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Articles by Linda Bishop
Planning for 2026: The Two List Prospecting Strategy
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. In 2026, most established salespeople are looking for ways to grow without overcomplicating their days. This is where the Two List Strategy comes in. It's practical, it's focused, and it fits the way you already work. The first list is your Active Lead List. The second is your Nurture List. Each plays a different role, and together they give you more control over your growth.
You Need a Fourth Quarter Plan
Linda Bishop is the founder and president of Thought Transformation, a national sales and marketing consulting group helping printers and other companies achieve top-line growth through a combination of strategies, tools, training and tactics. Her expertise includes all aspects of outbound selling and account acquisition, account retention and development, solution selling, marketing, and aligning sales processes with marketing strategies.
The Real Marketing Problem No One’s Talking About
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. Today, most marketers don’t have print quality problems with vendors. The ink-on-paper product looks fine. But more of your prospects DO have visibility problems. They DO have cut-through-the-noise problems. They DO have a get-noticed-and-remembered problem. And guess what? Print just happens to be an excellent solution.
The Rise of the 'Dark Funnel' – Why Showing Up Matters - Print & Promo Marketing
Here’s what I’ve learned after decades of selling: Your customers aren’t progressing in an orderly manner through a carefully crafted sales funnel. They don’t moving predictably from awareness to consideration to purchase, as we were taught in Marketing 101. The harsh reality? Most early decision-making for your leads doesn’t involve you at all, which is why selling often feels like you are screaming into the void.
The Rise of the 'Dark Funnel' - Why Showing Up Matters
Here's what I've learned after decades of selling: Your customers aren't progressing in an orderly manner through a carefully crafted sales funnel. They don’t moving predictably from awareness to consideration to purchase, as we were taught in Marketing 101. The harsh reality? Most early decision-making for your leads doesn’t involve you at all, which is why selling often feels like you are screaming into the void.
Relationship Trajectories: Blending Social Selling With Traditional Channels
One of the oldest mistakes in sales? Skipping relationship-building and jumping straight to the pitch. But here’s the truth: buyers only listen when their minds are open. That happens in two situations: Right time, right place. They’re actively evaluating options. You’ve earned their trust. They believe you understand their world and can help, even if not today. The first is luck. The second is skill.
Blending Social Selling with Traditional Channels
One of the oldest mistakes in sales? Skipping relationship-building and jumping straight to the pitch. But here’s the truth: buyers only listen when their minds are open. That happens in two situations: Right time, right place. They’re actively evaluating options. You’ve earned their trust. They believe you understand their world and can help, even if not today. The first is luck. The second is skill.
Converting Strangers Into Sales Using LinkedIn
Linda Bishop is the founder and president of Thought Transformation, a national sales and marketing consulting group helping printers and other companies achieve top-line growth through a combination of strategies, tools, training and tactics. Her expertise includes all aspects of outbound selling and account acquisition, account retention and development, solution selling, marketing, and aligning sales processes with marketing strategies.
Your LinkedIn Profile: Many Leads Do Look at Your Billboard
LinkedIn has been around since 2002, so by now you’ve seen plenty of LinkedIn advice. You’ve scrolled past the clickbait: “10 Ways to Crush It with Social Selling!” “Why LinkedIn Is Your Secret Sales Weapon!” Maybe you’ve thought, “I’ve got a profile. And hey, I’m hitting my sales goals.” Fair. Plenty of successful salespeople get by without logging into LinkedIn regularly. They’ve got great relationships, strong pipelines, and good selling instincts and skills.
When Leads Don’t Respond, You Have to Nurture
Picture this, sales pro. You've crafted a really good sales email. It tells a compelling story that clearly demonstrates how you provided value for a similar client. And it strikes the right tone—friendly and professional, assertive but not pushy. You hit send, hopeful that your lead will read your email, and reply enthusiastically with, “Yes, let’s meet!” Sometimes that happens, because your timing was spot on.
Social Selling Strategies: Making the Most of LinkedIn Contacts
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. Imagine a buyer needs to make a purchase. They consider their choices, but not too hard. And though the buyer is sitting at their desk, the consideration process is like attending a networking event. In that scenario, the buyer scans a gathering looking for a familiar face in the crowd. It could be someone they have known for a long time or someone they recently met.
From Stale to Sale: Strategies for Activating Dead Leads
It happens to every sales pro. You’re busy and feeling good. Then, suddenly, without any warning, business drops off. No calls from clients. No quotes for new projects. Crickets. It’s not the first time this has happened. Figuring out what to do when you slam headfirst into a slow period is one of those “now what?” moments that separate good salespeople from best-in-class performers.
From Stale to Sale: Strategies for Activating Dead Leads
It happens to every sales pro. You’re busy and feeling good. Then, suddenly, without any warning, business drops off. No calls from clients. No quotes for new projects. Crickets. It’s not the first time this has happened. Figuring out what to do when you slam headfirst into a slow period is one of those “now what?” moments that separate good salespeople from best-in-class performers.
Marketing and Sales Archives
“I wish I didn’t go to the gym today.” No one has ever uttered those words. To the contrary. We end our day upset because we put it off. Again. “I’ll go first thing” becomes “I’ll go at lunchtime” becomes “I’ll go when I finish up” becomes “I’ll go after dinner” becomes “I’ll go first… Read More In the fast-paced world of the printing industry, the relationship between sales and production is crucial to a company’s overall success.
Defense Wins Sales Championships
When it’s football season, one saying you often hear is, “Offense wins games. Defense wins championships.” That is also true in sales. Offense — or outbound selling — gets new accounts, but defense keeps them producing revenue year after year. What does playing a strong “defense” mean for a sales pro? It comes down to two broad concepts: being visible and bringing business value because both strengthen relationships.
Why Is This Business-Building Golden Ticket So Underused?
Buyers sort printing partners into categories to remind them who can solve which problems for them. “This company can turn around an offset project quickly. This company knows everything about mailing. This company can handle complex variable data. This company builds storefronts.” You might check all those boxes, but with so much on their plates, will the buyer remember everything you can do when they are ready to buy?
It’s Time to Tackle Underperforming Accounts
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. Every sales pro at every company has underperforming accounts.
You Had a Great Sales Meeting. Now What?
Wouldn’t it be great if you met with a new marketing lead, and that potential buyer was mesmerized by every word you said? In just one meeting, you convinced the prospect you were the perfect fit for their company. Best of all, you walked out of the meeting with an opportunity to quote for a project where the buyer urgently needed to make a purchase! Just thinking about that situation gives me a dreamy sense of happy sales anticipation. Unfortunately, the following scenario is a lot more common.
Get On Board with Selling Onboarding Kits Using ChatGPT
Larger organizations often have elaborate onboarding programs for employees, including gift boxes filled with branded and information items. Onboarding kits generally include printed materials and promotional products or apparel, and selling them can be a profitable niche for printing sales pros. If you can provide clients with an online portal for ordering, you can simplify program management and make it easy to order kits on demand.
ChatGPT as Your Sales Strategy Coach
"In sales, things don’t always go as planned. For example, you meet with a prospect named Brad. It’s a good meeting, and Brad tells you to follow up in a month. The allocated time passes, so you send an email. When Brad doesn’t answer in a week, you send another. When that is ignored, you call Brad on his mobile. Brad answers and then proceeds to tell you he doesn’t appreciate being “hounded” and that he’ll let you know if he needs something. You hang up, wondering what you did wrong.
Can ChatGPT Improve Your Next Sales Pitch?
If you are a sales pro, you love when this happens: You schedule a 30-minute introductory meeting with a new lead. Let’s call her Barb. There is some introductory chit-chat. During these moments of mutual discovery, you find a couple of places where you share common ground, establishing a comfortable atmosphere for communication. You move from introductions to discovery and ask Barb questions about her current solution, what she wants to fix or improve, and what she has already investigated.
Turn Sales Ideas into Revenue with the Five-Touch Action Plan
Meet Wilbur. Every month, he attends the sales meeting at his company. The sales VP, Sharon, is a big fan of organic growth, so she asks the team to share stories of how they brought new value to current customers. In every meeting, the ideas fly. There is talk of embellishment upsells, postal promotions, trending tradeshow giveaways, fun formats for mailers, and more. Wilbur walks out of these meetings pumped up and ready to sell. Back at his desk, he fires off emails and schedules meetings.
Sales in the Age of ChatGPT
I worked on a book called "Sales Start-Up" for a couple of years. The first draft was written, and I was editing it for publication. Then, I tried ChatGPT. In less than 15 minutes, I recognized my labor of love was out-of-date and was in dire need of substantial revision. This jarring discovery knocked me back a few steps. It dawned on me that the sales expertise I had painstakingly acquired over many years might not hold the same value in an era where AI tools are readily available.
Sales in the Age of ChatGPT
I worked on a book called "Sales Start-Up" for a couple of years. The first draft was written, and I was editing it for publication. Then, I tried ChatGPT. In less than 15 minutes, I recognized my labor of love was out-of-date and was in dire need of substantial revision. This jarring discovery knocked me back a few steps. It dawned on me that the sales expertise I had painstakingly acquired over many years might not hold the same value in an era where AI tools are readily available.
Rethink, Revamp, and Revitalize: Plan Now for Sales Success in 2024
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. Scroll Down To Continue ▼ Scroll Down To Continue ▼ The following post was originally published by Printing Impressions. To read more of their content, subscribe to their newsletter, Today on PIWorld. Best-in-class sales pros (like you!) are already thinking about their 2024 strategy and looking at the accounts they are working on to determine the best way to move forward in the new year.
Rethink, Revamp, and Revitalize: Plan Now for Sales Success in 2024
Continue to your page in 15 seconds or skip this ad. Best-in-class sales pros (like you!) are already thinking about their 2024 strategy and looking at the accounts they are working on to determine the best way to move forward in the new year. As 2024 approaches, it’s good to take a look at everyone you are working on and place them in their appropriate “bucket” to strategically tailor your approach.
Sales Pro, Are You Stuck on the “Safe-to-Ignore” List?
You reach out to a potential buyer. Nothing happens, so you reach out again. And maybe again. But then you start to feel discouraged. Or you get busy. Or you see another shiny lead that looks promising. Your contact attempts taper off, then stop. A few months pass. Either inspiration or desperation strikes. And you reach out again. I see this cycle again and again in the market. Salespeople engage in sporadic and random outreaches. Potential buyers ignore the salespeople.
Sales Pro, Are You Stuck on the “Safe-to-Ignore” List?
You reach out to a potential buyer. Nothing happens, so you reach out again. And maybe again. But then you start to feel discouraged. Or you get busy. Or you see another shiny lead that looks promising. Your contact attempts taper off, then stop. A few months pass. Either inspiration or desperation strikes. And you reach out again. I see this cycle again and again in the market. Salespeople engage in sporadic and random outreaches. Potential buyers ignore the salespeople.
Prompt Wizardry: Cast a Spell to Increase Sales
When my company focused solely on sales training and I was on the road 100 days every year, I met plenty of people looking for a magic wand they could wave to win the sales game. Well, guess what? We might be a lot closer to that with AI tools like ChatGPT. ChatGPT is a generative AI system fueled by prompts. Think of prompts as the written incantations that power the spells you cast to collect information. The quality of your prompt determines the quality of the information returned to you.
Can ChatGPT Help Get More Sales Meetings?
Technology is transforming the work world one more time. This time, the charge is led by AI and Natural Language Processing — or NLP. IBM describes NLP this way: combines computational linguistics — rule-based modeling of human language — with statistical, machine learning, and deep learning models.
Can ChatGPT Help Get More Sales Meetings?
Technology is transforming the work world one more time. This time, the charge is led by AI and Natural Language Processing — or NLP. IBM describes NLP this way: combines computational linguistics — rule-based modeling of human language — with statistical, machine learning, and deep learning models.
It Was Easy to Ignore These Sales Emails. Here's Why.
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Should You Have a Go at Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
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Where Should Your Marketing Dollars Go?
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The 2 + 2 Method Adds Up to More Sales for You
Are you a sales pro looking for an easy way to get more meetings and opportunities? Thought Transformation’s 2 + 2 Method could be the answer. Here’s what you do. Start by coming up with a list of contacts. They could be regular customers, occasional customers, past customers, prospects you are currently working with, prospects who told you "no" in the past, or cold leads. If you think they are a possibility for future business, they are worthy of inclusion on your 2 + 2 list.
The 2 + 2 Method Adds Up to More Sales for You
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Let Go of This Myth and Grow Printing Industry Sales
Once upon a time, a group of workers held the title “Print Buyer.” Printing salespeople sought them out because these influential people chose which printer service provider got their steady work. The sales rep’s goal was to find seven to 10 accounts that bought consistently and to build strong relationships with those buyers. The strategy worked well during the 20th Century, when print was the primary marketing channel at many companies.
Sales Pros: Get More Meetings in 2023
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How to Write Emails that Get Meetings with Printing Buyers
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Are You Turning Off Print Buyers Before You Get a Chance to Quote?
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Are You Turning Off Print Buyers Before You Get a Chance to Quote?
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A look at energy alternatives…
By Don “Doc” Sanders The good old U.S. of A. is blessed with lots of alternative options for energy. However, I believe that these opportunities must be developed slowly and thoughtfully like the steady forward progress of the tortoise, as opposed to the undisciplined pace of the hare, in Aesop’s fable. Currently, our government is playing its political cards on energy utilization like the speedy, erratic hare, not the methodical tortoise.
Buyer beware with solar
July 29, 2021 Country Life, Top Headlines By Linda Bishop, Findlay The Toledo Zoo parking lot solar array is a perfect example of how and where solar panels should be placed to get double duty out of an area that is necessary, but not beautiful. In western Ohio, 84 or more solar installations of about 1,000 acres each are being planned. This means that 84,000 acres that will be taken out of farm production.
Ambassador of the Possible: Selling Prospects in the Second Half of 2020
Have you ever watched a cat venture into an unfamiliar space? They proceed slowly and cautiously, one watchful step forward, and then a pause, alert to potential danger. Many prospects will take the same pussy-footed approach in the second half of the year. Expect nervousness, trepidation, and slower-than-normal sales cycles. One way for sales pros to overcome hesitancy is by becoming an Ambassador of the Possible.
Insane Honesty
Brands traditionally hit on the pros of their products, attempting to sweep under the rug any possible issues. Let’s face it – it’s hard to admit our weaknesses, one might even say gut-wrenching. How can you divulge the flaws of the products and/or services you hope to sell? But heres’ the thing – it can be a powerful marketing tool. In fact, today it may be the only marketing tool worth keeping in your box.
Do-nothing career politicians are the real threat to nation’s future - Sentinel-Tribune: Opinion
Posted: Saturday, October 29, 2016 2:00 am Do-nothing career politicians are the real threat to nation’s future By Linda Bishop, Findlay Sentinel-Tribune To the Editor: The career Democrats and Republicans like to talk about how damaging Trump will be to our country because he will not obey our U.S. Constitution. Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. Please click the button below to manage your account. kAm%96 uC665@> x?56I D4@C6D 4@?8C6DD>6? @?
Trump’s plans would let all races win - Sentinel-Tribune: Opinion
Posted: Wednesday, September 21, 2016 8:58 am Trump’s plans would let all races win Linda Bishop Findlay Sentinel-Tribune To the Editor: Everyone can spout the Democratic rhetoric we have heard for ages, and never changes. What would blacks, Hispanics or any minority have to lose by voting for Trump? What has the Democrat party done for them for years except to get their votes and offer them more of the same failures?
Blakely choice for central committee - Sentinel-Tribune: Opinion
Posted: Wednesday, February 24, 2016 8:53 am Blakely choice for central committee By Linda Bishop, Findlay Sentinel-Tribune To the Editor: Cheryl Blakely is a candidate for Republican State Central Committee in the Northwest Ohio counties of Hardin, VanWert, Putnam, Paulding, Defiance, Logan, Fulton, Williams, Auglaize, Hancock, and Henry.
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