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It has long been my conviction that the dominant factor in success is the set of mental habits possessed by the individual. Of no vocation is this truer than that of the salesman. “As a man thinketh . . .” applies to him in an all-important way. The techniques and skills, methods of approach, demonstration and closing are matters of demanding study and practice., These things are cold, mechanical, wooden and ineffective except as they are warmed, energized and implemented by the dynamics of a positive personality. A positive personality is never found apart from deep conviction, genuine belief in the fundamentals, the “copybook virtues” known and honored by men and women of character in all generations.

This conviction was strengthened in me some time ago when there came to hand a report of a questionnaire circulated among the members of a Sales Executives Club. These men and women are “top brass” in the sales departments of big business. They have responsibility for the distribution of their firm’s product; have in some cases hundreds, even thousands, of sales managers and salesmen under their guidance and direction. The recruitment, training and management of these forces are their daily concern.

The question asked these sales executives was: What are the qualities or traits of character you value most in salesmen? This is the list they offered, the traits being stated in the order of importance attached to them by these sales executives. There is food for thought here. Note for instance that “persuasiveness” is toward the end of the list. Most people would list the art of persuasion as perhaps synonymous with salesmanship but according to these sales executives there are other more import traits, they are listed below.

Dependability was chosen as the most important.

Integrity was next. With this trait the salesman is incapable either of being false to the trust his company places in him or to the real interests of his customer.

Knowledge of product is one of the three fundamentals of success in the field of selling.

Self Time-management Perhaps no vocation gives a man a greater degree of latitude. He must be a good “boss” for himself and exact a high degree of self-discipline for selling.

Work organization is efficiency in self-management. Much of a salesman’s time is wasted by the prospect. He must guard the balance jealously and make every minute count.
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Have you ever had sales people who just never seem to make it no matter how hard they try? These sales people are one of the main factors for decline in business. Your sales people are the heart of your company and without good ones you will find it difficult to succeed in selling your products. To train good sales people you sometimes need to take a different approach.

Here are 10 tips that will save you from becoming the worst sales person in the company:

1. Not being punctual: being on time is very important to a customer. Take into consideration that many of your seasonal Christmas customers will be new. Your sales people will represent the first contact these customers have with your company. First impressions are lasting ones and your sales person need to make a good impression. Being on time will give a good impression to the client and increase their confidence in your company.

2. Poor presentation: some sales people just do not have all their ducks in a row and simply do not present the product well. A presentation is the first thing a customer will know about your product. If your product is not shown correctly to the customer he is very unlikely to buy.

3. Bad attitude: rudeness and unprofessional behavior is not acceptable under any circumstances. It is quite surprising that you will meet some sales people who are just plain rude and short with you the consumer. This gives the potential buyer the wrong impression about your company. They do not get a proper picture of the product, as they will probably not even wait for the presentation to end. You will lose many sales like this.
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Tip # 1
Discipline Yourself to a Routine of ‘Asking’

Here’s something profound. The reason most of us do not get referrals on a routine basis is because we do not ask for them on a routine basis. Well, it’s almost that simple. What would be the upside on your year-end W-2 if you asked for 2 referrals from each of your new customers? Let’s say you average 6 sales per month. That would be 12 referrals per month or 144 per year. Conservatively, you close half of those warm leads. Multiply 72 by your average revenue per sale. Then calculate your commission percentage off the total revenue sold. Now ask yourself if you can afford not to ask for referrals on a routine basis.

Tip # 2
Develop a process to ‘Set the Stage’

Asking for a referral is one thing, but how many times do you actually get one? Execute a Powerful Routine after you sign up a new customer, and request permission for 3 additional minutes to get their professional feedback. Ask a series of questions soliciting their opinion on ways you can be more effective with your sales process, from initial contact to point of sale, with individuals in the same industry and parallel titles. You are now setting the stage for your future success. Over time, your contacts will give you a free ‘Masters Degree.’ Remember to ‘Pack your bags, but set the stage.’

Tip # 3
Communicate to a “Win-Win” Agreement

Be honest and sincere in reference to the importance of referrals for running your business effectively. Tell your story. If you have a high referral ratio let them know that and why it is high. Customers respect a good businessperson more than a good salesperson. Try to pick a time when the contact would feel comfortable giving a referral to help your business. That may not be at the point of sale, but upon service implementation or some time in the future when you have proved you delivered what you promised. The important point is you must define with the contact when it can happen or what criteria need to be met for it to happen.
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1) Do you monitor and manage tasks or do you identify and train to essential competencies?

Do you want to know the big difference between due diligence and a core competency?

Here’s a classic example:

Collecting 50 business cards per day is an act of data procurement, while training to a 60% conversation to appointment ratio is focusing on an essential component to ensure your sales team’s success.

Don’t focus on accountability to tasks but enlighten to identification. It’s much more important to teach your people the “business” of the business they’re in.

If you currently have your sales team accountable to tasks, then you’re merely “managing” tasks. In order to become more effective – you should be training on measurement of competencies so your people can ‘run their own business.’

2) You measure details not directly related to performance and results.

A telecommunications sales manager proudly told me he requires his sales reps to document ‘100 dials per day.’

I was shocked when I heard this. I asked him if he was in the ‘dialing’ business or the ‘communication’ business.

Think about it for a minute. What does the measurement of ‘dials’ have to do with performance or results? Can you ever improve your dialing skills?
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