We all love lists. Here are the 10 key components for sales success:
- Guard Your Time
Ask yourself: “Is what I’m doing right now the most productive and profitable thing I can be doing?” What this shows is that you cannot manage time but you can manage yourself. To see how you spend your time, track your daily actions in 15-minute increments for a month. You’ll be shocked at how much time you waste and how much more efficient and effective you become. Henry Evans, my friend and best-selling author of “The Hour a Day Entrepreneur,” had me do this back in November 2012 and the results were amazing.
- Raise Your Expectations
Of everyone. Your employees, customers, your vendors, partners, your kids. Everyone. Do not demand more, but expect more and let them know you expect more.
- Think Big, Act Small
Big goals are great but you have to take that first step towards that big goal.
- Take Massive Action
“Wait. What? Are you contradicting yourself, Mr. Sales Whisperer?” Yes and no. In this case when I say “take massive action,” what I mean is do a lot of the little things. Do as many of them as you can since there is no guarantee what will work in your industry, in your part of the world, with your target market, in the current socio-economic client, so you better be doing them all.
- Commit to Constant Improvement
Just growing 1% today means you’ll be 36% better at the end of the month. (Compounded growth was called the the 8th wonder of the world by Albert Einstein.)
- Deliver a Power Message In a Power Manner
In Matthew 5:14-15 Jesus calls us “the light of the world.” He tells us that “a city set on a mountain cannot be hidden,” and that as lamps we are to be “set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. In other words, it’s time to toot your own horn…and make sure it’s a darn big one.
- Prospect To Disqualify
Only 1-3% of the population at this exact moment in time is looking for what you are offering, know that they need it, and have the resources and desire to buy it from you today. So stop “qualifying” people when you prospect. Instead, since you know they are probably not ready, approach them with that mindset, determine when they are ready to buy, collect their information, add them to your drip sequence to nurture them until they are ready, then go to the next one in order to serve those who are ready to buy right now. You are looking for the guy looking for you. This subtle shift in mindset will help you live to sell day after day.
- Fix Your Follow-Up Failure
Because 97-99% of people you meet won’t be able to buy from you today means you need a way to stay in touch in order to grow your sales. Research has shown that 60-87% of people that are shopping today will buy that product or service in 18-24 months. So you need both a follow-up process and an automated system to execute that process. Having processes and systems turned Ford into a household name. It will help you succeed as well. (Want some help in choosing the right sales automation tool for you and your company? Check this out...
- Once The Sale Is Made, Shut Up
Know when people are ready to buy and let them take possession of what you’re offering. Just because you have an 87-slide presentation doesn’t mean you have to give it all.
- Over-Deliver To Create Raving Fans
Average and ordinary will not help you create a lasting business. To be “Facebookable” and Pinterest-worthy, choreograph your entire sales process from “Hello” to “Thank you for your order. How else may we be of service?” Then provide that better, extra service without them asking.
Realize you will not be able to rest until you have systems in place that enable you to communicate with prospects, window-shoppers, and tire-kickers automatically and consistently.
These systems are then tied to processes your team of professionals follow that ensure they engage with hot prospects and clients in a way that creates a “wow” experience and “delights to the upside.”
But technology only enhances what you do, i.e. “Garbage in, garbage out.” You must perfect your processes on paper before you turn to gizmos and geeks to load them into a CRM or marketing platform.
Determining what you do that works and knowing why it works can be difficult. That’s why you bring in outsiders to help you take your own blinders off.
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so if you really want to grow, make a bee line to the sales / consulting team that resonates with you to see how they can help you grow.
You deserve the best. But you have to not only decide to start, but actually start. ~✯~
Market like you mean it.
Now go sell something.