Monthly Archives: July 2020

Selling is a 230-day walk in the park.

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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.

I know you are busy, could I have 10-15 minutes of time?

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How many emails do you get starting —? “I know you are busy, could I have 10 to 15 minutes of time to explain how our company can help you?” 

These types of emails come in over and over. Always assuming I want to give the time without having heard anything about who they are or what they do. Then, maybe a few days later or a week, I get a follow-up email asking if I saw the first one and would I give them my time. 

This type of selling effort never has worked but has been used forever. We need to change this type of sales canvassing and learn to approach the new realities of selling. We need especially to understand the new realities of selling that CORONAVIRUS has presented to us. We are going to need to learn new methods and procedures. 

We are not going to be able to have as many face-to-face meetings. We need be better at remote presentations and offering true value to our products.

I am learning new presentations and follow-up techniques. I am getting ready to start video emails. I will let you know my early results.

Feedback is welcome. What are you seeing?  

Current sales conditions and salespeople!

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As a Salesperson, Marketing manager, Sales manager, President and CEO of various companies during my career, I am finding an unusual and disturbing phenomenon happening in sales.

There seems to be an unusual emphasis on salespeople demanding attention, without providing a reason. 

Widespread use of Email marketing is causing an assumption of readership and expected response.  I get more or less belligerent, sometimes even harsh emails telling me I need respond or give them another person’s name in my company.  Many incoming emails state that I must have missed the last email sent – respond to this new one. — BUT — They fail to give me information why I should respond. 

Salespeople are using the faceless system of email to demand action.  I find this sad. 

I would respond to emails that give me useful information or have a compelling body of information and a call to action, if I see a need for the products or services.

Many, many emails start with – “I know you are busy, could I have 10 to 15 minutes of time to explain how our company can help you.”  From my perspective they have not told me what they do and they assume I am waiting by the inbound email just hoping to have someone help me.

We are not teaching good selling. 

I have spent many years trying to get away from the mentality that selling is “Trickery” and worse selling is looked at as “The slick used car salesman” ready to do anything to get a sale and commission. 

What are you seeing?  I welcome feedback.