Get Organised! - a really important sales tip
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Free Download - In front of the customer - selling face-to-face By Bob Hazell |
It’s quite possible that there more sales are lost through poor organisational skills than through poor presentation skills.
How does your business operate? If the salesperson dies or leaves, how much information goes with them? How much is committed to a system that a new person can pick up and run with? How long would it take to get back the business we lose in the interim?
Personal Organisation
With all the tools available to us these days there is little excuse for forgetting to ring someone or forgetting to do something. Tools like Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes can be used to not only schedule meetings and call backs, but to give us reminders as well.
One of the greatest tips in time management is to ‘forget remembering.’ Committing things to a system, whether paper or electronic, is the best way of keeping on top of the job. The things to watch out for now are:
• Don’t lose the system.
• Make sure electronic files are backed up.
Keeping Control
As Outlook is the commonest electronic system, here are some tips on keeping up with our clients by using it.
The first thing we need is a ‘Customer Record Card’, and this is easily done using the Contacts folder. Open the folder and double click anywhere on the white space to open a new record. We type in all the data we need to create the contact. We are able to link files we create in Word and Excel etc to the contact using the ‘Actions/Link’ command. When we then open the ‘Activities‘ tab Outlook will find all the linked files for us. If we prefer we can insert a shortcut using the ’Insert’ menu.
Now we can create a Task for the contact using the ‘Actions/New Task for Contact’ command. Give the task a name, e.g. ‘Nuria, XYZ re new project’. Adding the phone number here is helpful since it saves clicking on the contact at the bottom LHS to bring up the contact details. Use ‘today’ as the start date and set the date you need to contact as the due date. On the main Tools menu, click Options, click the Other tab, and then click Advanced Options. Click Advanced Tasks. To have a reminder automatically turned on for new tasks, select the Set reminders on tasks with due dates check box. We recommend this to make sure reminders are set.
Now for the key point:
The most important thing to do is to keep a record of every conversation, action and visit attached to the task. Do this in the large space underneath. To do this, click in the space, select the Format font command on the task and set it to Arial 8 point. This seems to work just right because the date can now be entered on the left and we can tab across to put the result.
Each time we speak with the customer we now agree the date to ring back, and when we re-enter we can begin (after intro’s) with “Last time we spoke was …..” or something similar. It’s easy to keep in contact when we have agreement from the customer that we can do it. There’s a lot more to it than this, but we wish you success in getting organised. You’ll be surprised at the difference it will make.
Get Organised a really important sales tip - To learn more about this author, visit Bob Hazell'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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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is a best-selling author, top-rated speaker and thought leader on sales development. He 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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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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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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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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