Tweet

Top Sales Pros do These 10 Things----Why Don't You?

Guest post by: Gerry Layo

Article Overview: Every month, I run a Coach Call on two different topics. On this month’s second call, I listed the Top 10 things that the top sales pros do that most of the others do not. Since I recorded this call, I have had dozens of people respond that the call opened their eyes to the things that are necessary to stay on top. Furthermore, many of the respondents commented that the Coach call helped them get back on track to re-start doing the things that they used to do. In either event, due to the overwhelming response to this call, I have decided to write a corresponding article for those of you who are not part of the Coach Call program.

Top Sales Pros do These 10 Things----Why Don't You?

The Top Sales Pros are a special breed of cat. They engage in decidedly different activities on a regular basis. Although they walk and talk the same at first glance, they do very unique things every day that, in and of themselves are not overly special. But combined, these things create a vortex of success that attracts the best customers, the most referrals, the strongest relationships and the highest commissions! I have been fortunate to be a sales professional for many years that others have placed in the "Top Sales Pro" category. In addition, I have the pleasure of working with many top sales pros (and many more on the other end of the spectrum) every year in my business as a speaker and sales coach. In doing so, I have witnessed some of the best practices that are consistent among only the best. The 10 things that I have compiled below are not the only things that these Heavy Hitters do, but they are, in my opinion, the most important:

1-They Take Full Responsibility

The Best of the Best never place blame on others for their failure or misfires. They realize that the only one responsible for their success or failure is the person that they stare at in the mirror every morning. By accepting responsibility for everything, they NEVER become the victim of competition, market circumstances, pricing, or any other issues that are attacking their competition that whine, complain, and sit around waiting for the next big bad wolf.

2-They Guard Their Attitudes with Their Lives

The Top Producers understand that their Attitude is their most important asset to their success and they do everything they can to make sure they bolster it and protect it. They never hang around with those who choose to place blame, point fingers, complain, and bellyache. They go out of their way to associate with winners and successful people. Although they may get invitations to the pity parties, they never choose to attend. In addition, these cats NEVER feel that know it all. In fact, they always seek other's opinions, knowledge, and experience. They believe anything is possible and you know what...most of the time, they are right!

3-They Feed Their Brains-Every Day

The Best of the Best got to that spot on purpose. They did not just wake up one day on the top of the heap. They actually worked hard to feed their brains the things that it needs to grow. They realize that the marketplace never stands still. They realize that customers needs will always change and they choose to stay ahead of the curve. Consequently, they read books, articles, and reports in the areas that demand their attention. They constantly "sharpen their axes" in the areas of salesmanship, customer service, empathy, and differentiation. They seek to become an expert in their field by increasing their knowledge every day on purpose.

4-Plan-Prepare Practice

The Top Producers always seem to have a plan. It all starts with major clarity on their goals. They are very clear on the WHY so the WHAT and the HOW become their focus. The Heavy Hitters go into every call with a purpose and a higher level of preparation. They have run through all the "what-if" scenarios. They have thought through, written down, and practiced the questions that they will ask. They have mentally run through everything from the customer's prospective. They are prepared to "open" the customer more effectively and practiced at transitioning to the "close" of the sale. They know the solid IMPACT statements and questions at the right time because they plan them, prepare them, and practice them ALL the time.

5-They Brand Themselves in Their Marketplace

The Cream of the Selling Crop make sure that they are "known-for" something in the marketplace. They create a buzz about who they are and what they know or do by becoming visible to those who may use their product or service. They realize that being a vendor is a tough gig because vendors are a dime a dozen, unless the customer only wants to pay a nickel. The Best of the Best want to be known as the EXPERT. They do the things necessary to position themselves in the marketplace as THE CHOICE rather than A CHOICE. They take the time to write articles and have them published in magazines and newsletters that their customers read. They get out of their comfort zones and look to speak at industry events that their customers attend. They constantly and consistently "touch" their prospects, customers, and clients in a variety of creative and value-add ways to ensure top of consciousness in the minds of the buyers. Top Pros always seek to create "Only Me" value to the sale.

6-They are Willing to Lose

All too often, most salespeople don't take the risk of asking for the YES because they are afraid to hear the NO. The Top Sales Pros understand that they are in the NO taking business. They also understand that their success is highly dependent upon their willingness to "crash and burn" in failure. Jeffery Gitomer once stated that "Most people won't risk because they think they fear the unknown. The real reason that they won't risk is because they lack the preparation and education that breeds the self confidence (self-belief) to take a chance." The great Wayne Gretzky once said that "You miss 100% of the shots that you never take." And so it is with the best salespeople: They get out in front and risk it all for themselves, for the customer, and for their career because they know that most of their competition will STOP when the pressure of the potential loss gets too high.

7-They Recognize Opportunity and Take ACTION Faster

Top Sales Professionals do not get more opportunities than all the rest. It just seems that way because they are always on "high receive" looking for it. They put themselves in situations where opportunity tends to be present. They understand that opportunity at first can look like problems, challenges, or adversity. The further understand that CHANGE is often at the base of opportunity. They realize that this is true from their perspective and from the customers-and thus, there lies the opportunity. They don't hesitate. They don't sit around strategizing. They take action! When most people are wondering if it will work, the Top Sales Professionals are getting the awards for getting it done! Events get attended with different purposes. Articles get read with different eyes. Conversations get heard with different ears.

8-They are a Resource

Top Producers are the go-to people for their customers. They have the answers to their customers' questions and the solutions to their problems. They realize that the world is full of "Takers" that will come in and "take" the customer's time, "take" the customer's order, and "take" the customer's money, but rarely, if ever, add anything of value to the relationship. Top Producers realize that, in order to continually be valuable to the customer, they need to become more than a vendor. They need to know the customer's world as well or better than they know theirs. The Best of the Best always "bring something to the table" that changes the outlook of the customer and makes them think or perform in different ways. The Top Pros are there for more than the order; they are there through thick and thin, providing the value of their expertise and knowledge to those whom he/she cares about the most (his/her customer).

9-They Take Time to Re-Charge

The Heavy Hitters do a lot of things that most salespeople will not do. This takes time, energy, passion, commitment, and focus. All of the results that they get come from hard-work and dedication to the job. The Best of the Best not only know when to do these things, they also know when to "shut it down" and re-fuel. Even the fastest cars (the ones that are winning) in NASCAR races have to make their occasional pit-stop to re-fuel and get ready for the next leg of the race. They cannot continue to win the race unless they do. So it is with Top Salespeople. In order to keep winning the race of professional sales, they need to have a quality of life outside the selling marketplace. The Best of the Best know that the only reason to be in this game (sales) is to have a better life and more in it! We find that these cats take longer/better vacations, schedule more time with their families, dig deeper into "outside work" passions/hobbies, and overall get more out of life than those who "work the grind." They realize that enjoyment and passion are synonymous with Success and if too much WORK goes into one area over another, the enjoyment and the passion start to fade.

10- They Take What They Do Very Seriously Without Taking Themselves Too Seriously

The Best of the Best in sales realize that they are in a profession. Just like all professionals, there are expectations that customers hold them to. A doctor has expectations that not only will she have a good bedside manner, but that she will know her area of expertise to such a degree that human lives may be placed in her care. A lawyer has expectations to know not only the law (today's law) but to also know everything else about his area of expertise such that success or failure at the hands of a jury is entrusted to him. And so it is with sales professionals: The Top Pros know that The Profession of Sales is for Sales Professionals. As professionals, they know that the 9 areas that I have listed above require their constant attention. They realize that the solutions that they can and do provide for their customers can change lives and affect so many. And yet, with all of that in mind, they go into the battle each day with a light heart and a sound attitude knowing that they will hear no. They realize that having FUN is a vital part of the game and that most people would rather do business with a friend than with a salesperson. And so they strive to be light hearted and heavily focused to gain the trust of the people with whom they choose to engage.

It has been said that Success Leaves Clues. Hopefully these success strategies of the Top Sales pros will give you some clue as to where you can get back on track to superstardom in the profession of selling.

Related Articles
  What is the best way to develop my sales skills?
  Profitable Online Business Ideas and the Recession Part 2
  Know your magic numbers
  Contribution
  How can you make more of your customers open your emails?
  Small Business Advertising - How Baseball Theme Direct Mail Campaign Hits Home Run
  Social Networking or Social Distraction
  More crazy customers!
  The Pros and Cons of Hiring Green Salespeople
  Are you Hard, Scrambled or Soft?
  Are you a Star?
  Get better results from email newsletters and promotional emails
  How do I find a passionate and purposeful mentor?
  Guide To Start Your Home Based Business
  Hacking Facebook Password with the help of free hacker tools for everyone
  How to generate referrals
  Can you afford to make your email marketing more targeted? Can you afford not to?
  Sales Success Tip-You MUST Know the Answer to This Question
  Spam: You probably hate it but can you define it?
  The pros and cons of working as an independent contractor

Article Tags: best practices, sales, sales professionals



Related Forum Posts
Online Sales and Marketing vs Traditional - Hi Evan, I am noticing that many of the posts in the Sales/Marketing section deal with online marketing, SEM and and SEO and Affiliates. I was wondering if it might be a good idea to separate that section into two; 1) Online Sales and Marketing; 2) Traditional Sales and Marketing
Re: Online Sales and Marketing vs Traditional - [quote="ltrahan":31w9r2iz]Hi Evan, I am noticing that many of the posts in the Sales/Marketing section deal with online marketing, SEM and and SEO and Affiliates. I was wondering if it might be a good idea to separate that section into two; 1) Online Sales and Marketing; 2) Traditional Sales and Marketing[/quote:31w9r2iz] I second the request...
Re: How to Promote a MLM Business? - In MLM a lot of it is hype. I know you like your product but you have to get people in like a circus does. Draw people in with attraction. Depending on your budget you should setup a tent in the parking lot of a mall/grocery store(with their permission or rent the space) and cook-out hotdogs and hamburgers, have a clown doing magic for the kids, make a nice presentation on projection screen. Show your prospects that you are larger than life. Sales is 90% attitude and 10% aptitude. With MLM it is usually simple to understand so make it so simple they cant resist. They should feel dumb if they dont sign-up on the spot. When you have a crowd it is like a feeding frenzy. They will sign-up just because other people are...especially if you have a relatively cheap MLM. You are not going to make any sales if your product in MLM is over $200. I know this part is self promotion but get a wireless credit card machine so you can take payment right on the spot. Dont give them any reason to leave without buying/signing up.
Re: How to Promote Your Blog – The Definitive Guide to Promoting - Great Post! Dont forget to put your blog in Anchor Text For SEO purposes for the keywords you want when getting backlinks (for example with article marketing)...Very important. You can conquer quite a few small Niches and get your site on the number 1 spot in Google!
Re: Due Diligence, Market Research.. Ahead of the curve. - Congrats! A few months ago I wrote extensively on market research. Check in the Inventors corner for the posts. Let me know if I can help further! Dont spend a dime on a protype or advertising until you do some research! Jude


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

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.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Are You An Accidental Consultant?

Leader's Success Secret: Celebration

Join Conversations Politely, Part 1

Suggestions

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.