It's actually a lot to manage. I find myself constantly guiding and advising. A role I like but I find works best when in limited segments at the right time. Long inspiring speeches make for great phone calls but I don't think will turn people into great sales people.
Anyway here we are. And this is the situation. Great technical people but not great sales people. Or even just good sales people. Something interesting happened in one of the long advising sessions. And I was asked 'What is an A+ sales person to you?'. Great question. Had to think about this one. A few days later I wrote the following on the bus ride home.
So, to me, an A+ salesperson:::
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Knows
the difference and value between selling hours and non-selling hours of the day
(9-4 is selling hours). Therefore research or other side projects are not
done during this time. This is time to follow up on leads, calls,
meetings, think about next step, plan a next step, update CRM, etc
-
Knows
who is going to spend money and who is going to waste their time. It’s
not that the relationship with someone who is not going to spend money isn’t
valuable, but at a certain point there is a difference between a relationship
and a client. Clients pay our bills and give us a career and allow us to
build financial peace, relationships give us hugs and handshakes. Of
course relationships with people may turn into clients, but we need to measure
our time in these investments and ensure our time is spent wisely.
Spending time with ‘relationships’ that may or may not have potential,
undoubtedly takes away time from interactions with potential or existing
clients. An A+ salesperson will know this difference and be able to make
the right decision whatever it may be for that particular scenario. He’ll
know too. Because if the proposal or pricing didn’t get done quickly or
on time and instead time was spent in a variety of other activities, this would
be seen as a mistaken decision that should be learned from.
-
They
plan their day before they walk in the door. An A+ sales person will
never check their email as the first thing they do, they will always be clear
about what today’s mission is and make sure that that mission gets
achieved. (ie develop 5 new prospects for equipment, catch up on all my
data into CRM, ensure I get back to a specific client with a proposal, etc)
-
They
take the time to learn how internal paperwork works. It’s not a chore,
rather it’s a way for things to run smoothly so they don’t have to deal with it
every day. If it’s done right, the paperwork will work for them in the
long run.
-
Doesn’t
complain about internal resource issues. Always working to find a way
around it to make it right for the client. Internal resource issues are
everywhere and are always at best a distraction from moving towards goals.
-
Knows
that each meeting with a potential client should be moving that sale 1 step
closer to being closed. If the client meeting ended and it’s not closer
to closing the business that’s on the table, the meeting was questionable in
its value. Maybe the relationship got better, but if it was a business
meeting, then tangible business value must come from it. If it’s not
clear, than it’s because its not wholly there. Maybe in some form or
another but it’s not crisp, it’s not powerful, its not focused.
-
If
they know a particular client needs their product or service they will find a
way to get a meeting. Regardless of how many no’s they receive.
They will write a poem, knock on the door, call different people, they will get
in the door. With respect and persistence, professionalism. They
love the hunt.
-
Driven
by dollar signs. I couldn’t imagine that an A+ sales person was not
driven by money. It would be so perfectly clear to them that this is the
ultimate purpose of being in sales. To make more money. To make as
much money as you decide. Sales provides a career where you can make,
literally, as much money as you want. There is no cap. Most jobs on
the planet are not this way. An A+ sales person knows this and knows that
if his product or service is exciting and people want it, he’s going to sell it
to as many people as he can. Because that’s the opportunity he has in
front of him.
-
Will
not get wrapped up in internal politics. They will take an ego slap and
not react. At least not to a group. They will realize how little
internal politics will increase their sales revenues so therefore it’s just
completely avoided. Not because they are trying to avoid it, but because
they are literally functioning in way, in a mode, where internal politics are
irrelevant to them. They are so focused on the goal that this fades into
peripheral vision. And no one can change the priorities of an A+ sales
person except themselves.
-
Never
miss a follow up call. When the reminder says its time to call, they
call. Maybe its bad news and the client isn’t interested anymore, maybe
its something else, but the A+ salesperson wants the info because they don’t
want to waste their time on a prospect who’s not interested in buying what they
are selling. Not interested at all, not interested right now. Great
thank you. I appreciate that, ‘would it be okay to touch base in 6
months?” client says yes / no and they move on. They put a note in
the crm to call in 6 months. Next. I’ve got things to do.
-
An
A+ salesperson will makes cold calls, warm calls, they will develop
relationships with everyone, always good relationships, but they will know how,
when, where to spend their time. They know that selling time is valuable
and there are many distractions to it. The world at large wants you to
get stuck into paperwork, online reading of news articles, playing with new
technology, etc. The A+ salesperson sees right past this. He knows
that’s what everyone is doing, to varying degrees of success without a doubt,
but he knows and therefore he’s not going to get stuck. He knows that to
be A+ is rare, and is definitely the road less traveled. He doesn’t mind
walking alone when everyone else is doing or going along with something
else. He sees the target dollar number he needs to hit. And knows
there is only one way to hit it and be the A+ salesperson. Dedication and
commitment to achieving it. He’s not mad, he’s not impatient, it’s a
decision. Where is spend my time is valuable. My time is
valuable. My time is more valuable than I will ever truly know. I
want to spend my time as wisely as I can.
-
He
knows that most people drop their goals. Some for good reasons and some
for bad. He knows. I’m not letting go. Like Tom Cruise in Top
Gun ‘I’m not leaving my wing man’. No matter what. I know what the
mission is and no hero stuff. I’m on this. I got it. No silly
hill will stop me or get in the way. This is a goal that I set.
This is important. Way more important than anything that temporarily
jumps in front of me. The A+ sales person knows that real commitment is
something you do every day. Just like marriage. You don’t get
married once. You get married every single day you’re with your
spouse. It’s a recommitment, every day. Every day. That’s a
commitment. This is what an A+ salesperson is thinking about. I
committed to being in sales yesterday and I’m going to commit again
today. I see the opportunity and my commitment will get me there.
Everything else will work itself out without me. I’m married to my goals
right now.
-
How
do I make my life significantly exceptional? How is it possible for me to
have financial peace? Financial success? An internal feeling of what I’m
doing and where I’m going is correct? Yes building communities and
building people up in their lives is important. It brings a lot of
meaning and value to life and to what the A+ sales person does. But it’s
categorized. It has a time and a place. If it’s all the time or
takes a priority over business goals that were agreed on than this is not
balanced. This is off balance. The A+ sales person would see this
as the priorities are mixed up. Number one is to achieve the business goals for
my job. Along the way he finds peace, flexibility, free time, loyalty,
learning, meaning, build people, build communities, etc. But it’s earned.
It’s not always. It’s the reward, it comes later in the process.
Why? Because it should. That’s the order that it should and needs to go
in. Responsibilities come first, than play time.
