FOLLOW THESE SEVEN STEPS TO WIN MORE SALES:
- Segue to proactive mode
- Identify prospects
- Lean on loyals for referrals
- Create a strong pitch
- Cross-sell and up-sell existing customers
- Get partners to sell for you
- Follow up (with thanks) after the sale
Segue to Proactive Mode
The first and most important thing you can do to upgrade your sales results is very simple: Make your sales effort a priority.
It seems obvious, but sometimes with all the minutiae of running a business, you get caught up in other activities that don’t put you directly on the path to growth. Over time, this can become a rhythm that sticks you in the status quo, stagnating. If this sounds familiar to you, it’s time to change your mindset.
To knock the dust off your current sales effort, here are some easy but helpful tips to move you into proactive selling mode.
- Create a daily sales checklist. For example, identify the number of accounts you’ll approach today.
- Set aside a specific amount of time each day when you’re focused strictly on selling activity (or at least, someone at your business is).
- Treat your selling time as sacred. Don’t let inbound e-mails or piles of snail mail distract you or break your focus.
- To sell effectively, you have to be in selling mode. Know your product or service in and out, rehearse your script, get upbeat, heck — listen to a favorite inspiring song if that’s what it takes! Just be sure you get in the zone, because this kind of energy brings out the best in you. Plus, it’s wildly contagious.
- Look at sales as a numbers game. Rejection is an opportunity to learn, streamline your pitch and try again. Be sure you crank up the pipeline of potential sales so you have good odds of closing on enough business to meet your goals.
- Set performance goals. For example, you will achieve $X in sales during Y period of time. If you don’t reach the goals, you need to analyze why. It could be that you need to, a) make changes in what you’re offering, b) change the way you’re offering it, or perhaps, C) reset your goals at more reasonable levels.
- Unify everyone’s effort at the company by sharing the goals team-wide. There’s nothing like keeping everyone informed and aligned to create an environment where people are armed to be proactive.