From LA

Went to see a client today at 8 30am. Takes about 2 1/2 hours just to get 50 miles in LA. Anyway, saw him because I wanted to make sure that he was a happy client. I have done this in the past, but not to the extent that I do now. To make a long story short, it worked out well for him and me. He has additional work, and had I not seen him, I would have missed it.

Lessons learned:
see them often
listen to them
don't assume anything
be nice
be honorable
come across as sincere, because you are
finally: don't look for the new business only, it will come if it is meant to be.

Good selling,

Steve

The big account

I was speaking to a rep today who told me that he only goes after the truly BIG accounts. they pay off better he said. And I asked, "How long does it take to land one?" The answer was 2 years! How does someone make a living that way, unless the company is willing to front him for that time.

The reality is that few companies will give a rep that much time before they make a sale. Usually, something has to happen in the first six months, at least. If you are the one going after the BIG deal, it might be wise to reevaluate what your company policy is, before stalking the prey.

Good Selling, Steve

Plan and plan and plan

Sunday night is always a good night for me. I have my own sales meeting with myself. Sounds nuts doesn't it? But what it does for me, any way, is give me the opportunity to think through each of the prospects I have and plan what I will do with each of them.

Plan and Plan again:
evaluate the week and plan out each day
prioritize what you need to get done "A" "B" "C" etc.
write out the telephone calls that you need to make
get the list of new people to call together, don't wait for Monday
and finally
get up on Monday with a "will do" attitude.

good selling,
Steve

Got word

Its Friday, got up at 5am, was in the office at 7. Got word this morning that we will close a national deal, and now I don't want to do anything else. Ever have that happen. The luck turns your way, and you now want to take the time off.

You know what, you are entitled to take that time off. There is a point in every sales person's life when they should sit back and enjoy the view.

I am going to the park, now.

Good selling,

Steve

Selling Power Magazine

Did you happen to read Selling Power this month. Well, much to my surprise and excitement, I am featured in the June issue. it is all about up selling. I will not go into it now, except to say that it really does summarize why it so important for sales people to think about how they can up sell to the account.

I will give you a little hint: it is all about having an idea for them not simply going back with the same old stuff. In other words, you should know enough about the company that you can recommend idea for them to improve what they are doing with your product as well as the other guy's. Do that and you will win their confidence and the sale.

Good Selling, Steve

Some things to think about

I a writing a new book, as was asked the other day how to prevent a sales slump. NOW, without going into the technical aspects of a slump, there are some easy ways to get out of it. If you are experiencing the "slump" let me know.

1. start to prospect
2. create activity within you existing business
3. call everyone that you ever met and ask to meet with them again
4. Don't assume that the slump is forever
5. most times slumps are caused by not prospecting awhile ago. In other words because you did not prospect 6 months ago, you maybe feeling it now
6. only quitters fail
8. remember that the best baseball players have slumps and WORK their way out of them. You may need to reevaluate what you are doing to dig your way out
9. Yesterday is over
10. and finally; as Winston Churchill put it "Never, Never, Quit"

Good luck selling.

Steve

This morning

I was thinking today what makes a great salesperson. There are any number of factors, but I think the number 1 answer is consistency and patience. What do you think?

Good selling,

Steve

The next step

The last time that I wrote I promised that I would tell you about the importance of having a next step after every sales call. As you will recall, I went on a sales meeting that went pretty well. That is to say, the conversation was good, reasonably focused, and may (one day) lead to a sale.

But at the end of the meeting, when I suggested that we meet again, the prospect said "NO need, at this time". I was left with nothing. And that is what I mean by a next step. Yes, you could argue that my plan of calling her in a month is a next step, but I am the only one taking the step.

She will not be participating in that moment.

It will only be me.

The key to the next step is not in having you make the move, but to see what the other person will do. Since she did not agree to my calling her, or anything else, I am left in limbo.

Always go for the next step, it will tell you if you really have anything to talk about afterwards.

Good selling.

Steve

So I am back

As I wrote last timeI was leaving for the UK on sales calls, and wanted to let you know what took place. I actually had three meetings two with existing clients, and the third with someone new to us.

The meeting with the existing clients went well. And by the way, the way thatI start those meeting is by saying that I really am here for a customer call; to see if we have done the job that you expected. It then gives me the opportunity to tell about some of the ideas that I might have for them for the future. The problem is that when you see an existing client what do you really say to them, that they have not heard before. If you say,what can I sell you today, that will go no where. But if I come in with a fresh idea, maybe on some project that they are working on, I have a better chance of getting more business.

With the new prospect, I was successful and not successful at the same time. The fact is that they liked what I had to say. But, there is no next step. That is to say there is nothing that will happen within a reasonable period of time. I will talk about the "next step" strategy tomorrow.

Good Selling,
Steve

Going out on appointments

I am leaving today to go on sales appointments overseas. These are interesting to me since they require taking every piece of selling material that I might need. And, I have to travel back for the second or third meeting which presents logistical problems. Nevertheless, it is great to be selling, and that is what I really like. When I am back I will fill you in on what happens.

Good selling.

Steve

Preparing for the sales meeting

Here are some tips to help you prepare for the sales meeting. Let me know if you have others.

Know the basics about the company

Be ready to take control of the flow of the conversation

Establish commonality through good rapport questions

Segue with your 30 second commercial

Always ask about the past, present and future about what they do and how they do it

Use parables to explain your point

Make sure you always get agreement on the next step

Good selling.

Steve

Newsday interview

Today I gave an interview to Newsday, the major newspaper on Long Island. I discussed a study that was done in the 50's about why small businesses fail. Do you know what the number one reason was? LACK OF SALES!

Sales is the key to every successful business. But have you ever thought that the sales force is sometimes treated as a second citizen within the company.

Have you ever noticed that this is no "C" level position with SALES in it. There is the chief marketing officer, the chief operating officer and the chief executive officer. There is not a chief sales officer. Why is that, damned if i know. But it is a fact.

What can sales people do to upgrade themselves. For one thing: self promote. Make sure that everyone knows that you are happy to be in sales since it puts you in the middle of the income stream of the company.

Second, make sure that your manager treats you with the same respect that you treat him or her. Are the two of you speaking the same language?

Finally, remember that nothing happens until there is a sale. Everyone is counting on you to be successful for that is the only way that the company will survive.

Good selling.

Steve

THURSDAY

Yesterday was a good day here. We have been working on a deal for a long time and it finally happened. But the thing to remember is how it took place, almost by the book. We started several years ago, and we did get a small amount of business then. I was really a "bone" that they gave us, which is usual for most businesses. Then as we started with them and were in touch often, they gave us a little more. then it happened the whole deal came together in one shot. Now it looks like it happened over night, but it took patience, relationship and going a long was to please them We became a resource for them, which was they key

Do you have anything that you are working on like that? if so, stick to it, and it will happen. I would like to hear from you and your experiences with large clients. Especially interesting is the follow through that you do after you get the small amount of business. Good selling. regards, Steve

Out of Office Means No Sales

I was out of the office yesterday and today I am in meetings. Because my sales cycle is 8-10 weeks what I know already is that I will not see sales then WHY? Because there is a direct correlation between sales and the prospecting activity that I do every day. In other words, every day that I am out really reduces my chances to call or obviously meet someone new. Now if I am seeing many people in one day, it has the same effect. Therefore, the problem is finding the time, each and every day to prospect some how and some where. Regards, Steve

in the morning

This morning one of the guys came into the office to ask me advise. It seems that he has an appointment with someone today who did not confirm his email that everything was set. The fact is that the both had agreed to meet at 11am today. What should he do, he asked? The answer I gave him was two fold. The first was how far was this away from the office and second, why did he feel that he should not go? It was 20 minutes away, and he felt that guy wasn't playing ball with him, that is, wasn't interested if he cancelled out. But I said, he did not cancel out, he just did not confirm. So he went, the guy was there and he closed the deal. See, going sometimes makes a lot of sense. Will keep you informed of the other trails of sales people that I talk to each day. There are a lot of calls that I get asking for advise, and I will pass that along to you. Good selling. Steve

Monday morning

Every Sunday i sit down and make a list in preparation of the new week. Usually I start off reviewing my schedule to see what sales calls that I have that are brand new. However I focus on the second and third appointments that I have with my prospects, since those are further along and there's a lot more to do with those. What I tend to do is to review my notes and see if the proposal that I maybe presenting still makes sense to me, and hopefully to them. I check and recheck to see if I can say in earnest "this makes sense to me". If I can, then I know that I will be OK at the meeting.

People buy because it makes sense for them to do so, no matter how they say yes, it comes down to that. If I feel that what I am going to buy makes sense to me, for all the right reasons, I will usually buy the product. If I am in doubt, then there is no buy.

Another week of selling starts right now.

good selling, Steve

SO WHAT

Often people tell me that if you lose a deal do not take it personally. Just accept what has happened and move on. There is nothing that I disagree with more. To me, now and forever, I take every sale that I do not make personally. Thinking about that for a moment, lets go back to everything that we did to try to get the sale. First we had to call and get the appointment, second we went there, we developed a proposal after visiting with their staff and getting to understand their business. Finally we came back a total of four times and at the end we lost the deal to some one else. OF COURSE I am going to be upset. And, also, lets forget that friendly word "rejection" and get real about how we feel. It sucks. However, since we have been through this before, we pick up and move onto the next big deal. There is disappointment no matter what we say, and in fact, if there wasn't we we not be human. Happy Selling. Steve