You and your competition have one thing exactly the same. You have the same amount of time each day. How you choose to spend it to sell (or not) is a predictor of your sales success. Here are some ideas to make the most of your time to sell so you can sell more.
Make the most of your time to sell with good choices.
One of the things I like about sales is that I get to choose how I spend my time. I was never a fan of someone telling me what to do. That freedom means you have important decisions to make in how you spend your time. I find that certain questions help me make good decisions about my time.
Every day I ask myself if my scheduled activities are still the most important ones to do that day. Has something come up that you should do today? Reschedule if they are not. You must reschedule the less important activity so you can work on the higher priority activity.
Make sure your most important activities still align with your long-term goals. Why are you thinking a task is important if it’s not a goal for this year?
Søren Kierkegaard’s quote explains what makes managing time so challenging. He said, “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” You won’t have the luxury of knowing before you make your task decision that it will be the best use of your time. Even so, you still have to make choices on how to spend your time.
My favorite question to ask is, “If I don’t do this will anything drastic happen?” That simple question uncovers a lot of wasted work you can avoid. You don’t have to answer all emails. You don’t have to return all phone calls (or even answer the phone.) Learn to be comfortable with not doing certain tasks.
Don’t create stress with your time to sell.
These behaviors help me reduce stress with the choices I make for my time. Stress comes from working when you’re not at your peak, last minute deadlines and not having enough time to complete a task.
I know I’m sharper in the morning. Mornings are when I schedule my most important tasks. Consider when you are at your peak. Schedule your most important tasks during that time and avoid putting less important activities on your schedule.
I always schedule an activity in my calendar when I first learn I have to do it. It’s very important to avoid delay when you schedule your time. I include the start date and build in enough time for unforeseen delays so I still can meet the deadline. I find that having a lot of my calendar already scheduled makes it easier for me to meet deadlines and reduce the stress of managing my time.
Timing is everything.
One of the best ways to manage your time is to take advantage of timing. Prospects are ready to buy when you’ve uncovered real reasons why they need your products. Keep asking questions until you uncover those reasons. You will waste your time if you find out too late that the prospect is not a good fit for you.
You are ready to write a sales proposal when you know how your solution reduces a prospect’s costs, avoids a cost or makes him money. Don’t write a proposal until you have the information you need to write a proposal that will actually get you business. Of course, don’t write a proposal unless you absolutely have to.
Why not make the most of your time in sales? You’ve probably heard that “time and tide wait for no one.”
Your prospects and your sales are also waiting.