Sales Coach Now-LIVE 2011 was a very exciting event for us this year! Following the event, I have been connecting with all of our new clients and I cannot wait to work closely with all of them.
As I have been connecting with them, I have been reflecting on how easy selling has become in my business. When I first started selling, and even when I launched my own business, selling felt stressful and uncomfortable.
Over the years I have discovered ways to make selling feel easy and even effortless, by following a few simple steps.
Are you interested in hearing them?
The truth is, you’ve probably heard many of the things that I am about to share before. However, before you dismiss them, my question is, “Yes, but have you implemented all of them?” Usually the answer is, “No”.
This time, as you read through my strategies, I recommend that you implement as many of them as you can as quickly as you can. Don’t wait!
5 Strategies to Sell More-And Stress Less!
1. Make Sure Your Marketing is Working
Marketing is truly the top of your sales funnel. The sales process begins once you have prospects that are interested in what you want to hear. Getting them interested is the marketing part of your business. Marketing can include but is not limited to; Sending out an ezine to your database, Speaking Engagements, Social Networking, Direct Mail, etc. Choose networking solutions that are best suited for your industry and your specific business.
2. Your Database Needs to be in Working Order
Once you have new contact information for your prospects from your marketing efforts, then you need a database to house their information. Excel and Outlook are the not best options for growing businesses, although Excel can be a great tool to keep track of your Top 25. Instead, look for true contact management systems that are easy to use but allow you to hold the prospect’s contact information along with a notes section so you can remember where and how you met them (or where they found you). Tracking which marketing strategies work best is also critical so you can measure your results and then do more of whatever is working best.
3. Create a Sales System that Works-from Start to Finish
After you have successfully marketed and now have new names and telephone numbers that have gone into your database, your next strategy is to make sure you have a sales system in place that works. In other words, what is the step by step process that prospects will go through from the time they find you through your marketing efforts to when they become a client and pay you? On a white board or blank piece of paper, map out the step by step process so that you and everyone who is involved in this process (other staff members or virtual employees) are clear.
4. Schedule Time to Sell
I know that I talk about scheduling time to sell in almost every single one of my articles, but if you don’t schedule it, it doesn’t happen. Taking it one more step, you also need to set your intention regarding what you’d like the outcome to be. For example, when you are making follow up calls, how many appointments do you intend to set? Write that number down. That number should tie to your overall sales goals for the month. Work backwards from your monthly sales and revenue goal so you know exactly how many appointments you need to set based on your close ratio.
5. Follow up with Intention-the Intention of Closing the Sale
When you finally do have that meeting and you are sitting with your prospective client, be sure to have a positive attitude and the intention of actually closing the sale! You can work really hard and implement all of the strategies above, but if you forget to set your intention prior to that meeting, it might have all been for nothing. Selling with Intention means you choose the result ahead of time. Choose the closed sale. Visualize it. Focus on it. And watch it unfold in front of you!
Implementing the strategies listed above is just the beginning. The key is to be consistent in each area that I mentioned above. You may actually need to hire some people to assist you in this process, or hire someone to help you through the process if you are a Sales Professional, but getting the support you need in key areas is critical.
Intentional Action: Put time on your schedule to follow the steps listed above and implement whatever you need to make your sales strategies work.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “all great masters are chiefly distinguished by the power of adding a second, a third, and perhaps a fourth step in a continuous line. Many a man had taken the first step. With every additional step you enhance immensely the value of your first.” My encouragement to you is to implement the first strategy and then, step by step, implement the others. The truth is, quantum leaps happen because we keep putting one foot in front of the other, regardless of the challenges we may face.
