People want to be associated with success and to most that means being associated with successful people. Now success can be measured in many different ways but that’s a debate for another day. In business the definition is fairly fickle and when we’re talking in terms of successful sales people it simply means ones who sell.. a lot..
So how do people judge whether a sales person is successful or not? Well, they’ll look for several kinds of behaviour to tell them:
1. A successful person will generally be happy so a smile is a must. If you meet a sales person who looks like someone just ran over his pet chihuahua you’ll immediately think he hasn’t sold a lot lately and ask yourself why? Is he a poor sales person? Are his products poor? Either way you will associate his misery with a lack of success and you’ll move to end that meeting asap.
2. An abject stance or body language will indicate pretty much as above. It’s a proven psychology that no-one wants to be the first or only company in the area to buy from a prowling sales person. If, on the other hand, you look like you’ve just sold 70% of the entire industrial area, the client in front of you will more than likely want to be part of that success; after all, he wouldn’t want to miss out right?
3. Successful sales people are enthusiastic, attentive to detail, dress well and look the part! If you’re missing one of those you’re making an impression you really don’t want to make. There are a hundred more ingredients to this cake but you get the idea and if you attend one of our training seminars we’ll cover this subject in far greater detail.
4. Finally, successful sales people enjoy what they’re doing! Why wouldn’t they? They sell often and well and a closed sale is their drug of choice so assuming they had a great week last week, as usual, even a Monday morning will be a great day for them!
One of the main keys to any kind of “sales” is whether or not you actually enjoy what you do. Customers sense whether you’re truly enjoying being at that appointment. If they sense you’re loving it, they’ll associate that with you being a successful person, the kind of person they would like to do business with. If they sense the opposite then their reaction will be the bolt opposite, too.
After 30 years in sales I still get a buzz from closing an order but how about when the alarm goes off at 5am on a dreary winter’s morn? Do I get a buzz out of that, too? Well, no, not always. Like everyone else, there are times I just want to slap the alarm clock into submission and snuggle back under the duvet. So, having dragged yourself out of the bed, do you now feel on top of the world, ready to rock ‘n roll? Yeah, maybe not.. but by the time you get to the first client of the day, that’s exactly how you’re going to have to look!
So what’s the answer? If you just carry on with the mood your in, your day is likely to be fairly unproductive. Your customers won’t enjoy meeting a dreary, half depressed, wet lettuce so something needs to change and quick. The solution? Fake it ’til you make it!! Head into the shower, sing at the top of your voice, tell yourself ridiculous jokes until one of them causes you to crack a smile; wash yourself enthusiastically and squeal a few more tunes until finally you start to wake up and your natural enthusiasm begins to arrive. You may have other techniques. In Scandinavia I’d take my sales people for a morning dip in the freezing sea on certain days when business needed to pick up but do whatever it takes to get your heart beating, your feet tapping and mouth smiling! Feeling better? Well done, you’re back on track, ready for breakfast and more importantly, a great day!
NB. The above is a small excerpt from this section of our training and deals with circa 10% of what we might cover during our full training courses. For further information about attending one of our sales training seminars, please call or email us and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours.
