Maximizing Your Potential!

Today I wanted to explore the subject of knowledge.

What is knowledge and how does this apply to sales?

Knowledge is defined as: familiarity, understanding, awareness, or information acquired through experience, study or observation; that which is or can be perceived or learned.

The definition of ‘know’ sums it up best though: to perceive or comprehend with clearness and certainty.

How many of us have run into someone who has studied Real Estate contracts but they have never written one?

They are scared to death of making a mistake and they almost look at the contract like it were a man-eating tiger.

The same thing is true of the computer programmer who tries to write his first program. You have no certainty until you’ve written several contracts or many computer programs.

The bottom line is that practice does make perfect. Real knowledge is gained through a combination of reading or studying and application.

Don’t be afraid to make a mistake, ask questions of someone more knowledgeable than you, make corrections and try again.

Per Ed Macauley, “When you are not practicing, remember, someone somewhere else is practicing, and when you meet him he will win.”

Francis Bacon also says,” Knowledge and human power are synonymous.”

So the next time you take a class, block out time to practice what you have learned, at least 1/2 hour per day and then DO IT! Then learn a little bit more and practice that.

Do this and you’ll win!

Let’s face it, sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we are going to fail to close a prospect.

There is a way to make sure that all that effort was not in vain! That tool is the Sales Debug Checklist.

The best way to use it is to get with your sales manager, a business partner or a friend and have them ask you the questions listed below so that you can use a failed opportunity to be stronger at the close in the future.
If you can’t find someone else to do this with you, you can also ask the questions of yourself.

Sales Debug Checklist

1. Did you talk to the decision maker?

2. Was the prospect well qualified?

3. Was the meeting well prepared?

4. What was your/my emotional tone level before the meeting?

5. What was the prospects emotional tone level at the start of the meeting?

6. What exactly was the prospects final decision?

7. Which objection did you/I fail to handle?

8. How did you/I try to handle it?

9. Did you attempt to handle with ACCORD?

10. What was the prospects reaction when you attempted to close?

11. When did you/I start to lose control?

12. Did you like the prospect? Have something in common with him/her? Have a willingness to communication with him/her?

13. Was the prospect closed on you/me? My company? My product/service? The price? The timing?

14. Did you/I have strong agreement from the prospect on why he needed my product/service?

15. Was the prospect convinced by my arguments as to why this was best for him/her?

16. What was the prospects emotional tone level during your/my attempts to close? At the end of the meeting?

17. Why did you/I fail to close the prospect?

Drill the situation with your friend/colleague until you have found the optimum way to deal with the same situation in the future. Your sales WILL increase as a result.

Technorati Tags: Attempts, Business Partner, Colleague, Decision Maker, Emotional Tone, Face, Final Decision, Objection, Prospects, Tone Level, Tool Sales, Willingness

Fact: It costs 5 to 8 times more to get a new client than it does to keep an existing client.

Fact: A happy client will tell 2-3 people about you and your awesome product or service. An unhappy client will tell as many as 10 people how dissatisfied they were with you and your service.

With that in mind it is extremely important to keep your existing clients very happy. Here are 10 sure fire ways to do that!

1. Confidence is the ultimate ingredient in selling – Your client must understand that he can count on YOU, not some customer service rep within your organization. They must feel confident that you will be there for them, reassuring them that they were right to put their trust in you.

2. Take entire responsibility for your client – Once you have closed the deal, tell your client that NOW is when your job starts. Too many salespeople consider that the job is done once all the paperwork is signed and the money is collected. Bbut top salespeople consider that they’ve only just begun!

3. Communicate regularly with your clients, current and past – Regular follow-up is imperative. Whether it is faxes, phone calls, emails or a visit, you need to stay in touch with all of your clients. I recommend mailing monthly and calling quarterly. It’s truly up to you. The main thing is to be consistent!

4. Have your happy clients sell you to others – Always check with your client to ensure that you are exceeding his/her expectations. If you are, ask for referrals. If you aren’t, find out why and get back on track with them so that you can get referrals on the next visit!

5. Always confront and handle ANY upset which occurs – Never let a client stay unhappy with you and your product or service. Find out what is going on and handle it immediately!

6.Keep informed and interested in your clients – Know what’s happening in the market and share that information with them, especially if you feel it will help them grow their business.

7. Avoid ‘false sales’ which can crash your morale – If your newly acquired client suddenly has second thoughts, find out what is going on immediately and take them back to their original reasons for moving forward. Never let them go, if they were closed once, they can definitely be closed again!

8. Make your customers your ambassadors - Don’t hesitate to ask for referrals and be sure to get a testimonial right there as soon as you close the deal. You’ll be glad you did!

9. Keep your database updated – as soon as a client changes there email, mailing address or numbers, be sure you take the time to update your records. You’ll be glad you did. I have been guilty of this one and could kick myself as I lost the data and have lost touch with someone I really cared about!

10. Remember: Communication is the universal solvent – It is your greatest success tool -  this thing called communication. Use it to help you and your clients and you will never go wrong. The wrong thing to do is nothing. Whenever an upset occurs find out why immediately and talk through it until there is resolution! You and your clients will be happy you did.

Good luck!

Technorati Tags: Confidence, Crash, Current, Customer Service Rep, Emails, Faxes, Job, Money, Mor, Organization, Paperwork, Phone Calls, Referrals, Sure Fire, Top Salespeople, Unhappy Client

The 3 ‘W’s’ of Prospecting are:
1. Who – is the person you should be talking with?
2. What – does he want? (notice it does NOT say what do I have to sell him that he may want!)
3. When – is he going to buy?

You must make sure that you are talking with the decision maker, that he is in the market for what you offer and that he needs it pretty quickly!

We will take it a step further with AIDA.
1. Who is Asking?
2. Who is Influencing?
3. Who is Deciding?
4. Who is Actually using?

You must make sure that you know who is asking and if he/she is the one who will be using the product, as well as, being the decision maker, or not. Who will help in the decision making process and make sure that all of these people, be it 4 different entities or all rolled in to one, when you make your presentation. Otherwise, it is a waste of time.

The 10 GOLDEN RULES of Prospecting:
1. Quantify your efforts. Collect lots of names. The amount of sales you make depends in large part on the amount of prospects you contact.
2. Qualify your efforts. BEFORE you meet a prospect collect enough data to be able to judge whether you can get a close NOW.
3. Direct your efforts. Select first those who will give you big sales. Find out what public is ideal for your product or service. Do surveys.
4. Never stop prospecting. Leave your card everywhere!
5. Use all of your available existing contacts; friends, colleagues, etc. Propose an exchange for each name given, who is qualified to purchase.
6. A bad prospect can give you a good one. Take advantage of being there or on the phone to ask him/her for a few good people to contact. What do you lose? If you don’t ask, you don’t get! You would be surprised at how much people are willing to help.
7. Be organized. Keep track of every prospecting cycle. Build up a prospect file, make it as big as possible. Top sales people try to increase their database by 20% each month!
8. A small prospect can become a big one. Communicate with your prospects on a regular basis. Allow them to communicate back as much as possible.
9. Don’t ever give up. Persistence is a major quality. If you start working on a prospect, don’t stop. Consider he is yours!
10. Your attitude with a prospect is what may have him becoming a customer. It is not a matter of coincidence, YOU make the difference. The art of serving starts with prospecting.

Technorati Tags: Advantage, Aida, Art Sales, Colleagues, Contact, Contacts, Decision Maker, Decision Making Process, Entities, Friends, Golden 1, Ideal, Names, Prospects, Sales People, Surveys, Top Sales, Waste Of Time

Of course, all of us want to bat 1000, so would any baseball player. The reality is that there are going to be times when even the best of us swings and misses one.

Here are some of ways this can occur:

1. Talk too much – Most salespeople have a tendency to talk too much. They forget that they have 2 ears and one mouth which is a 2/1 ratio. They get this reversed and talk twice as much as they listen. Develop your listening skills and see what happens.

2. Imposing your opinion on the prospect – this is one sure fire way to make your prospect wrong. Remember, everyone fights being ‘wrong.’ Listen to your prospect. Think about where he’s coming from. Let him know that you heard him and understand what he’s saying. You’d be amazed how powerful that can be and when you’ve done always those things, the chances are good that he will be willing to listen to you.

3. Denigrate the competition – When you put the competition down you are putting down the whole industry. It winds up hurting your position and may make you seem petty or weak. Just don’t go there.

4. Promise something you can’t deliver – I was reading a book by another trainer and he mentioned that when he was selling phone systems he would say that he could deliver it on time not matter how realistic the clients expectations where and he would up getting in a lot of trouble needlessly. Tell the truth. Your clients will be glad you did (and you will, too)!

5. Do not control the sales cycle – when you fail to have a plan and or have one but fail to follow it, you let yourself down and the prospect. They need clear cut guidance from you or they would do it themselves. Give them what they want. Be the professional. Take Charge!

6. Only be thinking of your commission – 90% of your communication is non-verbal. You could be saying all the right words but believe me, if ultimately, all you are really thinking about is the $ you’ll make on this sale, the prospect will hear this LOUD and CLEAR!

7. Do too much – talk too much, be overly effusive, push-push-push and you will have your prospect running the other way.

8. Wait – Just sit there hoping the client will get the idea that now is when you want them to buy is totally the wrong way to go.

9. Fail to be sincere – Let’s face it, per the above, that will be telegraphed right to the prospect, unconsciously.

10. Fail to be open and overt in your communication – I think it goes without saying, that this will NOT get you a happy, satisfied client.

Happy Closing!!!

Technorati Tags: Baseball Player, Bat, Control, Ears, Guidance, Listening Skills, Reading A Book, Sales Cycle, Salespeople, Sure Fire, Tendency, Truth