All of us seek the answer to this question in one form or another. Some of us think about it more often than others, thus separating the best from the rest.
Let's face up to the fact that a Salesperson doesn't necessarily need to be the best to make a good living or even make more money than those with superior skill. I’ve met many who talk so much about their company, their products or themselves that I couldn’t help but wonder how they could ever connect with their customers. The hard fact is that sometimes being in the right place at the right time with a company and/or product in heavy demand is enough to make one appear great. Look at IBM, Dell, Microsoft, Oracle, Cisco, VMWare..if you can answer the phone and put a few sentences together, you’re there! Call me jealous, but it doesn’t seem fair that a Dell rep takes an inbound call that results in a million dollar sale while some of us do the same work to get in front of CEO just to start the process of a million dollar sale! Wah, Wah!
OK, it may not be that easy and don’t get me wrong, a big reason why these companies are great is the presence of a superior sales force. Looking back, I’ve not been very good at being in the right place at the right time. I’ve pulled the rip cord too early and I’ve ejected too late. Hell, maybe I’m there right now, but don’t know it! How about you?
I agree with Jeffrey Gittomer (The Sales Bible rocks!), your future will always be brighter if you seek out and work for great companies with great products.
If there was only ONE answer to the question – what makes a salesperson great, it would be…
The ability to help your prospect or client identify, understand and act upon the VALUE to be realized from the product or service.
My position most likely originated from my experience with the ValueSelling methodology. I believe engaging a client with a focus on value is absolutely the best way to create win/wn relationships. We’ll talk more about how the masters uncover value for their clients under the watchful eye of a Sales trainer I aspire to, Rick McAninch of ValueSelling – go Rick!
Meanwhile, why not take a look at your style, your performance? Get out your digital voice recorder (if you don’t own one then get your ass to the store NOW) and record your sales calls over the next week. Oh, you might want to check your state law for what’s legal and what’s not. If you’re in California, just record your side of the conversation. It won’t be as exciting, but you also will avoid a misdemeanor on your record!
When your reviewing your calls, ask observe:
Who talked more, you or your client?
(To quote John Costigan) Were you more “Interested or Interesting”?
How many questions did you ask?
Of these questions, what % were closed ended (yes or no)? What % were open ended?
What questions did you ask to uncover pain? Understand the client’s vision? Quantify the business and/or personal value? Define the process to completion of the sale?
What else did you observe? What could you have done to make the time more effective?
Finally, what are you waiting for? Get going and let us know how it goes…
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