Colleen’s Blog

A funny thing happens as salespeople become more and more experienced with their company or product. They also become less and less effective. Yes, you read that correctly. Salespeople often becomes less effective with the more experience that they gain. At first glance, it would seem that the exact opposite should be true. Yet, it still happens time and time again. How can this be?

Is this the start to 2015 you wanted? We’re quickly approaching the last week of January. By now, you can probably gauge your start to 2015. Have you accomplished your goals for January? Are you hitting weekly sales targets at a better pace than in 2014? If you aren’t off to the start that you hoped, there’s good news. There’s still time to regroup and have a fantastic first quarter! Unfortunately, too many people enter a new year without a plan. There’s absolutely a new sense of hope and desire to have a better year, but most people are not willing to change any of their habits. They believe that simply letting their calendar refresh will somehow change their results. Then, after about a month into a new year, they look around and see nothing has changed and give up on their goals completely. Don’t let this happen to you.

Be honest...how prepared are you for every sales call, presentation and meeting? Do you have a “general idea” of the topics you would like to cover, or do you have a detailed strategy, on paper, that outlines exactly what needs to be discussed?Have you run through everything that could go right and wrong and developed primary and secondary materials? Some people call it guarding against "Murphy's Law" but I call it preparing for profitability. Being prepared for every sales call means there is a smaller likelihood that you will be caught off guard. You want to do everything in your power to avoid looking unprepared or flustered in front of a client. The best way to make this happen is...by being prepared! Crazy, isn’t it?! Here are six questions to ask yourself prior to a sales meeting:

Are you finding it difficult to hit your sales targets? I have to touch on a pet-peeve of mine today. It bothers me to see salespeople struggling! It genuinely annoys me even more when salespeople blame external factors for their failures. They blame the market, their colleagues, their competition, and their lack of resources for their shortcomings, but rarely ever look in the mirror. It’s frustrating! I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again...you are in control of your own sales results! Period. It’s easy to blame the economy or the market for your lack of sales. It’s easy to blame your colleagues or your competition. It’s easy to blame everything and everyone else. However, successful salespeople rarely take the easy way out.

Are common mistakes negatively impacting your numbers? Many salespeople like to get into the "nitty-gritty" of why they are not succeeding. They search high and low for advanced sales techniques and try to find answers as to why they’re unable to hit their sales targets. Does this sound familiar? You may just need to simplify things. The answers you’re seeking could be right under your nose! There are five mistakes that many salespeople make but don’t even address when trying to improve their sales. Studying and implementing these simple but crucial strategies will help you maintain a competitive advantage.

Could your sales team be suffering from a dangerous virus? Like it or not, we’re now hearing more coughing and sneezing than normal, and commercials are filled with daytime and nighttime medication advertisements to protect you and your family from the flu. But, the virus I want to address this week has nothing to do with the flu. This virus can't be cured with a few sick days. It lasts longer than the flu and it has the potential to erode your entire sales team (and your sales) if you let it linger.

Is it possible to sell without uttering a single word? It might be easier than you think. In sales, you must be in tune with appropriate nonverbal communication. Salespeople often lose sales based on their inability to master their nonverbal communication. And, if first impressions are everything, you may even be able to increase your chances of closing a deal just by putting extra effort into your appearance and keeping common courtesy in mind. Here are five simple ways to improve your sales etiquette and build trust...all without needing to say a single word. 1) Dress Appropriately Always dress at least one notch above how your client will be dressed. If you are unsure about their corporate culture for attire, it's never a bad thing to wear a suit. If you find out during your first meeting that a suit is frowned upon, or unnecessary, you can dress differently for the next meeting. Nonetheless, wearing a suit does show that you respect the prospect enough to clean up and dress up. 

“This year is going to be MY year.” Almost without fail, each year we all hear phrases like this leading into January. It’s a good thing. It shows that most people have a genuine interest in being successful. Unfortunately, interest alone is not enough to follow through with creating real success. You must develop an unwavering commitment to your success and follow through by taking serious action. Over the years, I have worked with and observed many successful salespeople. By successful, I mean they are pulling in at least $500k or more in personal income each year. Find one of these successful salespeople - better yet, find five of them. Take note of the things that they all have in common with each other. Yes, there will be some differences in their style, methods and philosophies. After all, they’re different people! But, if you can pinpoint their similarities, you can absorb those traits and emulate their daily activities to bring you success as well. Keep in mind that the people you model should be people whose results you admire in business, and outside of business. As we all know, a healthy income means very little if you’re always stressed and unable to enjoy personal time. <-- Click To Tweet To help out your cause, here are a few similarities that I have found exist in the successful salespeople that I have observed:

This is one season that can cause a lot of confusion for many salespeople. No - not confusion with their sales, but with the idea of giving gifts to their clients. “What should I buy my clients?” “Can I give them gifts?” “Should I even acknowledge them during the Christmas season?” Do any of these questions sound familiar? You've probably asked them at some point...either out loud or to yourself!

Do you turn your computer on each morning only to find a mountain of unread emails that need your attention? Email overload is an epidemic in the workplace. Most salespeople that we poll tell us that they spend up to 40% of their day just managing email correspondence between clients and internal partners. If this sounds about right for you as well, let me put things in perspective. If you continue this trend throughout 2015 and work 5 days a week, you will spend 104 days next year in your email inbox. Imagine the number of sales you will be missing out on! It's time to re-align your mindset. Email does not close business for you. You close sales based on your personal relationships. Stop working so hard behind your computer and go meet customers in person, or pick up the phone and call them. In order to increase productivity (and sales) you must learn to manage your email inbox. <-- Click To Tweet Here are 5 tips for staying on top of your emails: