Back in the day, when I was in sales support, I used to travel to as many as five cities with five different salespeople in one week. My job was to demo our automation software. It was great – everyone loved me, and I didn’t have to sell. Best of all, I wasn’t under pressure to close business.
What I did do though, was listen, watch and learn. Traveling with the sales reps exposed me to a wide range of skill sets and sales styles. Some reps were great presenters, others sold on personality. Some really did their homework, demonstrating their deep knowledge of the product and industry. And, there were those who basically flew by the seat of their pants. It goes without saying that some were wildly successful and others, well, not so much so.
Why are some salespeople so successful and others not?
Maybe they are just plain LUCKY.
Over the years, I must have worked with a hundred salespeople. So, I was well versed by the time I was promoted to sales rep myself. I took the best of what I had learned from both the successful and unsuccessful reps I had worked with. It served me well. I ended up having a great career in sales, moving up to management, even opening my own sales training company. That led to other opportunities, finally landing me in the CRM software world.
People often ask me what makes some salespeople so successful and others not. Is it territory? A better product? A better close? Or are some just lucky?
If I had to answer in one word, I’d say they’re lucky. But wait, don’t stop reading! My definition of LUCKY may not be yours.
L: The L stands for Labor. I never met a truly successful salesperson who didn’t work hard. The best sales people never stop thinking about their sale. They go over their meetings with their prospects when they go home. They analyze what they did right and what they did wrong. What did the prospect say? What did they miss or interpret the wrong way? Great salespeople are never off the job.
U: The U stands for Understand. To be successful in sales you must understand how to sell. Great salespeople are always learning how to do a better job at selling. They are reading books, going to seminars, observing what works and what doesn’t, and learning from other salespeople inside and outside their organization. Understanding also means that you do your best to understand the prospect as a person. What are they interested in, what are their family dynamics, what are their “likes” and “dislikes?” Plus, a million other things that you can understand about your prospect.
C: The C stands for Commitment. What I mean by commitment is that you must be committed to the community you represent. If you don’t believe in your community then you need to find a place where you do. I can almost always tell when a salesperson is trying to sell me something that they don’t believe in. You can see it in their eyes and hear it in their voices. Don’t let that be you.
K: The K stands for Knowledge. All great salespeople have developed deep knowledge about their communities. They also know everything about what the competition has to offer and why they think their communities are better. And they never stop seeking to increase their knowledge about the senior living industry as a whole. Finally, and most importantly, they are always trying to gain more knowledge about their prospects.
Y: The Y stands for YOU. After all, it really is all about you, the salesperson. Because you are the person who is going to get the sale or lose the sale. Remember “SUCCESS IS 99% YOU and 1% THE REST OF THE WORLD.”
This is a tough environment in which to be selling right now. But, don’t let COVID defeat your motivation. Hang in there. Keep your skills polished and most importantly, don’t give up.
Keep at it, work hard and see how LUCKY you get!
Give us a call at 800-570-6030 and see how Continuum CRM can improve your sales and marketing effectiveness without breaking the bank. Or, feel free to visit our website www.continuumcrm.com to learn more.
