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Sales Tips-Take Some Time to Look Back

Written by: Greg Beverly

Article Overview: You don't have to be a coroner to do a successful postmortem examination.

Sales Tips-Take Some Time to Look Back

You don't have to be a coroner to do an effective postmortem examination. While most of the mediocre and unsuccessful may sales people are busy reading Dear Abby or watching television, those that are truly head and shoulders above the rest are taking 15 minutes out of their day to do an examination of their day, specifically their sales opportunities.

It is important that you take a look back at your day, not just to look at how many sales you had, but also to try and determine why. Why did Mr. Smith buy? Why did Mr. Jones not buy? Was there a common characteristic about those that did buy? What about those that did not? Was there a common theme in your questions or presentation?

These are all important questions. For instance, you may find that a majority of your customers are female, are in a certain age group, ethnic group, etc. Was there a point in the interaction that you knew you had them? Was there a specific question you asked that solidified the sale? What personality type are most of your customers? What about those that said no? Can you adjust your interaction to compensate or should you simply concentrate on the group that buys rather than the group that doesn't?

And of course, I know that each of you are asking for referrals during each opportunity. Who or which group was more likely to give you referrals? Which ones made quick decisions? Which ones needed time?

Now, that you have taken the first step, you must take the second. Record your findings. Write them down. Look at them over time. See any changes in the trends? Are the changes due to your adjustments or a changing market?

These are only some of the questions you should be asking. You may find this task challenging at first, but after a short period of time, you will be able to successfully go through your day in a matter of minutes and most importantly, the increase in your sales and your bank account will prove it to be time well spent!

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