6 tips for sales professionals

If you want to be a top sales guy, you got to have a few things in mind.

Try the following:

1. Always ask permission before you speak with your prospects. Questions such as, Is this the right time to talk to you, Can you spare a few minutes of your time... etc. can be handy.
2. Spend more time to listen to what your prospects have to say.
3. Ask more of open-ended questions that will help you extend the conversation.
4. Don’t ask too many questions. Your prospects might get confused and you might not get a clear answer.
5. Develop the skill of getting your prospects to commit to yes or no decision.
6. Identify prospects that are dragging too much on decision making and wasting your time.

2 secrets to become a top seller

A lot of sales guys often focus on their objectives, sales goals & targets. They make every effort to pitch in their products & services to their prospects but unfortunately they don’t get the desired results. Why?

Your prospects don’t need or don’t care about your products or services. They need solutions that can create a positive impact on their businesses. Here are 2 secrets that will help you to become a top seller.

1. Don’t sell. Yes, your prospects are already tired of various product related information, presentations & sales pitches, etc. 
2. Offer solutions. Focus on your prospect’s problem that your product or service addresses and offer free advice, consultation & relevant information that can help your prospects.

4 tips for effective sales lead follow-up

An effective sales lead follow-up is one crucial element that can help you convert a lead into a customer. But unfortunately most of the sales leads are never followed up.

Try the following: 

1. Ensure that all sales leads are followed up immediately. Devise a process to ensure that it is done on a daily basis.
2. Respond quickly or else your competitor will. It will help you get more qualified leads.
3. Answer your prospects’ questions. Address their problems. It will help you build trust and credibility.
4. Continuously monitor and improve your sales lead follow-up process.

7 powerful tips to increase sales

If you want some quick tips to increase sales, try the following: 

1. Offer each prospect the attention she deserves.
2. Increase your selling time, i.e. spend more time with your prospect.
3. Purchase tools that help you improve your productivity.
4. Remember selling is offering a product/service to your prospect and not convincing your prospects or overcoming objections or winning businesses.
5. Ask intelligent questions to know whether your prospect really needs your product or service.
6. Identify prospects who will really buy your product/service and find more of them.
7. Ensure that you reach the decision makers and stay in touch with them throughout the sales cycle.

6 tips to improve sales

Selling is an art. If you want to master it, try the following:

1. You got to get sold on your product or service first before you sell it to others.
2. Before you call, research on your prospects and their companies. Get to know what they do and their challenges & needs.
3. Create a killer sales presentation that focuses on your prospects' problem and how your product/service addresses it.
4. Avoid confusion during your sales pitch. Keep it simple and clear.
5. Focus on the benefits, the value that your prospects would eventually get out of your product.
6. When your prospects ask questions, answer them directly. If you don't know, don't guess.

Source: eGrabber Newsletter

3 top benefits of using a CRM

A customer relationship management system is a centralized repository to store all the data regarding your customers – contact information and other relevant data. It helps sales people to store and retrieve the necessary information when they need it. Here are 3 top benefits of using a CRM:

1.     Enables you to focus more on selling as the CRM offers complete details about the customers.

2.     Helps you provide better customer experience and thereby get repeat business.

3.     Improves the overall sales management process and offers better coordination.

Source: eGrabber Newsletter

Tips for how to become a sales expert

If you are a sales professional willing to join the league of top sales experts, try the following:

*  Find out whether you are at the right place doing the right thing.
*  Don’t limit yourself and lose your chance
* Get mentored by an expert – Find a successful person to mentor you; a top sales person or VP sales or CEO.
* Do something different because most of the sales people are not willing to do what a few are willing to do.
* Become a Leader – Share what you have learned. This not only helps others but also makes you to stay sharp.

4 tips to increase sales conversion rates

Your best lead generation efforts will go in vain if you can't convert your prospects into customers.

Try the following:

1. Reach your prospects before your competition does - Studies reveal that the chance of sales conversions increase only if the prospect is reached within 5 minutes.
2. Initiate conversations – Call them instead of using email, especially when you are reaching them for the first time.
3. Attend to weekend and after-hour sales inquiries because these are excellent opportunities which will help you stand out from the crowd.
4. Ensure that you follow up promptly because studies reveal that 80% of the sales are made in the 5th to 12th contact.

Prepare to Impress Prospects in 10 Seconds

Source:eGrabber Newsletter

In sales, you usually have the first 30 seconds to get your prospect's attention. Many successful sales people will say that it’s not true - you have only 10 seconds. Given this, it is critical that you find a way to engage your prospect as quickly as possible. In the first 3 seconds, you would say your name and where you are calling from. What is important is the next 7-8 seconds; it should focus on why the prospect has to listen to your call. You can use this to

-     ask a pertinent question
-     place an elevator pitch
-     provide a startling/ interesting statistic relevant to the prospect's industry/ business

or basically say anything that would engage your prospect’s interest.

Remember, this tip can only improve your success rate in the opening round. Ultimately, your selling success will depend on the number of qualified calls you make - the more calls you make the more you close.

Do you Sound Like a Sales Person?

Source:  eGrabber Newsletters

Ask yourself these questions before you call your next prospect: Do I sound genuine, warm, and natural on the phone? Do I sound like a real person calling someone I care for, discussing something I am passionate about?

Most sales persons call from a list and make so many calls everyday that they have this mindset they're calling numbers and not people. Do you face this problem? For every call, visualize the person at the other end of the and pretend like you`re looking him/her in the eye.

But remember, sounding good can only get you that much good, you will have to combine that with good preparation and technique to make the sale.

How to Create Multiple Ties with your Customers ?

A recent research note in the Journal of Marketing highlighted the importance of having multiple ties with customers. This involves being connected to your customer in more ways than just through the one product you sold.

Ask yourself - Do my customers:

1. own more than one product offered by my company?
2. subscribe to company newsletters or other publications, blogs, etc?
3. attend webinars, webcasts, etc. that are created for educating them?
4. connect with my company on online social networks - LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.?

Answering 'yes' to more than 2 of the above would mean you have multiple ties with your customer. Remember, such a relationship can help you maintain sales or even boost it in a volatile economy.

Tool to Build Fresh Leads from Internet

The Art of Closing Deals with a Qualified Lead

Closing deals with a qualified lead is the ultimate goal for every marketing program. Both marketing and sales folks need to work hand in hand to keep things going well without any hiccups. However, you need to keep a few things in mind to master the art of closing deals with a qualified lead.

1. Use different modes of communication (emails, phone calls, direct mail) to grab your lead’s attention. Ensure that your marketing plan drives engagement throughout the buying cycle. 
2. 
   Use a mail merge tool to personalize emails and direct mails.
3. 
   
   Always treat your leads as your top customers. Treat them with respect and let them know that you and your company care for their needs and interests.
4. 
   
   Focus on the lead’s individual needs and segment your marketing process accordingly. This will help you demonstrate how your products/services can help your leads meet the specific requirements.
5. 
   
   Timing is very crucial. You need to pass the leads to the sales team at the right time, neither too early nor too late.
6. 
   
   Please ensure that your marketing team shares the appropriate information about the lead to the sales department.
7. 
   
   Identify the right time to close the deal by starting the sales conversation.
   
   Click Here for Contact Capture Software
    
    

2 Tips to Sound Different on your Sales Call

Source:eGrabber

Your prospects get dozens of calls from your competitors each week. Whats worse is they cannot distinguish one seller from the next because they all sound alike. To be successful with cold calling you must first learn to sound different than the other sales persons out there. Here are 2 tips to help you do that.

1. Change your sales opening (Ref tip on '2 Proven Sales Call Openings that Work' in the May 25 issue of our newsletter for sales and marketing professionals).

2. Dont talk about your product: Tell the prospect the opposite of what they expect you to say. Don’t talk about your product or service. Talk about what is important to the prospect.

Research Tips for Cold Calling Success

Source: eGrabber Newsletters

Do you schedule a certain day and time each week for cold calling? or Do you make cold calls only when you feel like it? Research* shows that timing plays a very important role when it comes to cold calling success.

Here a couple of facts from the research to help you improve your cold calling success:

• Thursday is the best day to contact a prospect and Friday is the worst.
• The best time of the day to cold call is 8-9am followed by 4-5pm. The worst time to call is right after lunch

So, if you are looking to add new leads to your pipeline be sure to make calls early in the day and before you leave for the day. Use the hours in between for follow-up calls.

*Excerpts from a research report by Dr. James Oldroyd from the Kellogg School of Management

4 Things you Should Know about your Prospect

Source: eGrabber Newsletters

How do you pack your sales pitch or presentation with stuff that is important to your prospective customer? This is important because the foremost thought running through your prospect's mind when you are talking is "What's in it for me?"

Here are 4 things you should know and address in your presentation:
1. What is the prospect responsible for at her organization?
2. How is her performance measured?
3. What is her status quo - existing issues, limitations, etc.?
4. What are her goals or business objectives for the quarter, year, etc.?

Remember, you can get any prospect to be interested in your product if you can show that it helps eliminate problems, solve issues and achieve her objectives.

Tell your Prospects a Good 'Recovery Story'

Source: eGrabber Newsletters

Does your prospect have a negative attitude about the economic recovery? Is she not excited about it? Is this hampering your chances of a sale? Then it is time for you to drive the enthusiasm and get your prospect to buy into being part of the recovery. One of the ways to do it is by telling them a good recovery story.

Gather one or two success stories and share them with prospects you talk to. Show how they are in a similar situation and how they can succeed too (by using your products). You can also gather good news about your prospect's industry in general and share it with them.

Remember, as a sales person you need to work up a positive attitude for yourself first before you can talk to your prospects.

2 Questions that Lead to Stronger Closures

Source: eGrabber Newsletters

We have often discussed the importance and role that 'specific' questions play in the sales process. Here are examples of 2 questions that are crucial in leading to stronger closures for your sales presentations:

1. Whenever you talk about a product benefit, ask: "Would that work for you?" or "Can you think of instances at your work or business situations where it can benefit you?".
2. When you are nearing the close of your presentation, ask: "Have I missed out anything that might be important to you?".

Always listen carefully to how your respond and gently prompt them to add more. By using these questions, you will invariably lead your presentations to stronger closures.

Ref: The Real Secrets of the Top 20% by Mike Brooks

Tackle Gate-Keepers with Courtesy

As sales professionals, it might seem that gate-keepers such as administrative and executive assistants have been trained just to screen sales calls and keep you away from connecting with your prospect in their company. And, it may seem like there's nothing you can do about it. Often, the gate-keepers hold the key to your success in terms of actually directing you to the person you want to talk to in their organization.

The key in tackling gate-keepers is not to try and dart past them. Tell them that you wish to take directions from them. Ask for help. Be genuine in your approach, and never try fake friendliness. A simple courtesy can go a long way.

Prepare to Impress Prospects in 10 Seconds

Source: eGrabber Newsletters

In sales, you usually have the first 30 seconds to get your prospect's attention. Many successful sales people will say that it’s not true - you have only 10 seconds. Given this, it is critical that you find a way to engage your prospect as quickly as possible. In the first 3 seconds, you would say your name and where you are calling from. What is important is the next 7-8 seconds; it should focus on why the prospect has to listen to your call. You can use this to

- ask a pertinent question
- place an elevator pitch
- provide a startling/ interesting statistic relevant to the prospect's industry/ business

or basically say anything that would engage your prospect’s interest.

Remember, this tip can only improve your success rate in the opening round. Ultimately, your selling success will depend on the number of qualified calls you make - the more calls you make the more you close.

How Good is your Profile on Social Networking Sites?

Source: eGrabber Newsletter

All sales people know that their prospects search the Internet for information about the product, the company and competitors, before they purchase something. But, what is now new is they check out the sales person they are in contact with too. Does your LinkedIn profile have the right ingredients to create a sense of trust that would make your prospects better inclined to buy from you?

Prospects would like to know how long you have been in this industry, your experience with the company / products, your qualifications, companies you have sold to, etc. How many of your customers have recommended you on LinkedIn? Are you associated with groups and associations related to your work and industry?

These things really matter a lot. If your answer is a ‘No’ to any of these questions, then it is time you started working on them.