Energy Sales/Business Development
The need for good sales people to find and retain new clients is growing. The growth in renewable companies is increasing the number of competitors in each segment of the downstream energy business. So the training and development of the sales function must ramp up as well. These are some of the topics worth considering
General Topics
These are general topics in sales, each standing separately.
Tracking and Analyzing Sales Performance
If you’re a sales representative and clued-in, you reviewed the new quota system at the beginning of the year and have been using it to maximize your income or happiness.
If you’re a sales manager, you’ve been tracking sales performance and individual contributions from your team.
I don’t know what CRM( Customer Relationship Management System) your firm uses but it’s wise to know how to extract value from it to:
• Establish a common understanding of sales facts;
• Allow everyone to drill down to determine cause and effect;
• Adjust expectations for revenue in the future.
Here is a survey of some of the PERFORMANCE items that firms track in their CRM or if not in a CRM in a spreadsheet. It’s not complete since it’s a vast subject. But it’s worth reviewing what others are doing.
Click on this link to download the pdf:
A CRM, or Customer Relationship Management system, is a tool that helps businesses manage and improve their interactions with current and potential customers.
Think of it as a digital command center for your sales, marketing, and customer service teams.
At its core, a CRM does three big things:
1. Centralizes customer data – Every email, call, purchase, and support ticket is stored in one place.
2. Streamlines communication – It helps teams follow up with leads, nurture relationships, and never miss a beat.
3. Boosts productivity and insights – With automation and analytics, it helps you work smarter, not harder.
Whether you're a solo entrepreneur or a global enterprise, a CRM helps you build stronger relationships, close more deals, and keep customers happy throughout their journey.
Here’s a list of the popular ones for firms that sell both online and through reps.
Click on this link to download the pdf:
General Comments
Choosing the type of sales training is an individualized thing, depending on how well-developed a sales organization is and how much sales training is in the background of individuals and sales managers.
I was a sales rep, a regional sales manager and a VP of sales and marketing before I entered recruiting. That was in two industries: software and financial data.
Looking back over the organizations I was part of, I would now choose different programs for each of them. Each sales organization was in a different stage of development. The age and experience of the sales people was different from firm to firm.
As a rookie sales person, I even took the XEROX sales training course, the granddaddy of most of the modern courses today. It was very beneficial since it got me out of my techie mode and helped me focus on client needs.
I do like the sales training that reminds you of where you are in the sales cycle. If you can recognize that and use that to talk to your sales manager or peers about problems or solutions—it really can help. But that is your choice.
You can download a list of these at the bottom of this introduction.
If you have suggestions about other sales training courses, would love to hear about them plus your comments:
crbamford@rockwoodenergysearch.com
What Are Channel Partnerships in Energy Software?
A channel partnership is when a third party—such as a consultant, VAR (value-added reseller), or integrator—sells or implements your software on your behalf. In energy, this often means:
• Energy consultants bundling your platform with advisory services.
• Hardware vendors embedding your analytics into their devices.
• System integrators deploying your software as part of digital transformation projects.
For the full article, please download the pdf.
The Science/Art of Marketing: Big Change in the Last 25 years
As practitioners know, Marketing has changed dramatically since 2000. Many of the newer tools can be applied to B2B marketing. Here’s a survey of some of those changes and links to further reading.
Digital Transformation
• From print to pixels: Traditional channels like TV, radio, and print gave way to digital platforms — websites, email, social media, and search engines.
• Rise of social media: Platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok turned marketing into a two-way conversation, empowering creators and consumers alike.
• Search engine marketing (SEM) and SEO became keys to visibility and lead generation.
For the full article, please download the pdf.
Books about Selling
There are a number of sales books defined as “Classics” by various commentators.
Depending upon your level of sales experience and state of mind, you should review and read the ones that are most relevant to your present circumnstances.
You can purchase these books from Amazon in printed or digital form and even read several at the same time.
The grandaddy books:
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
The original playbook for relationship-driven selling and influence.
• The Psychology of Selling by Brian Tracy
Focuses on mindset, motivation, and closing techniques that scale.
• Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini
Introduces six principles of persuasion—essential for any outreach strategy.
After the Grandaddy books, There’s a wide range of subjects.
Here's current list. Please download.
The Quiet Revolution in Demand Response and DERMS
In the past five years, the technology associated with managing remote generation and storage has dramatically improved.
Now, the Independent System Operators (ISO’s) can dispatch generation more easily and quickly. Moreover, the firms in the Demand Response Business can as well.
DERMS(Distributed Energy Resource Management Systems) are getting more robust daily.
The electric utilities know this and are using these systems to maintain system reliability amid increasingly volatile demand.
The icing on the cake is the general increase in power prices, driven in large part by datacenter growth. Those higher prices pay for further software and hardware development.
The associated jobs are growing too, particularly sales and marketing jobs.
If you’re already in the sector, congratulations. But you need to keep up with the competing firms.
If you’re not current on all this, take a look and see what might appeal to you.
DOWNLOAD the full report
AI is wildly popular. This article tries to bring reality to the discussion.
Download the full content below.
It’s hiring season, therefore it’s the time that sales managers interview prospective reps.
I’ve put together a list of interviewing questions to pose to candidates who sell into the C&I market.
They cover these areas:
1. Real-world C&I selling experience
2. Pipeline Management
3. Technical Literacy
4. Sales Strategy
5. Account Management
6. Personal Tenacity
7. Account Insights
8. Coachability
9. Sales Strategy
10. Commercial Math
For the list, click on the link below to get a pdf file.
It’s hiring season, therefore it’s the time that sales managers interview prospective reps.
I’ve put together a list of interviewing questions to pose to candidates who sell software to energy firms.
. They cover these areas:
1. real‑world selling ability into energy companies
2. energy‑market literacy and software literacy
3. comfort with energy‑sector buyer personas
4. analytical, technical, and commercial thinking
5. hunting instincts in a niche market
6. relationship‑building and account expansion
7. resilience in a slow‑moving, technical market
8. strategic thinking and domain positioning
9. coachability questions
10. “pressure‑test” questions for energy‑software reps
For the list, click on the link below to get a pdf file.
Commercial & Industrial Sales -What major suppliers and consultants are saying it takes
Series Introduction
This is a reading series on issues confronted by sales management and sales reps in C&I power and natural gas sales.
It comes from a review of what major suppliers and consultants tell their clients.
The first deals with the background to the energy buying decision. The format is to summarize the viewpoint gained from our research and then give references to allow the reader to see how we got there.
If you disagree with the viewpoint, let me know. I’ve been a sales rep, a regional sales manager and a VP of Sales and Marketing—and have learned that the world changes in buyer behavior and buying patterns. And sales people have to adapt.
Download the first written episode below.
Channel Sales Managers who work for energy suppliers and Distributed Generation firms have an outsized and immediate impact on revenue.
Review this short piece for more information.
