Written for The Burnside News
Like most young people I dreamt about becoming a lot of things – salesperson was never at the top of my list. So how do so many of us end up in this profession? A career in sales is not always intentional, but making it a success should be. Sometimes the sales business feels like a battlefield – our prospects are enemies of war rather than our equals. In reality the prospect isn’t our enemy, our own head trash about prospecting is.
Some preconceived notions about your sales career might sound like: “I know tons of people, my connections help me make sales,” or “I have a good client base, I can reach my targets by maintaining those,” or even “I’m a ‘people person’, sales comes easily to me.”
If you have these going for you and your funnel is full, then don’t prospect. However, if they’re not taking you to the bank, you may want to consider a proactive business development approach. For most, these affirmations are based on a personal comfort zone. Rarely do successful salespeople go the bank without actively searching out new prospects. Accepting the status quo won’t help us on the battlefield. It doesn’t matter who you know or what client base you have, call reluctance is one of our toughest opponents. First step to beating call reluctance? Plan your attack.
No one ever fought a war alone, so up your game with strong alliances. The first part of your plan should be finding an accountability partner. Agree to share your achievements or missed behaviours on a regular basis. Debrief your prospecting calls with someone you trust who will help you hold yourself accountable.
Second: write it down. Schedule specific blocks of time to make calls. No excuses. These are meetings with yourself that are equally as important as your day-to-day tasks. When you’re dialling you’re actively increasing your paycheque. You’re less likely to stray from your game plan if you’ve got it mapped out in front of you.
Finally, do it. Make the calls and you’ll feel good about getting it done. Debrief each call and note your ‘wins’. A win could be anything from getting through a tough cold call, to getting a meeting or trying a new approach. Even if you’re flat out rejected, making the call is always a win.
Call Reluctance is just one battle. If you’re not fighting it, how will you ever win the war?
©2011 Sandler Training Inc. (www.atlantic.sandler.com) is an international sales, customer service and management training/consulting firm. For a free copy of Why Salespeople Fail and What to Do about It, call Sandler Training at 902-468-0787 or e-mail salescareers@sandler.com
You might also be interested in:
