“Get closer than ever to your customers. So close, in fact, that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves.”
-Steve Jobs
Every business has many important aspects that contribute to the success of the business. From manufacturing to product development, customer service all the way to the first meeting with the salesperson. Outbound or inbound sales strategies is continuously changing and businesses either float or sink in regard to the evolving industry. Today, I am going to go over the 5 best tips to be the best salesperson you can be this year!
When I first got into sales, I was young and had absolutely NO clue, but yet my manager saw something in me. What she saw was my willingness to learn, which leads me to my very first tip.
Coachablity – This is very important to managers when they are selecting their candidates. Not that experience isn’t important because in the end it is, but having the wiliness to listen and learn helps you as a salesperson to excel. Another reason to factor in is that every business is different, yes you may know the basic fundamentals of sales however, your manager may want to incorporate your sales strategies with their businesses strategy so in the end you both have the same goal.
Prepared– An effective salesperson gets prepared before the meeting. This means that the they are doing their research before the meeting. The top reps will never just wing it and see what happens. A top rep will prepare for any challenges or questions a client may have and if you are not prepared for it, that can have an impact on the outcome of the meeting.
Building a relationship– If you did new business sales like I did then you know exactly how important it is to build a relationship with your clients. Prospect or existing client, trust must happen before a client is willing to go any further with you. Talk to the client, get to know them, learn about their struggles or concerns. When you build that relationship with the client eventually, not always they will be more willing to do business with you.
Look from their perspective– As I was saying in the last tip, a successful salesperson doesn’t hone in on the paycheck. The successful salespeople don’t think “Hmm, how am I going to sell this?” a successful one thinks “How can I help this client win? How do we win together.” Longevity is important, think beyond the one sale. As a salesperson, you want this customer for the long run, an ally and with the mindset of “how can I help?” is one way you are going to succeed in the field!
LISTEN-Yes, I capitalized that because listening is VERY important and believe it or not I have worked with quite a few salespeople who never listened, which lead to them not seeing any success. I remember a colleague of mine that struggled for a few weeks and was not meeting their quotas. They asked me if I could tag along in a sales call and get my perspective. We packed the vehicle and made some last minute presentation preparations and off we went. From the very first hand shake I was there in the background observing how it all went. Once the meeting was done, we sat down and talked about the call. One of the things I picked up on when I was observing was their lack of listening to the client. I asked simple questions about the meeting they had and touched on the clients pain points and said: “did you hear the part when the client was expressing a concern they had?” Their response was no, which I already knew because they were not listening and missed an opportunity where the rep could have connected with the client. As a salesperson, you should always be listening and ask many questions so the client knows you’re engaged and concerned. Without listening how can you get a better understanding of the business or contribute to their success in the long run?
