|
|
Like this article? PLEASE +1 it! |  |
|
Go E#$% yourself!
| Guest post by: Todd Youngblood |
Article Overview: As a sales rep, you know better than anybody what your customers and prospects need to know. You've done your research. You know their issues, challenges and objectives. You know the value they could accrue by using your stuff. They just won't take the time to meet with you and listen! Well, maybe it's you that needs to listen up. Are they telling you to...
 |
Free Download - “The future is here. It’s just not evenly distributed yet.” By Todd Youngblood |
Go E#$% yourself!
It's harder and harder these days to get a face-to-face meeting with a decision maker. They're all so darned busy, busy, busy. If they won't take the time to learn, how can they possibly solve their problems and implement key initiatives?
Hold on a minute here. If someone earned the rank of decision-maker and has the wherewithal to keep that role, by definition, that person IS learning enough to solve problems and implement key initiatives. In other words, it's you that has the learning problem, not the decision-maker. You haven't learned that tactics for getting in the door have radically, dramatically and forever changed.
You need to establish your credibility before you ask for a meeting. You need to get the decision-maker to realize that he or she needs more perspective and context about some issue, has three or four questions to ask, and that you are uniquely qualified to provide the perspective, context and answers. And you need to do all that without ever having any direct contact. In fact, you really need to avoid asking for a meeting at all - to avoid pushing yourself into the decision process. You need to get the customer to pull you in.
Impossible? Only if you think cold calls, schmoozing the assistant and clever mailings are your core techniques. They may well still be necessary, but you need some additional weapons in your arsenal. You need to be where the decision makers are already hanging out. When they reach out for info, you need to already be there - directly in the path of that reach. You need to E-Yourself!
How tough is it to create and continually enhance an electronic extension of yourself? Actually, not much tougher than what you're already doing. It's just two extra steps:
- Build an "E-Self Infrastructure"
- Embed everything relevant you know and learn in that E-Self
DO NOT succumb to I-don't-know-what-to-write-or-talk-about syndrome. Are you kidding me? You make your living talking for crying out loud. Every time you learn something, write it down and/or record it. When you have a new flash of insight, write it down and/or record it. Think through all the potential problems, issues, concerns, projects, solutions, initiatives, etc. that your products and services can address, then write them down and/or record them. When you read something interesting, attach it to your E-self.
Neither of these two new tasks presents much of a challenge. Do them, along with whatever of the traditional techniques work for you. Can you really afford not to? Don't you need an E-Self to be available 24 X 7? What if it's 2:00 AM on Saturday and the hottest prospect in the universe is looking for a sales rep that can help?
Related Articles
Article Tags: arsenal, cold calls, core techniques, credibility, decision maker, decision makers, direct contact, electronic extension, geek, infrastructure, initiatives, li li, perspective, phobia, schmoozing, ul, weapons
|
About the Author: Todd Youngblood RSS for Todd's articles - Visit Todd's website Click here to visit Todd's website   Sales Rep Lame Excuse 83 Tell them exactly what youre going to do to them Your learningselfimprovement process is probably obsolete Are you clueless unsure confident or awesome Would a wiki work |
Related Forum Posts
Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.
Recommended Article for You
Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.
by: 
Build Your List with Joint Venture Giveaway Events
May 2012 Top 100 Social Media Experts to Follow on Twitter
What to measure to be phenomenally successful in business
10 mistakes of media relations
Making Money Blogging Can Be Tons Of Fun 
Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!
The Pure FUN of Learning & Using NLP
Four Secrets to Earning Income as an Author
Purchasing Real Estate using the SBA 504 Loan
Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.