person over the deal.

3. Product or service knowledge

Regardless of what product or service you're selling, having extensive knowledge about it is crucial to making a sale. For example, before selling a product, you might learn about its features and the competing products on the market. Learning about consumer behaviours, concerns, and buying habits can help you make more sales if you sell in a specific industry. If a customer asks you a question you're unsure how to answer, you may be honest with them and ask a colleague. They're likely to appreciate your honesty and feel confident that you have their best interests.

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Interpersonal tools and skills are vital in salesmanship. Interpersonal skills and relationship management are among the major determinants of sales success.

There are a lot of strategies and skills to consider when conducting sales and below are some of them:

1. Growth Mindset

This helps sales professionals fine-tune their efforts to achieve continuous success. Professionals with this kind of mindset believe in strengthening their natural talents and developing new abilities over time.

2. Adaptability

Changing customer expectations, increasing competition, lower margins, and administrative tasks take a toll on sales performance. therefore, sales professionals who embrace continuous adaptability see consistent improvement in their professional growth.

3. Empathy

Improving customer experience by understanding user requirements, aligning with their challenges, and articulating potential solutions. Having empathy helps differentiate when and how to put forth a point by understanding customers' emotional, financial, and psychological needs.

4. Communication

Communication is a two-way street. Therefore, aside from effective language skills, sales professionals should also possess effective listening and observational skills to identify unseen challenges.

5. Confidence

This enables sales professionals to ensure a product or service's value to potential customers. It is developed through experiences, receptivity to learning, knowledge about services and products, trust in the brand and determination.

To sum up, building these relationships’ abilities and tactics can complement your communications in sales a great deal. Please, use them regularly to increase the level of relationship as well as the selected sales figures.

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12 key interpersonal skills for sales success

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Discover how to identify and hire candidates with strong interpersonal skills in sales. Understand why these skills improve sales and business efficiency.

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As a working student here in Canada, I have been working at Roots Canada Ltd. since May 2024 and started as a sales associate.

In my own experience for the interview, my manager would ask me about my past experiences and how to overcome situations under pressure.

I have learned that the job expectations here in Canada are different from my hometown because, in the Philippines, it was easier for me because of the connections I and my family have. While being here in this foreign country, I have to start from zero because I don't know anyone here in Toronto.

It was a tough experience because getting a job here is not easy. But, I still nailed my interview. Maybe because I showed confidence and determination in my interview and gave assurances that I could get the job done.

I used to be a sales associate but I recently got promoted to team lead and it makes me proud of myself because I did it all by myself and believe that I can do it.

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This is a sample of my resume that I used to submit to different establishments here in Canada.

My personal information is added for the employer to call me back and my background is also added for the employer to know my experiences.

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This is the cover letter I used to submit while I was still looking for a job.

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Leadership and teamwork are the key issues in management in any organization. Leadership gives the cue, fosters commitment, and outlines the course and tone, while teamwork facilitates a team approach to problem-solving, creativity, and smooth plan achievement. Combined, they create the circumstances that help people work to their full potential and fuel the organizational evolution and its ability to change.

Hence, the focus is on leadership and work groups to accomplish goals that cannot be realized through individual effort. Leadership results in trust and patience and it also helps the teams to face all the dreadful events. At the same time, workforce coordination happens when teams can combine their different skills as well as talent to solve such complications. This co-creation does not only improve organizational efficiency, it also maintains the staff’s tenacity, motivation, and identity, which makes it a priority when it comes to long-term organizational sustainability.

Key Elements

Collaboration in Leadership

It was observed that leadership can be meaningfully distributed across people instead of being vested in one person.

Building Trust

Transformational goal setting increases top-down trust, safety, and better relationships amongst the team.

Empowering Others

Managers who embrace an intuitive perspective of leadership foster chances of leadership development for other personnel.

Strategies for Effective Teamwork

Promote Open Communication

Make an active listening culture and establish member feedback and open-door policies, so that a culture of check-and-balance and accurate information sharing using weekly reviews and briefings prevails.

Provide Supportive Leadership

Lead the team in the right way while maintaining close supervision and management and support decision-making by team members within their positions.

Celebrating Successes and Recognize Efforts

Reinforce and recognize accomplishment to increase engagement and commitment and properly reward accomplishment and progress to sustain passion.

Sharing experience with your peers is important, but recognizing where they can best help you improve is even more important. According to Steven Benson, founder, and CEO of Badger Maps, his company benefited from one self-initiated cross-training session which increased both teamwork and productivity.

“An example of successful teamwork at our company was when the customer relations department put together an initiative of cross-training and specializing team members for different roles. After deciding who would focus on what, the group sat down and taught one another what they would need to become expert in their respective area. Because people were cross-trained, they. Had a broader set of skills they could use to handle customer interaction – which resulted in fewer hand-offs. This not only enhanced teamwork and productivity, but also improved customer satisfaction. Everyone worked as a team and covered for one another, which made everything move smoothly and quickly.”

It can be stated that leadership and teamwork can be regarded as a critical forces to organizational success. Leadership inhibits directional setting, confidence building, and enablement of individuals while teamwork offers the process through which individuals blend their talents to achieve the same objectives. Altogether, it forms a culture of togetherness, change advancement, and adaptability. The discussed strategies include encouraging members to share information, fostering supportive supervision, and rewarding performance; The mentioned approaches enhance the linkage between people within teams and use it in getting work done.

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Meetings must be productive and can be enjoyable most of the time, though a bad meeting can be a huge time waster in case you have many on your schedule.

What I found interesting is that this isn’t just limited to people in the digital marketing field, but is applicable to anyone.

Same way, it is informative to just congregate a sizable number of people in a meeting – physical or virtual – and cross your fingers for the best to happen! As far as the organization of meetings is concerned we have conducted a lot of research here in the Digital Marketing Institute to understand how meetings work or what could be the most effective way to conduct them.

We’ve done a lot of research at the Digital Marketing Institute into how meetings work and the best way to run them.

Let’s look at someways to help you run an effective meeting:

1. Set Clear Agenda

Send an agenda before the meeting so people know what to expect and if they need to prepare any information or do some research. An agenda helps to steer the meeting back on track if it’s going off on a tangent or breaking into smaller discussions.

2. Know your Desired Outcomes

Be clear on what you want and work through the meeting to make sure you get outcomes from it. The last few minutes of the meeting should be used to go through the next steps and assign people to undertake them. It helps you lay down a clear action plan everyone is aware of.

3. Prepare Talking Points

If you’re leading a meeting that requires ideas or brainstorming, bring key talking points to the table. These will be directed by the project and outcomes but can act as a crib sheet during the meeting if you find things are getting off-subject.

This technique may give you lots of answers, but it gives you a chance to see if there’s a consensus in the room that you can use to feed into other campaigns or drive performance.

4. Give Everyone a Chance to Speak

Be mindful of who is at the meeting and let people speak. Remember that everyone is different. Some people are more vocal whereas others may need prodding to give opinions. Take the lead and ask questions of team members if you feel they haven’t had a chance to contribute.

5. Encourage Ideas and Solutions

By asking people to do this in advance you’ve given them time to prepare and not be caught off guard. It will also allow people less inclined to speak up an opportunity to have their say.

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9 Tips for Effective Meetings | Digital Marketing Institute

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Meetings can be fun and highly effective, but an inefficient one can be a drain on people’s time. Whether it’s a quick team meeting or one that requires brainstorming here are 9 tips that will help you to run an effective meeting.

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As I was building my e-portfolio in Comm202, I realized and learned a lot of things, not just in online classes but also in doing my research and understanding the basic communication in the business industry.