How To Sell Show

What to do when you want to quit sales or quit a sales job...  Let's face it, at some point in time you will want to quit your sales job. It could be because the job is hard, the people you work with suck or even you have your own personal issues.  You will want to look at what is causing you to want to quit your sales job. What were the factors to lead up to you want to exit?  These questions may sound easy at first but answering them can be hard, real hard. The reason is you need to be honest with yourself about why you are feeling the way you do.  Is the job out of your league? Are you being disrespected and or harassed?  Is the product or service not good? Are you having personal issues? Is it a sales slump or is it more? All of these questions are what you should be asking. It may very well be that you just hit a common cycle of your business and things are hard. These difficulties can be multiplied when you feel bad about yourself or when you have personal issues at home. Your sales problems c

You will never hear anyone say, "I don't know what I did to make Monday such a good day. But whatever it was, I'm going to do it again tomorrow." If you've been in sales long enough, you know Monday is statistically the worst day of the week for bringing in revenue. Peak days bring in a majority of sales, while the other five days of the week struggle to catch up. So why do salespeople make Monday their secret weapon? We all know how difficult it is for sales reps to begin producing quality sales efforts early in the week, but we don't want to suggest that teams should wait until Thursday or Friday before putting pen to paper. That's just too far away from a sales rep's normal workday to be effective. It doesn't leave enough time for a salesperson to develop a relationship with a prospective buyer and close a sale before the weekend arrives. While Tuesday may be statistically your best day for sales, here are some ideas on how you can ensure Mondays remain productive: Think through how many salespeople come

Why you need an Awsomeness Swipe file! It's not a matter of if but when you will struggle. Whether you are a salesperson or an entrepreneur you will face issues. You will question if you are good at what you do, if you belong and if you should keep going. Having something to go back and take a look at and remind yourself of your feats, your wins and your exceptionalism does help.  What is an awsomeness swipe file  You have had events in your life that are great. These events may be small or big, known to you or known to everyone. When one of these incidents happen you find a way to memorialize it. This can be a quick selfie, a picture of the event or circumstances, or even a video. All of these pieces of information are categorized and then added to a central location. You can use awards given to you by others and even testimonials for your efforts.  Setting up your awesomeness swipe file What works the best is for your swipe file is to have different types of information for you to go and look at. These

How to prepare the be recruited: If you are in sales long enough you will be approached… especially when you are good. Know this is a sales process You will be told everything “good” and “perfect” Be careful of too much upside. If the upside is sold more than the commission there may be a problem. People who sell hope may just be selling a dream and trying to recruit you. I wish I would have seen this pattern earlier in my life. Be willing to say “no” – too much upside is a sale and could be a danger sign and really could be desperation to get you in or a cover up for the problems If its too good to be true there would be people lining up to sell All jobs and employers have a problem – all companies have problems Know what you want now (make a list) What would you ask for? What’s important to you Reverse engineer every problem you could face in the industry and make a list. You want pain points in the day. You are just as much in an interview as they are – ask really good questions. All types, Ye

As a salesperson, there are people you will sell to that have the possibility of creating problems. These buyers trip up most salespeople in a variety of industries. These people can wreak havoc on your sales process and lead to frustration. If you are new to sales and or are in a sales slump you will want to know that these different buyers are normal to come across.  How you deal with these buyers can vary depending upon your sales knowledge. Taking the time to think through the list of buyers that challenge you is a powerful way to close deals and make your process easier.   Here are the 10 dangerous buyers if you don't know what games they are up to: The mysterious big deal buyer - There is always someone who tries to entice you to extra discounts and or concessions based upon more magic deals in the future. To deal with this buyer you have to let them know the next deals are the ones they will get special treatment on.  The overly excited buyer - When you meet with buyers who are too excited, the dea

Quitting a job in sales is not as easy as you think it is. You may think that walking away from an employer is cut and dry, it isn't. You have more on the line than you think.  Salespeople will say how they want to leave but they don't. There is a back and forth if you are doing the right thing. The sleepless nights, the concerns about family are difficult to deal with.  You will face rejection because you put in time, effort, and energy into your job. There is the feeling of loss and what could have been. There are all of the hopes and dreams of what could have been. You may have left another job to be at the one you work for now. You may even have picked the wrong place to work. Walking away from a sales job can be excruciating.  Emotional issues are a common problem on the way up to leaving a job. Stress, frustration, anger, loneliness, and even regret.  You may face a guilt trip from the manager, owner, and or owners of the company you work with. Know that your leaving is up to you and what you want. 

Empathy is an effective tool in sales. You can still close deals without the ability to show empathy to your potential client and or buyer. If you didn't know empathy is “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person” Some of your feel for empathy comes from your gut reaction, the conversation, and the body language you use while you communicate. There is a cold feel to people who just don't get what others are going through. You can have compassion and appreciation for what others have gone through especially if you have lived through the same situation or something similar. Your vocal pitch, tone and reaction to the conversation matters to the people you meet with. As you go through life you get to have more empathy for others. You may have good empathy naturally, from experiences or from going through weird situations. The more strange situaitons you go through the better off you are It's hard to have empathy and be needy at the same time. Your emotional state matters. There is a pr

Some of the goals you chase after in life are larger than others. While some of the wins you are after are short-term others can take months, years or decades to hit.  You may feel all alone as you go through your trials and problems. It may seem like nobody else will ever understand.  If you are looking for some momentum when it comes to finding success with your goal keep going.  What you dont know is there are people around you silently cheering you on. These individuals appreciate the work and the effort you have put in, you just will not hear from them until you achieve the goal.  Here are a few things to think about when it comes to goal setting in sales and life.  1. Most goals are abandoned due to inactivity  2. Some people who call you their friend will talk you out of your goal in the first few months  3. You will be made fun of  4. Time will seem to slip away  5. When you dont take the gaol seriously and look back you will have regrets.  6. You can be successful at your goal you must focu

HTSS137 - Desperation in sales and business  One of the greatest lines in movies that have to do with sales is "Desperation is a stinky cologne". Chief Grady said this line in Super Troopers. It really doesn't matter if it is sales or your personal life where you are desperate, other people know it and feel it.    If you are desperate in sales and or business you will say and do things you wouldn’t if you had a pipeline. Its important to understand where you are at. Desperation is a tough place to sell from as you look weak and or you can be taken advantage of. You do have to clear your mind before you meet with your client or potential client.  The Stay PufT Marshmallow Man Rule applies to almost every salesperson.  Whatever objection you think you will get in sales is the one you will get from your buyer.  The reason for this is you talk around your objection to the person or the people you are meeting with.  Supplicant behavior Oren Klaff talked about supplicant behavior and how salespeople fall for

It does help if you have a set routine for each deal you close. Selling on auto pilot can hurt a deal in so many ways. The end of your sales presentation should be scripted just like the beginning.  Once your buyer says yes you have to have a game plan. The complete brain says and does silly things, you have achieved your goal. There is a danger zone once your buyer says yes to the project. If you are not careful you can unwind the deal and lose the sale.  You can anchor the feeling internally or physically so you can retain the power of the sale. This can be as simple as rubbing 2 fingers together.  How you act after the deal is done can signal a Dr Jekl and Mr Hyde feeling for your buyer.  Be yourself, new salespeople act differently than someone who is desperate than a someone who is closer. Tell the buyer / client what to expect and the next steps. Let them know the ups and the downs of your product and or service. How they will be contacted and who they will be talking to.  Do the part to deliver w

In sales, there are abuses you face over time. These issues don't happen daily for the most part. You will probably not see every single one of these items in a week or a month. You will see these abuses over time.  The types of abuse you face in sales Nothing about sales is easy, it does take some getting used to. There is no perfect job or role where you do not face some sort of disrespect. What you will want to take away is the ability to notice when you are in an abusive relationship.  The general public – People tend to hate salespeople until they need things, some of this has to do with sales training, some of this is the personality of salespeople. Overall there is a lack of trust with salespeople.  Your buyers – Some buyers are rude, obnoxious, and even treat you poorly. There are times where buyers will tell you about previous issues they have had so they can beat you down. Some of the people you meet with should never be your buyer.  Other salespeople – At the end of the day, some of the peopl

When you look at losing deals there are multiple places where you can go wrong. One of the first places to start is by looking at where you have lost trust. You can close deals without trust sometimes. If you want to have a consistent sales process you must be able to have the people you meet with trust you.  Here are the common reasons why you are losing trust in the sales process: 1. 

You can lose sales by misplacing your efforts with the company you work for or with. There are times where you want to help increase business with your ideas and strategies. There is nothing wrong with this growth pattern.  Where you lose sales and the capability to close deals is by giving too much without reciprocation. You may think you are helping the business and you may be. When you take on new projects you are reducing your ability to meet with buyers and close deals.  Your energy can get pulled away from what you are good at and that is making a sale happen. One of the reasons salespeople struggle is they put time, energy, and effort into helping an idea grow and then don't know when to walk away. You do have to take a look at what you offer and think through what can or can not be done.  You also need to recognize the political capital you use by looking for a plan to be initiated. Someone in management always wants to get up one more level and can throw you under the bus. Think through what you

People who are closing sales more often than other salespeople have a surprising secret… They help buyers. They figure out what the buyer needs and then they give it to them, before closing sales. The reason is simple: "Unless you take care of the buyer first, they may not buy from you." The best closers know this, and so do thousands of non-closers. Sometimes salespeople will say this is a silly idea.  Your buyer feels your intentions and can tell if you are just there to make the deal.  For some industries, this may not apply, maybe in some business to business settings and possibly with some types of buyers this example may not apply.  If you really want to see what kind of success you can have in sales look to what you can do to help your client get the outcome they need. This is a form of preeminence. Its possibles that some sales trainers, business owners and other salespeople will disagree with this concept.  You can do better at sales when you deliver real service and help people with what the

Loyalty in business is a common conversation that pops up. There is a balance in business between the ownership, management and the sales staff. "There is always risk in relationships – one side will always have more risk than another" – Jay Abraham You will want to think of both sides like a pendulum, a ying or a yang to speak of. When one side is out of balance there is a capacity for problems.  There will be both sides to consider If you are a salesperson you are a tool or a leverage point to close deals.  If you are a business owner you are a tool or a leverage point to make money for the salesperson.  In sales and business, there is something both sides want. A Business wants you to close the most amount of profitable deals with the least amount of problems. As a salesperson, you want to close as many deals as you can and make the most amount of money. Things will be good for a while and then business changes for the good or the bad. Your role and expectations will change for both parties. You wi

Sales is a lifelong commitment. Some salespeople learn as much as they can to close as many deals as they can and some salespeople never ever catch on. If there were rules or themes to live by in sales this list of 10 would help you out immensly.  Knowing what is normal in sales and business allows for you to be better at what you do. If you get caught up questioning your sanity you will end up losing deals.  Here are the 10 rules for salespeople that can help you navigate the sales process, business and sales life: Nothing stays the same. Business owners and managers come and go – commission plans change and so do product lines.  You must get good at asking for the sale in multiple ways – face to face, video, email, text messages. The more ways you can ask for the sale, the more ways you have to close deals.  Whoever has the best follow up game gets the extra deals. You must follow up to be better at closing.  You are only good to a company if you can bring in money and profitable deals. If you are a l

To make a sales script work for you, there is some effort you will need to take. The first part of it is that you need to have the correct mindset. Many people think that making a sales script work for them is as easy as having to memorize what callers say and respond accordingly. That is not entirely false but in fact, there's a lot more to it than just doing this alone. Best thing about using a well written sales script is that it takes away from your brain all the responsibility on knowing how best to respond when prompted with different questions or objections by customers over the phone. It also makes sure that you don't pitch anything out of context without even realizing it which improves your chances of closing deals.  Practicing pitches before sales calls can actually help your conversions. You can use things like voice recorders, apps, 3x5 index cards, video game headsets or even face-to-face role play to get better at sales scripting.  Closing sales through pitch and tone shows the importance t

If you talk to most salespeople, they don't like sales training. Most deals are closed off of strategies taught in sales basics mastery. With as many deals that are lost and with the enormous amount of money left on the table you would think salespeople would be excited to be trained.  There are multiple reasons why salespeople cant stand sales trainers and sales coaches. Here are the most common concepts why sales training isnt something salespeople want to be involved with:  Why you struggle with sales trainers: Old techniques - The sales trainer is caught up in 1950's technology. The concepts that are being taught are old school and feel highly manipulative. There are elements of constant closing. At the end of the session you feel less like a professional and more of like a carnival barker.   Most people at your company do not hold themselves accountable. By default you are forced to be trained to their level.  You have been in sales for a while and they are teaching the basics, you are bored with yo

As a salesperson, do you ever feel like an imposter? It's not something that most people will admit to but it is very common. In this podcast post we'll help you uncover what might be causing the feeling of fraudulence and how can get back on track so your business doesn't suffer from low morale or poor productivity.  Impostor syndrome (also known as “impostor phenomenon”) has been linked with feelings internalized accomplishments leading them to question their success in day-to-day tasks at work or when interacting with others which leads into insecurity, self doubt, and fear they are being exposed for who they really are: A person without skillset deserving of accolades.  Imposter syndrome is a condition in which people are unable to internalize their accomplishments and see themselves as successful. This leads to feelings of insecurity, fraudulence, and doubt that surface at work or when they interact with others. In this blog post, we will go over how you can uncover imposter syndrome in your sales tea

You will need to break up with one or more buyers before they break you out of a sale. Rejection is an important lesson in sales, so it's best to get used to saying "no" early on. The sooner you can learn how to break-up with bad clients--the better off your business and finances will be in the long run. Here are some tips for when and why it’s time: The client wants something that doesn't align with your product offerings - If this happens frequently enough, then improving the line of products you offer may not be worth the hassle of dealing with these types of customers over and over again. It would make sense at that point, if possible, to change what does not work and go with what does.   The customer is not willing to negotiate or compromise on their needs - If the buyer wants something that you cannot offer, then there's no point in continuing with a bad client. There has been a break in communication and they don't seem interested anymore - This one can be tricky as it could just mean they're busy