Sales Training – Top Salespeople Are Not Dunces
Sales Training – Top Salespeople Are Not Dunces
1. Listen more than you talk. It’s summed up clearly in what the Greek philosopher Epictetus said, “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”
2. Invest in learning and development. Whether it’s workshops, teleseminars or utilizing coaches, top salespeople are lifelong learners who invest time, money and energy to excel. Introverts generally have fun with this and extroverts enjoy being with people of the same self-improvement interest.
3. Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up. Sales statistics about when a prospect buys are inverted: 48% of sales people never follow up with a prospect; 25% of sales people make a second contact and stop; 12% of sales people only make three contacts and stop. Only 10% of sales people make more than three contacts, yet 80% of sales is made on the fifth to twelfth contact. Take off that dunce hat about follow-up.
4. Get in front of the real decision maker. If you determine you are talking with an influencer or end-user, work with them to both learn about as well as get their help to make an introduction of you to the decision-maker.
5. Know the competition. With the availability of information via the internet, there is no excuse not to research your competition. Remember: besides physical competitors, indecision, particularly during times of uncertainty, is a competitor worth your attention. Because introverts enjoy research, this could remove the dunce cap quickly.
6. Reject rejection. No one likes rejection for any reason! Recognize that rejection is part of the sales process. Let those feelings run a short course. Acknowledge it, then shift your self-talk and focus to the lesson, the humor in it, and view it as being one step closer to a new customer. Extroverts tend to be able to more quickly remove the rejection dunce hat.
7. Ask your prospect for a decision. Often salespeople find their prospect asking them, “So what’s next?” Whether a small business owner, independent professional or salesperson, your role is to get to the point with a prospect that if they don’t ask, you ask: “What do you want to do next?”
8. Keep in touch with clients. One of the strengths of an introvert is the deepness of relationships. Staying in touch with clients is as important as follow-ups with prospects.
9. Sell at your prospects buying level. As you get a strong foundational understanding of the selling and buying process, you’ll learn to read the signs of a prospects buying and decision making style. Pace their pace until you understand this before you lead with yours.
10. Have a measured sales system. Measure all that you can in the sales system to hone a perfect process for yourself: best pipeline filling activities; which follow-up actions work best; which networking groups or events are highest payoff for you, and the demographics of your best customers.
No salesperson wants to wear a dunce hat! If you are not selling at the level, consistency or even have the perfect clients you want, start at the sales strengths that you are fairly well skilled at, and then hone them. Then move to take the next dunce cap off and put the next best action you have in place. You can celebrate your de-duncing because your sales results will increase.
Sales Training Top Salespeople Are Not Dunces - To learn more about this author, visit Patricia Weber's Website.
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November 8: Dunce Day. Salespeople don’t wear dunce caps, at least not on purpose. The dunce cap is named after a 13th-century philosopher, John Duns Scotus, born in Duns, Scotland. He believed this conical shaped hat increased learning potential using the theory that knowledge flows from the apex into the mind of the wearer. How can you be more like top salespeople and not get caught in any “dunceness?” Here are some ideas to act on to take off that dunce cap:
1. Listen more than you talk. It’s summed up clearly in what the Greek philosopher Epictetus said, “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”
2. Invest in learning and development. Whether it’s workshops, teleseminars or utilizing coaches, top salespeople are lifelong learners who invest time, money and energy to excel. Introverts generally have fun with this and extroverts enjoy being with people of the same self-improvement interest.
3. Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up. Sales statistics about when a prospect buys are inverted: 48% of sales people never follow up with a prospect; 25% of sales people make a second contact and stop; 12% of sales people only make three contacts and stop. Only 10% of sales people make more than three contacts, yet 80% of sales is made on the fifth to twelfth contact. Take off that dunce hat about follow-up.
4. Get in front of the real decision maker. If you determine you are talking with an influencer or end-user, work with them to both learn about as well as get their help to make an introduction of you to the decision-maker.
5. Know the competition. With the availability of information via the internet, there is no excuse not to research your competition. Remember: besides physical competitors, indecision, particularly during times of uncertainty, is a competitor worth your attention. Because introverts enjoy research, this could remove the dunce cap quickly.
6. Reject rejection. No one likes rejection for any reason! Recognize that rejection is part of the sales process. Let those feelings run a short course. Acknowledge it, then shift your self-talk and focus to the lesson, the humor in it, and view it as being one step closer to a new customer. Extroverts tend to be able to more quickly remove the rejection dunce hat.
7. Ask your prospect for a decision. Often salespeople find their prospect asking them, “So what’s next?” Whether a small business owner, independent professional or salesperson, your role is to get to the point with a prospect that if they don’t ask, you ask: “What do you want to do next?”
8. Keep in touch with clients. One of the strengths of an introvert is the deepness of relationships. Staying in touch with clients is as important as follow-ups with prospects.
9. Sell at your prospects buying level. As you get a strong foundational understanding of the selling and buying process, you’ll learn to read the signs of a prospects buying and decision making style. Pace their pace until you understand this before you lead with yours.
10. Have a measured sales system. Measure all that you can in the sales system to hone a perfect process for yourself: best pipeline filling activities; which follow-up actions work best; which networking groups or events are highest payoff for you, and the demographics of your best customers.
No salesperson wants to wear a dunce hat! If you are not selling at the level, consistency or even have the perfect clients you want, start at the sales strengths that you are fairly well skilled at, and then hone them. Then move to take the next dunce cap off and put the next best action you have in place. You can celebrate your de-duncing because your sales results will increase.
Sales Training Top Salespeople Are Not Dunces - To learn more about this author, visit Patricia Weber's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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John AlexanderJohn has taught keyword research and SEO skills to small groups of business owners and Webmasters from over 80 different countries world wide since 2002. John is also the Director of Search Engine Academy ; Co-director of Training at Search Engine Workshops offering live, SEO Workshops with his partner SEO educator Robin Nobles, author of the very first comprehensive online search engine marketing courses at SEO Training Online and the SEO Workshop Resource Center. I look forward to hearing from you! - Visit John Alexander's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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