Learning From Mistakes: The
Top 10 slip-ups that salespeople make
Appeared 2006.06.26 Maura Schreier-Fleming, The Dallas
Business Journal
While I work with many great sales professionals, I
meet a lot of salespeople who must find selling very frustrating. Making
mistakes like these is why they find themselves missing sales goals -- and
gritting their teeth.
* They come to their sales calls
unprepared.
Why do some people think selling is a random event?
It's not. Selling is the result of preparation where you learn enough
about your prospect so you can have an intelligent business conversation
about why there is a need to buy what you have to sell. Before the call
know as much about your customer as you can. Winging it is not a sales
skill.
* They talk about their product too soon.
Talking
about your products before you understand the needs or problems your
customer has is like shooting at a target with your eyes closed and not
knowing where the target is. Good luck hitting the bull's eye. When you
ask the questions that help the customer understand there is a need, it's
huge and your products are the best ones to meet the need, you'll have
customers wanting to buy.
* They have no Plan B.
So what if
you plan for the best? What if things go very differently than you plan?
There are better times to plan your strategy than when you are stumped and
sitting face-to-face with your customer. Develop a contingency plan with
other possible directions for the sales call -- before the sale.
*
They go away with nothing.
You should determine what your call
objective is for each sales call. That's the maximum you want. Before the
sales call determine what the customer needs to do or say to make that
happen. Then think of the minimum you'll take. If selling is the process
of moving closer to a customer's buying decision, each sales call should
take you closer to that buying decision. You won't always get the maximum.
At least with a minimum you'll get something.
* They have no clue
how they're doing.
Most salespeople will say every sales call went
well -- even the ones where the customer nodded faintly and said, "I'll
think about it." Occasionally take someone with you on a sales call who
can sell and who you respect. They'll critique you honestly.
* They
think they know it all.
They never read anything. How are you going
to know what is impacting your business if you don't know what's going on
in the world? If you want to improve, you have to keep learning. Read
books. Read magazines. Just plain read.
* They lack a long-term
focus.
They think they have to sell something now no matter what.
Learn to walk away from the prospects that just aren't a good fit. You'll
thank yourself later. Bad customer fit means customer dissatisfaction.
Dissatisfied customers talk and you don't want prospects hearing the
negative things about your products, your services or you.
* They
prioritize poorly.
They do work that has little payout and most of
the time they have no clue that they're wasting their time. Spending time
with customers who have little or no probability of buying now or in the
foreseeable future is one example of poor prioritizing. With every task
you do you should be able to answer, "What will this accomplish? How will
it increase my business? Why does it need to be done now?"
* They
think selling stops when the customer buys.
Selling is a service
business and it continues with more work after the sale. It's made more
difficult as we sometimes get to fix problems that others -- including
your customers -- may have created. Why is it that customers need help at
the worst possible times? Emergencies come up even when you've done
everything you could to avoid them for your customers. Thinking problems
will go away is a mistake. Thinking someone else should fix them is a
bigger mistake.
You will find in sales that you can learn from
everyone. By paying attention to other's mistakes, you will learn what to
avoid. What better way is there to ensure your selling
success?
Schreier-Fleming is president of Best@Selling (http://www.bestatselling.com/).
Maura Schreier-Fleming works with business and sales professionals
on skills and strategies so they can sell more and be more productive at
work. She is the author of Real-World Selling for
Out-of-this-World Results which is available at
www.BestatSelling.com. She founded her company Best@Selling in
1997. You can reach her at 972.380.0200 or
info@Bestatsellling.com.
(c) Copyright 2004 Maura
Schreier-Fleming. All rights
reserved.
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