You need variation of habits for long-term success. Use the following nine habits that can improve future results.
Habit.1 : Prospect
Successful sales professionals spend a lot of time for new business prospects and this habit move away ups and downs that many other sales executives face. Collen Francis says, ”Get 300% of your budget target in your pipeline to ensure reaching your quotas.” Have you got a plan for prospects and are you executing the plan?
Habit.2: Ask good questions
I have noticed that many sales people fail to ask significant and good questions while meeting the prospects. Successful sales professional feel free to ask good questions that are tough to answer, surging and deserves thinking from prospects. Many sales persons do not throw these types of questions, thinking that it is too analytical or personal, while it is challenging. The Important things is to practice these types of questions before meeting prospects or clients. My experience says most people will answer anything, only you shouldn’t fear to ask. How many powerful questions would you ask?
Habit.3: Listening habit
Best sales persons are the ones who are excellent listeners. They find clues and hidden messages by listening attentively to their prospects. They ask for necessary clarification too. They deliberately use prompters, (for example, “tell me more” or “keep it up”), which appreciates the other person to deliver more information or clues sometimes. Making strong eye contact shows their enthusiasm or strict attention to the point. How are you going to improve your listening habits?
Habit.4: Creativeness
It is really tough as well as complex in such competitive world to watch from a sideline. Successful and top professionals keep searching creative ways towards their achievement. They constantly explore newer techniques for prospects, sales calls or voice mails and e-mails as well. They try to put a signature on their clients mind. Are you doing anything significantly differentiates you from your competitor?
Habit.5: Present effectively
In my corporate world days, I ended many presentations successively with zero results, since all of those were emphasized on company or products only. While excellent sales representation is attentive on client’s situation, describing how your product or service helps them. How will you endure next sales representations emphasizing your clients?
Habit.6: Be persistent
We know only one call, letter or email is not enough to contact the decision makers. In real situation, it is observed that sometimes it takes 14 contacts to reach to the higher executives. Top sales professionals know about the persistency for such contact. So they use distinct techniques to make that contact (see number 4, creativeness). How many times did you try before quitting?
Habit.7: Organizing expertise
Let’s deal with reality…sales executives possess numerous additional duties to follow like reaching their sales quotas and targets. Dealing with various priorities, managing bunch of accounts, necessary paper work and negotiating with clients concerns consumes most of their time. Achievers use technologies for workload management and prioritizing their time. What is your step to improve your organizing expertise?
Habit.8: Getting your testimonials
Most sales executives overlook to ask for a testimonials not realizing the importance. In fact they are scared to ask for it and consider clients will ignore to provide, which is challenging. Top pros never forget to ask for their testimonials. Are you getting this habit from now on?
Habit.9: Follow up
Lack of follow up, is the cause to many sales being lost. And technology helps us to take it out from brain storming. Well, most sales executives forget to follow up after sending a proposal; thinking clients will reply back on their own. You can be sure that you are losing sales without follow up after each proposal sent if you only rely on a reply from clients. Can you develop a follow up system?