Category Archives: sellling strategy

Daily behaviors for sales success need to be taught and coached!

Posted on by

Last week I discussed the simplicity of the daily selling “Grind”!  Many salespeople will not do daily behaviors. Doing and tracking is hard. A lot of salespeople get little or no training in selling behaviors. I have met, hired, and fired salespeople who are afraid of the accountability a system creates. 

The best most productive and highest paid salespeople are lifelong learners.  They embrace continuous sales training and get onboard with daily behaviors; they understand the power of doing the numbers every day.  A day missed is potential lost sales.

I believe many people think sales requires an inordinate amount of time.  Daily phone cold-calling, fitting as many appointments in as possible, working 12, 15, 18 hours per day.

Depending on your goals and the goals of your organization you can set up a daily set of behaviors that produce desired results and work 8 hours or less and be very productive. 

Do daily numbers go home every night and know sales and goals will happen.  Work a little harder the week before a vacation and go away knowing everything is still happening and sales will continue.

However, from experience I have seen many salespeople who just cannot get into the daily habits and they fail to make their goals and sales happen.

I tell every new salesperson what to expect and that there will be great sales training, continuous sales training, and a minimum set of daily behaviors.  The daily behaviors are recorded tracked and accountable, for continued employment.

I usually get feedback and sometimes push back on this.

What are your thoughts?

Selling is a 230-day walk in the park.

Posted on by

The Selling year

1 Year                                                 365 days

weekends                                         -104 days

Holidays                                             -10 days

vacation                                             -10 days

Misc./Personal/Absence                 -11 days

Standard working days                  230 days

As a salesperson and then owner of a growing business I read and thought a lot about how to optimize selling time. Most sales trainers teach and talk about maximizing selling time and get as much time in selling during the eight-hour day as possible. 

I have observed that many sales programs do not really teach or show a daily plan for a real sales day. It is talked about, taught, and assumed the salesperson will develop and execute a daily plan.

I believe in building a daily process a daily “grind” that if performed repeatedly for 230 days will produce a year of great sales results.

During my selling career and for the salespeople I eventually hired for my company I built a system of daily behaviors based on points per behavior performed. The system is simple and set to develop salespeople over a three-year time frame depending on their sales proficiency. 

Continuous sales training, on how to sell, is a must. Continuous use and monitoring of the daily behaviors, the point system really does produce great results. 

However, I can attest to the fact that using and measuring a daily behavior program can be daunting and difficult to do for many wanna-be salespeople.

I owned an Aerospace Manufacturing business. Orders ranged from several hundred to a hundred thousand with most order sizes $5,000 to $15,000. Each salesperson was required to do $750,000 in the first year, $1,500,000 a second year, and get to $3,000,000+ in the third year. Continuous training, coaching, and measurement of daily behaviors was a highly successful formula for the salespeople that could grasp, understand, and do the process. We grew the company nicely year over year.

In another segment, I will discuss the simplicity and the reasons it is so hard for many salespeople to grasp.

Let me know if you are interested in further information.

5 – Tips to keep your “GOALS” moving!

Posted on by

Many people have stopped working on their Goals for year 2019. 

Hopefully you have made it easy to see your goals and review them for progress frequently.

Here are 5 tips to keep your goals moving for 2019:

  1. Make sure you have goals written down and easy to find.
  2. Look at your goals daily.
  3. Make time to work on your goals daily, even if you spend a few minutes.
  4. If a goal seems too hard, revise it.  Look at smaller parts of each goal to work on.
  5. Never give up! — Make 2019 your best year yet!

Good Selling or Bad Selling?

Posted on by

Many years ago, I had one of the best Receptionist/Gatekeeper in business, she understood and could stop non-essential salespeople from getting through.  One day she brought me a package.  It had been hand delivered.

In the package was a T Shirt from my alma mater — Indiana Institute of Technology. There was a note from the salesman requesting an appointment, and comment that he hoped I appreciated his effort to get my school T shirt.  He said he would call in a few days.

I graduated from IIT in 1973 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. The idea that this salesman had gone to the trouble to get me the shirt was unique and I liked his style. 

I instructed our receptionist/gatekeeper that I was impressed by this salesperson and that when he calls I will take the call.  After a little research on his company, I was pretty sure I would not need his services.  However, I would listen to him and then if possible direct him to a referral.

He never called!

How many times have you had seemingly good salespeople just not follow through?

Good selling or bad selling?

A sales tracking system completed daily = Sales Success!

Posted on by

Do you have a sales process and daily system for generating business?  I do!  I have developed and use a sales process involving daily point accumulation.  Diligently follow a selling process and create sales.

Daily point accumulation allows for measurement and tracking of the sales process.  Daily work on this process coupled with good sales training creates a dynamite selling opportunity — almost guaranteed (Some sales people just don’t get it!)

Do you have a process and training to keep your sales group on Track?

Make 2019 your best year yet!

Do you have a solid process for tracking and following sales?

Posted on by

As a CEO/President for many years I can attest to the following:

According to the National Sales Executive Association,

  • 12% of sales people only make three contacts and stop
  • Only 10% of sales people make more than three contacts
  • 10% of sales are made on the fourth contact
  • 80% of sales are made on the 5th to 12th or more contacts

Sales people need a process, a culture of sales/selling success and on-going training.  I work a daily process for myself. 

We as managers need solid information to see the sales process.  Too many times it is treated as “Magic that just happens”.  I help set up and refine the daily grind of sales measurement.  If interested – Let’s talk!

Make 2019 your best year yet!

Are you doing business with the government?

Posted on by

Great Books

Does your company do business with the government?  I did with my last company and have just started with my current company. 

There is a very large “river” of bids coming out daily.  Once you figure out what you can sell to the government learn the process and get going.

Many people talk with me about how hard or how easy it is to begin selling to the government.

I have helped several companies get started.  The process is not complicated.  However, it does take consistent effort, daily oversight and certainly work.

If you are interested — Contact me.

Make 2019 your best year yet!

Goals — Are yours written? Are you working them daily?

Posted on by

 

After much reading, discussing and watching I am convinced that over 95% of people going into a new year don't have written measurable goals for the year.  Many or probably most have heard this and know the importance of goal setting goals, still not written down.

If you are a sales person and say “Wow! I need more sales to make my year!” — You may be out of luck. If your sales cycle takes longer than 10 weeks from start to close to shipment, you are running out of time.

Now is the time to begin looking toward the New Year 2019. Begin by setting an appointment with yourself for 30 – 60 minutes. Get blank paper or a blank computer screen and begin writing your thoughts and ideas for accomplishment next year. This first cut at goal setting doesn't have to be neat — just take time to think about and write your ideas and thoughts down. My beginning session is usually quite messy and unorganized.

Put this information away in a place you absolutely won't forget where it is so that you can retrieve it, early December.  Then set an appointment with yourself for 30 – 60 minutes early December and get your list out.

In December you will be amazed at the progress you will have already made toward thinking about and planning your goals for next year. Your fist list may be messy, but you will be ready to define and refine the list. You will be subtracting, adding and modifying the original set of goals. Make the list a little neater and resolve to begin your goals and measure your goals.

Why do I believe in doing this? It's because I use this method every year and then I set a tracking system and measure progress. This works!

Try for yourself and get into the 5% group of people who actually write and strive to achieve their goals. Remember a lot of “Luck” goes along with a lot of preparation.  

While continuing to build my own goal system I have found and in process of reviewing a software program that looks very promising — Click and have a look 

I'll comment further as I look at this software — Let me know your thoughts.

Make 2019 your best year yet!

Sales planning — Visualization?

Posted on by

Sales planning — Visualization?

I am a salesperson. I have been associated with selling most of my life. My dad was a commission man. I was intrigued with what he did. I traveled with him and observed the ups and downs of selling.

When time to choose a career, I rejected sales. I decided to go to engineering school and get my BSME – Bachelor of science mechanical engineering. Then figuring I didn't have enough business education from engineering I went after and received an MBA.

I went through several engineering jobs and finally ended up in inside sales, quotations, warranty — sales support but not direct selling.

One day in the early 80's business was slowing down and my boss came in and said he wanted me to go on the road and sell and bring in business. I told him emphatically I did not want to be a direct salesperson. He told me to go home and tell my wife I no longer had a job. I decided right then and there that selling was exactly the career path I wanted to be in.

I asked for sales training and was told no. I bought and read every book and article on selling I could find. I was successful (The definition of success at that time was selling enough product to fill the plant and I was asked in September to stop until next year.)

So even though I have had many roles in business, I have stayed the course as sales and selling my real career path. I have hired and trained many sales people over the years. I subscribe to the “Sandler Selling System” and work with Acuity Systems Inc. here in Dallas.

I have a proven system for tracking behaviors and a cookbook for tracking. Over the years I have always wanted a good visual program to look at and review my sales year. I'm about to come out with an excel spreadsheet and white paper, that outlines an entire year. I will be able to plan each month, day and week for the year, look at and review it everyday.

The problem with this for typical sales people will be discipline of doing the daily behaviors and committing to the grind.

Thoughts and comments welcome.

Make 2018 your best year yet!

Sales planning — Visualization?

 

What role are you in?

Posted on by

As a sales person or actually anyone for that matter, do you know what role you are in?

Good sales training teaches that you are you first. There are many, many “roles” other than just sales, of who and what you are in your life.

As an example, I have many roles that I need participate in to be successful in my life. I am husband, father, grandfather, wanna-be-golfer, company owner, sales person, and on and on. There are many roles I am in my life. Not one role defines me, but they all collectively define who I am.

Too many times I see sales people not performing in the proper role. Selling is difficult! You need be in the proper role to make it work. Good sales training combined with on-going sales training helps to understand the process of roles in all aspects of life, especially in selling.

So. what does it mean to not be in proper role for sales — here are three there are many more:

  1. Sales people in sales role, must learn not to take rejection personally.
  2. Sales people in sales role, must stay motivated to do daily behaviors that bring success.
  3. Sales people in sales role, must create a self-worth high enough to achieve success they want.

Think about the roles in your life. Are you able to get into the role of the moment. It took many years of study and sales training for me to get the concept of being in the proper role as the moment requires.

Think about your roles and where you are or will be. Can you get into the role of the moment and be the best you can be in that role.

Heavy thoughts — but — with proper application you can create the success you want and deserve, in all areas of your life.

Make 2018 your best year yet!