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Influencers Invited Sales Blog

Do You Want a Sales Career?

9 Insights to Help You Decide

A career in sales can provide the income of your dreams. Working in sales delivers intellectual and emotional satisfaction. The sales process is challenging in a very personal way. Don’t underestimate what it takes to be successful in terms of skill and mental focus. The turnover rate is high for sales positions. Prepare yourself with knowledge of what to expect, sales skills, and a blueprint to meet your goals.

The sales process involves strategy, skill, and consistent efforts. As we talk with prospects, we’re prepared for anything. Training and practice keep us fresh and nimble. We must make fast, accurate assessments during an ever-changing situation. Mastering the sales process is like learning a new language. As you learn this language of benefits and features, you develop an intuitive ability to read people.

Watch a kid learning to skateboard, play a video game, or baseball. Their playful attitude is, “It’s my turn!” “Let me do it!” That’s the attitude of success. Enthusiasm helps override and correct mistakes quickly. There’s a lot to learn.

With practice comes expertise. Have fun!

  1. Insight One: The best way to manage the sales process is to ask questions, and listen carefully. Intelligent questions accomplish two things: First, questions engage the prospect, and second, they establish your credibility. Questions help customers open up to a discussion. Skillful listening will help you understand what’s important to the prospect and narrow your presentation to what entices them to buy.
  2. Insight Two: The key to closing sales is: Meet the customer’s needs and let them choose to make a purchase. Don’t waste time pushing benefits a customer doesn’t care about!

    20% of sales people make the really big bucks. Organization and dedication will serve you well. Top producers close a higher percentage of their leads. Strategy, high quality conversations, and reaching folks who need what you’re offering all increase your closing ratio.

  3. Insight Three: For a successful career in sales be proactive in sales skill improvement. Sales skills will transfer to any industry. Get support from videos (YouTube). Seek training, practice your delivery, and read about your industry.
  4. Insight Four: How do you feel about making sales calls? If you’re new to sales you may experience an inexplicable anxiety that stops you from making cold calls. This malady is call reluctance. You’re not crazy and you’re not alone. Cold calling does not need to be painful. Schedule daily call times. Honor your commitment to be consistent. Follow your game plan. Take the small steps needed to build your pipeline and you’ll exceed your income goals.
  5. Insight Five: When you sit down to call prospects, don’t think, just dial. 80% of those calls will not reach a person due to voice mail. You may connect but miss the decision maker. What you’re worried about won’t happen and what you never expect will happen. In recruiting 4 conversations an hour is typical for good producers.Interactions make sales a fun career.
  6. Insight Six: Cold calling is a task like walking the dog. Cold calls create success. The secret is to schedule sales calls like any other routine. Don’t take all day. Get your 100 calls done in 2 – 3 hours. If cold calling is difficult there’s a process to erase the emotions holding you back.
  7. Insight Seven: Deal with aspects of the sales process you find frustrating. There’s nothing wrong with you. Break down the sales process and learn how to transition when you find yourself stuck. Practice will perfect your sales skills. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed at first. Track your closing ratio. You’ll improve.
  8. Insight Eight: There’s an easy way to dissolve anxiety, or insecurities hurting your performance. Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) is the best solution for eliminating irrational emotions and ideas sabotaging your success.

    EFT is emotional acupuncture. As you identify feelings limiting your success, EFT tapping sequences will erase them.

    We hold memories of trauma within us. Negative memories block the flow of healthy energy. Past events, or how we remember those events, can stop us from taking the action our current situation demands. Eliminate restrictive ideas to perform at a higher level. EFT works miracles for anyone who follows the instructions.

    It takes time to develop answers to common objections. Keep refining your responses until you have the results you want. If something you say shuts down a negotiation, modify, and try a new approach.

  9. Insight Nine: Find out what the other party’s thought process is before deciding how to respond. Ask more questions. Prepare six probing questions for each phase of the sales process in case your first question is sidestepped.

A career in sales takes dedication and focus. Believe in your heart and mind you’ll reach your daily goals and you will. Use EFT daily to peel away destructive thought patterns undermining your success. A sales career requires skills of no small measure. Sales professionals deserve their success.

Respect the sales process, your insights, and yourself. Find the training you need. Find support within your company or get training elsewhere. If a career in sales is what you want you have the power to succeed. Arm yourself with the tools to close deals and name your price! Think big, follow a blueprint, then think bigger!

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