Sounds simple, doesn’t it?  After all, the Boy Scouts have been teaching this idea to kids for almost 100 years.

So why in the world would most sales professionals show up unprepared? You see it all the time—they dash in from the parking lot with a handful of color brochures but no plan on how to engage. Or they relentlessly work the phones only to discover that they’ve offered nothing more than hollow chitchat.

Why do you and a lot of other sales reps fail to prepare? Because it is easier to talk about you, your company and your products than it is to prepare to have a conversation about THEM!

Here’s the big question: what are you doing to prepare that if your clients knew you were doing it, they would be more inclined to have an open and honest dialogue with you?

The next time you meet with a prospect or client, open the conversation with this simple phrase: “In preparing for this meeting I took some time to…” Then simply highlight the two or three critical things that you did to prepare and watch what happens to the atmosphere of the call. You will blow away the last rep who opened their meeting by announcing that they were just “checking in” to see if anything new was going on.

The less you talk about yourself, the more you have to prepare to talk about them. And the more you talk about them, the more likely they will be interested in you. Not exactly the secret formula you were hoping for. But it is an obvious formula—so obvious that most sales reps ignore it.

Here are ten key elements that you can use to create your own successful pre-call habits:

1. Learn about their business—their products/services, customers, industry trends, key initiatives, financial status, and competition.

2. Discover something about the person you are meeting with. Google them, talk to their colleagues, or call others in the industry who have insights.

3. Define the exact purpose of this call. What are the goals for this interaction?

4. Identify the benefits of your meeting. The benefits need to be clear, concise, credible and compelling!

5. Prepare ideas that hold value for your customer. Your language needs to reflect a focus on solutions…not on your latest product!

6. Plan questions that establish your expertise and get them to think in new ways. The more thought provoking your questions are, the more your prospective buyers will respect and remember you!

7. Communicate an outline of your meeting prior to the appointment. Ask them to review and provide you with feedback. Getting their buy-in before you walk in the door is critical, and it demonstrates your commitment to delivering value.

8. Identify the resistance that you are most likely to encounter and prepare ideas, case studies, testimonials or expert opinions to help reduce their reluctance to move forward.

9. Plan how you will end the meeting or call and decide what agreements you need to ask for.

10. Remind yourself to be warm, friendly and courteous to everyone that you encounter. Your prospects are constantly deciding how much they like you, how much they believe you, how much they trust you and how much confidence they have in you. It takes time—often a long time—to build your personal brand. And it takes only a few seconds for it to be destroyed.

The determination to win is important in selling…but the determination to prepare to win is an essential part of getting to the top!

Speaking of Sales is about finding, winning and keeping customers for life. If that’s part of your job, then you won’t want to miss the next issue.

Until then,

Tim

If these questions look unfamiliar or make you uncomfortable, you will probably finish 2012 exactly where you are now…thinking you should probably be someplace else but with no clue how to get there.

Goals are one of the most powerful and best kept secrets to creating more success in your life. Ask a room full of people if they’ve taken the time to put their goals in writing. Fewer than five percent will raise their hands—I’ve done this during dozens of programs and am always shocked by the results.

Why do more than 90 percent of Americans struggle with creating and achieving meaningful goals? Here are four classic reasons…see if any of them look familiar.

• Failure to write goals and post them in plain view. Let’s do a quick test…what are your three most important goals for 2012 and where are they posted? Ouch…huh?
• Not understanding how to create a goal. “I want to make more money” is NOT a goal. “I want to earn $150,000 before taxes in 2012 so that we can buy a lake house to spend more quality time as a family” is a goal. See the difference? Goals need to be specific and measurable— motivating and achievable. Your goals should have purpose and fit into the bigger plan of your life.
• Ability to create a goal but failing to create a plan on how to achieve that goal. Goals are your destination…the plan is your map on how to get there. A plan outlines the obstacles you will face and the resources you will need. It identifies the knowledge and skills that you need to acquire or sharpen. What small steps can you take each day to reach your goal by January 2013? The answers to these questions are the foundation of a great plan.
• Inability to keep commitments. Our culture today is all about quick fixes—just look at the front cover of any major magazine. Get rich, become smart and enjoy rock hard abs overnight. Give me a break! If you want to reach your goals you better be ready to face some hard work. If this stuff was easy everyone would be doing it, and I wouldn’t be writing about this.

So how can you set up 2012 to be your most successful year ever? Here are four quick tips to get you on track now!

1. Get goals! Think about where you want to be one year from today—financially, physically, mentally, spiritually, places you want to visit, relationships you want to build and things you want to do. Brainstorm big ideas…don’t limit your thinking. You will be surprised at what you can accomplish in a year with the right focus and commitment. (By the way, quota should not be one of your goals. Quotas are set by managers, goals are set by you. If you focus only on making quota you will never reach your goals.)
2. Why is this important? List all of the specific benefits of achieving each goal. What happens to you and your world when you accomplish this goal? If the benefits aren’t compelling, you will find yourself abandoning the goal at the first hint of a headwind. If the benefits aren’t clearly defined, you could knock yourself out for something only to discover it’s something you never really wanted in the first place.
3. Determine the daily dose. How much do you need to do each day to reach your goal? How many calls, ounces, miles, dollars, presentations or calories will it take? Start small…experience success and build some momentum. Don’t set yourself up for failure by creating unrealistic expectations (losing 10lbs a week) or writing a check you can’t cover (making 50 new contacts every day).
4. Surround yourself with accountability partners. Find others in your life that you trust to be honest with you (you’re not looking for a professional cheerleader!). Share your written goals with them and explain the benefits you’re hoping to enjoy. Give them a copy of your plan and then schedule regular conversations to discuss progress, explore challenges and celebrate the small victories.

Call to action!
Want to make 2012 a year to remember? Then decide right now where you want to be next January and start creating a plan to get there. I can’t guarantee that these ideas will work for you, but I can guarantee that they work.

Until then,

Tim

Unusual times call for unusual tactics. This month I’m sharing four key strategies that will help you grow your business over the next 90 days. Some of you will be quick to dismiss these ideas, but the successful sales person always adapts to the environment.

I realize these four ideas won’t work for everyone, but I can guarantee they work. Stop dwelling on what can’t be done and start focusing on what you can do to help your customers and grow your business this quarter.

Strategy #1 – Buy now, pay later
There is a good chance that you have prospects that need your products or services now, but they’re waiting for next year’s budget dollars. This phenomenon takes place every fourth quarter and it’s become the bane of many a sales person’s year-end performance.

Why not put together a program that allows qualified prospects to enjoy deferred invoicing or extended payment terms? This takes extra effort on your part, but the sooner your prospect buys, the sooner they quit shopping.

As I start finalizing my fourth quarter calendar, I’m approaching prospects that might need high impact sales training now, but won’t have funds until after the first of the year. My goal is to create a flexible payment plan that works for them and works for me!

If this sounds valuable to you, give me a call and we’ll find a way to make this strategy work.

Strategy #2 – Cash isn’t always king
Most of you are in the business of exchanging goods or services for cash. Cash is king for growing your sales but for many of your customers it’s currently in short supply.

Have you considered bartering? Imagine the new business and relationship opportunities you could create by trading goods and services.

As a business owner I purchase computers, printers, phones, office equipment, marketing collateral, web services, IT support and lots of supplies. Odds are that some of these businesses would benefit from sales training but in 10 years no one has ever approached me about working out a trade.

Finding strategic bartering partners is a key 4th quarter goal for me, should it be one of yours?

Strategy #3 – Build more value into everything you do
Adding value is a concept that many salespeople and sales executives have a difficult time understanding. Please don’t fall into the trap of believing that every customer values a polo shirt with your logo on it, because they don’t!

Start today by asking your best customers how you can add more value to the relationship. Use this conversation to set yourself apart from every other rep that stops by just to ‘check in’ and see if anything new is going on.

As a result of feedback from my customers, I’ve created a new series of audio sales training tools. I’m bundling tuition to these tele-seminars as part of every live workshop that I conduct. Customers value that I’m able to reinforce great selling behaviors in this cost effective way.

What are your plans to build more value over the next 90 days?

Strategy #4 – Reward people for doing the right thing
In the perfect world everyone likes you, everyone is thinking about you and everyone is sharing leads with you. In reality people have too much to do and you’re not always at the top of their list. So how do you get others to be more proactive in providing you with leads?

Reward them!

In times like this it difficult to get and keep mindshare with others who can help you. Increase your chances by implementing a valuable referral system and reward everyone that helps you get closer to your goals. You could use cash, a gift check, tickets to an event or maybe even a discount on future purchases.

Know of someone who is looking for a great speaker or sales trainer? Facilitate an introduction on my behalf and when that opportunity books, I’ll send you $200 cash!

Until then,

Tim

Question: What could a simple cab ride have to do with becoming a better sales professional?

Answer: Almost everything!

After landing at O’Hare today and gathering all of my gear, I headed curbside to grab a cab. I’ve probably done this drill a hundred times, but today was different.

My cab pulled up and the driver gets out, walks around to the trunk, takes one look at my gear (think 50 pound case filled with camera, tripod, microphone, materials) and just grunts at me. Immediately I feel like I’ve done something to offend him.

Feeling guilty, I help him wrestle my bag into a trunk that is already jam-packed (where did all of this other stuff come from?). He slams the trunk lid shut as I sink into the back seat feeling embarrassed that I actually have luggage.

Lesson #1: Be likeable
We all have bad days. I understand that. But when you’re dealing with customers, you need to put on your game face. I don’t know this cab drivers exact circumstance, but how difficult would it have been to offer a warm greeting? A simple smile would have gone a long way. Very few people go to work every day trying to be unlikable, but do your customers really like you? Do they feel good about themselves when you are around?

If you find yourself alienating customers in the first three minutes, I suggest you find another line of work.

As we pull out of O’Hare I tell the cabbie that I need to go to the Marriott in Schaumburg. He simply nods and rolls down the windows as we head towards the freeway. As we hit the open road, I quickly discover that this driver has one foot planted on the accelerator and the other on the brake. Smooth is definitely not a word in his driving vocabulary. I had actually thought about buying a cup of coffee in baggage claim, it’s a good thing I didn’t because I would be wearing most of it by now. I can almost feel my stomach becoming upset.

Lesson #2: Have great skills
Too many sales reps believe that their selling skills are better than they really are. When was the last time someone gave you honest feedback on your sales skills? A better question; when was the last time you asked for feedback?

I honestly believe that this cabbie thought he was a good driver. After all, why become a cab driver if you can’t drive?

Truth be known, his skills were awful. How are yours?

As we continue our journey I notice the inside of this cab looks like something out of a horror movie. Don’t get wrong, I’m not expecting a room at the Ritz, but I do believe you can throw out trash, sweep out dirt and wipe drool off of the windows (do they allow dogs to ride in Chicago cabs?).

Lesson #3: Take pride in everything that you do
Take a hard look at your email signature, voice mail greeting, hand written notes and all other customer touch points. Are your quotes easy to understand? Do your invoices make sense or do you need a law degree to decipher?

It’s easy to get complacent, challenge yourself to step up and find the “drool” in your organization.

Twenty minutes outside of O’Hare the cab driver turns to me and ask me if I know where the hotel is. I reply that I want to go to the Schaumburg Marriott. He says he’s not sure exactly where it is.

Lesson #4: Be knowledgeable
If I knew how to get there, I could have just rented a car. If we were going to get lost, I would have preferred to get lost before getting on the freeway.

Selling professionals need to be knowledgeable about their products, customers, market, industry and competition. We are the resource that our customers look to for advice. It is our responsibility to know where we are.

If you’re not knowledgeable, don’t take someone for a ride!

We finally figure out where we’re going but the cab grinds to a crawl as traffic starts getting heavy. It’s a warm, humid day in Chicago so I ask if we could roll up the windows and turn on the air. Without a missing a beat (or turning his head) I’m told “no.” I understand you burn more gas running the AC, but I’m guessing my tip will more than compensate. Now I find myself trapped in a dirty, hot cab that is being driven a grouch who really isn’t very good with directions.

Lesson #5: Above all, take care of the customer
Cab drivers get tips, sales reps get commissions. There are more similarities than differences in how these two professions get compensated. If your livelihood depends on customers (and your job does), then you, your manager and your organization need to be committed to taking care of them.

I can promise you that if you don’t, someone else will!

Until then,

Tim