Everyone would agree that selling, especially when “you” are the product or service such as in consulting, could be difficult and trying at times. Much goes into the selling process; selling the right product or service to the right person at the right time with the right features for the right price. Sometimes the door is slammed in your face at other times luck prevails and you land a new client.
If you run your own business you have no other recourse when a sale goes sour but to pull yourself up, dust yourself off and get back in the game. To that end, I thought we could take a few moments to review what makes a good salesperson great. Here are seven traits that if acquired and applied can make you the best darn salesperson out there:
Consistent – Whatever you do you need to do it consistently. If it’s a monthly newsletter make sure it goes out monthly. If its weekly blog posts make sure they’re posted on time. If you’re determined to make ten cold/warm calls per day then don’t procrastinate and try and fit them into the last 30 minutes of the business day. Doing that gives you the perfect excuse to get off the phone, “Well I tried, but everyone I called was too busy to talk.”
Inventive – How do you land that first meeting, that initial foot-in-the-door conversation? You’ll have to be more creative than the person blasting people with junk emails. If you’re an author you might consider sending a free copy of your latest masterpiece to prospects as an icebreaker. If you are a marketer you could offer to do a free audit of the company’s marketing plan, website, email marketing campaign or social media efforts. A strategy like this turns a sales appointment into a working meeting where the potential client receives an immediately benefit at no cost.
Impactful – The product or service you’re hawking has to affect the company’s bottom line and it has to change the client’s business in a positive way and the sooner the better. Make sure the product or service your selling stands alone against its completion.
Sincere – Without sincerity on your part there will be no trust coming from the client’s side. The client must believe you are truly engaged in solving the problem and not focused on just selling another widget.
Legwork – Know your prey. Don’t waste time trying to sell to companies that are not a good representation of the businesses you work with on a daily basis. Do the investigation necessary to understand where the company is headed, what they do, what their obstacles are and what products or services you could offer to help them reach their goals.
Whining – Tom Hanks line as Jimmy Dugan the manager of an all female baseball team uttered in A League of Their Own, “There’s no crying in baseball,” fits in business as well. There’s no time to hold pity parties. No giving up. No tantrums. Just keep trying it’s your only option if you intend on staying in business.
Tenacity – “Third time’s the charm” does not always apply when reaching out to potential prospects. It might take a dozen touches before the person responds to your message. Believe in what you’re doing and keep trying. If one marketing tactic, such as email marketing, is not producing positive results then switch to something else social media, a newsletter or phone call for instance. Keep changing things up until you hit a rhythm.
There are other terms we could have used in our list of seven traits but we’d only be splitting hairs terms such as: Audacious, Focused, Bold, Serious, Succinct, Confident or Resilient. Seven seemed enough for anyone to work on at any one time.
Are you applying all these traits when trying to win new business? What can you do to acquire the missing elements? Who can help? What needs to be done? When can you start?
