Sales, Success | Jan 13, 2020
Why is it that some people are far more successful in sales than others? What are the winning characteristics that overachievers consistently demonstrate, and, can their success be duplicated?
Over the years I have personally coached many highly effective salespeople who have smashed targets, so my comments are about real people in real situations who have overachieved – but what are they?
Firstly, they have focus – they focus on what needs to be done to get business closed. This includes who to speak to but importantly who to speak to before they need to speak to them. This could include legal, purchasing and senior or executive management. In order to have valuable conversations that make a difference, it’s always good to build some rapport before you need to ask some of the hard questions.
Secondly, realism. Being realistic is somewhat of a turnoff for many salespeople. They work on opportunities that are never going to happen. They believe everything that everyone tells them, and they don’t read the signals that are always there. Successful salespeople know they must make cold calls, they know they must qualify at a senior level and they simply don’t believe everything that is told to them. Adding realism into a sales cycle will, of course, mean smaller pipelines but these will be well qualified.
Thirdly, belief. It stands to reason that if you don’t or can’t believe in both yourself or your product/service or solution you are probably going to be doomed. Self-belief is like a drug and will make you unstoppable. Having tasted success it’s always easier a second time to make a difference and a third, fourth, fifth – then that becomes the norm. Belief in your deliverables whether that be consulting, services, product or solutions. This will also help to make you unstoppable.
So, there are other characteristics but these, in my opinion, are the most important.
Over the years I have personally coached many highly effective salespeople who have smashed targets, so my comments are about real people in real situations who have overachieved – but what are they?
Firstly, they have focus – they focus on what needs to be done to get business closed. This includes who to speak to but importantly who to speak to before they need to speak to them. This could include legal, purchasing and senior or executive management. In order to have valuable conversations that make a difference, it’s always good to build some rapport before you need to ask some of the hard questions.
Secondly, realism. Being realistic is somewhat of a turnoff for many salespeople. They work on opportunities that are never going to happen. They believe everything that everyone tells them, and they don’t read the signals that are always there. Successful salespeople know they must make cold calls, they know they must qualify at a senior level and they simply don’t believe everything that is told to them. Adding realism into a sales cycle will, of course, mean smaller pipelines but these will be well qualified.
Thirdly, belief. It stands to reason that if you don’t or can’t believe in both yourself or your product/service or solution you are probably going to be doomed. Self-belief is like a drug and will make you unstoppable. Having tasted success it’s always easier a second time to make a difference and a third, fourth, fifth – then that becomes the norm. Belief in your deliverables whether that be consulting, services, product or solutions. This will also help to make you unstoppable.
So, there are other characteristics but these, in my opinion, are the most important.
For more articles by Mike Palman, visit http://www.thesalesacademy.com/blog
