A career in sales? 7 Tips to Ride the sales rollercoaster.
Training sales people is such a privilege. Through my business SerialTrainer7 Ltd I get to meet some of the most talented and charming sales people who work so hard for their companies and themselves to build relationships, solve problems and drive revenue.
There is a common understanding amongst experienced sales people that is not fully appreciated by those just starting out.
Working in sales is a rollercoaster.
There are times when everything you touch turns to gold, and other times when everything you touch turns to dust. When the former happens you are untouchable, you are invincible, you are star baby and every loop the loop is there for the taking and you soar and climb to new heights.
When the latter happens, the drop is steep, catastrophic and you genuinely start to question your career choices. Whichever way you turn, it is an uphill struggle that delivers another deep drop, may as well give up right?
Wrong.
That is what sales is all about.
The stress and pressure that sales people put on themselves can lead them to wanting the sale too much, and this comes across when talking to the client, furthermore, the sales tools that all sales people are equipped with, become ineffective because the fog of wanting the sale so much blurs sales vision stopping any progress.
When new people start in sales there are some tips and techniques that can help with this up and down topsy-turvy career. They can also help those more seasoned roller coaster riders too.
7 Tips for the Ups.
- Strap in, and enjoy the ride, celebrate. Very important.
- Manage your expectations and realise this high could be temporary. Don’t brag, it makes you look shallow, especially around those who might be struggling. Use the success to support those people and help them.
- Think ‘what next’ and look at your prospects. Work out those, which are on the potential, possible and probable list.
- Use this time to focus on new business generation; your success will come across as positive and confident giving a positive vibe to calls and meetings.
- Revisit clients that have given you objections and refocus your energy into looking at solutions that will overcome them. Again, your recent success creates a positive tone and approach that clients like.
- Spend some time building relationships further with existing clients to help reinforce their decision to have bought from you in the first place. Make them feel special; give them some of that sales love in the form of terrific customer care. It keeps them coming back for more.
- Look to invest some time in any outstanding sales proposals, or follow up on those out there, use the success mentality to move them along the line. You can also take some time on new proposals or pitches too, or even help some of your colleagues by sharing what has worked so well. Shared success creates great teamwork.
7 Tips for the Downs
- Don’t panic. This is natural. It won’t be forever. I promise. Breathe.
- Get in touch with clients who you have a great relationship with and have a conversation about their business, just shoot the breeze; you will start to feel more confident again talking to a friendly voice.
- Go back over some of your training notes from any training you have attended, or read a blog on the subject. There are lots on the SerialTrainer7.com website. They will give you a lift and some cracking tools and techniques, based on my own expereince and those I have trained.
- Be honest with your manager and explain your concerns, and have a plan to take in. You might be surprised at how understanding they are, and they would have been in the same place as you at some point.
- Don’t talk about your slump to others, it will bring them down and make you sound like you are making excuses. By talking about it to anyone who will listen just ends up reinforcing the issue and prevents you seeing a clear exit.
- Go over your prospect list, call every single one and look to move him or her along the line, even if it is just by one step. Use the following statement-question to kick things off. “The last time we spoke, you talked to me about the following areas and I would love to pick up with you from there. Has anything changed since we last spoke?” This shows the client you have listened and remembered and also gets them to bring you up to speed on what has happened since talking. If there is nothing changed, then take in a piece of research or interesting information that they can value and use.
- Challenge yourself to generate some new business and create new contacts, do a few introductory cold calls, don’t worry about the knock backs, it is a numbers game. I don’t care that people out there might think that is an old school approach, it works. When you fall off of the horse get back in the saddle my friends.
So if you are already in sales, you might find some of these tips helpful. If you are thinking of moving into a career in sales, then these will definitely help you manage your own expectations and give the nudge you might need to work in the one of the greatest professions of them all. Now put your hands in the air and scream if you want to go faster.
Thanks for reading if you need sales training in your business then get in touch as serialtrainer7.com and we would love to talk to you. Email Simon@serialtrainer7.com or Matt@serialtrainer7.com.