3 ways to be exceptional in sales

Ben Riall, Founder of Team Ignite, told our audience of SDRs how to be the best they can be. Now, you can find out too.

Back in August, we staged another of our exclusive SDR-only events, in partnership with Venatrix. Every talk at this event was aimed at helping SDRs be as good as they can be, bringing value to the 100+ SDRs in the audience. Based on these talks, we’ve put together some articles. Even if you couldn’t be with us at Venatrix HQ, you can still get inspired.

Ben Riall

It was a thrill to welcome Ben Riall to our exclusive SDR event. As Founder of Team Ignite, adding to as his time as a sales leader at Salesforce and Lead Forensics, few are as well-placed as Ben to inspire salespeople at the start of their careers.

Ben is one of those sales leaders who is a student of the craft. In fact, he has interviewed hundreds of the world’s top salespeople to find those nuggets of insight you can’t get anywhere else.

The topic for his talk was, ‘3 ways to be exceptional in sales’. Here they are, just for you.

‘I started to notice what made these people stand out, what made them different. It’s a lot more than just sales skills.’

1 — Be in the heart of the action

To be exceptional at sales, you need to be more than a salesperson selling a product. You need to be someone at the heart of their marketplace and industry, where all the innovation is happening.

Become an expert in your industry. Be a consultant. If that sounds daunting, take some time to think things through. Analyse where you are today. Is this the future? Is this where the market is headed?

Think about the space you are in. Is it the right one? Find the right space and when you get there, dedicate yourself to it.

2 — Commit to be a student of sales

Sales is a profession and like any other, it takes time to progress and develop your skillset. Know that it doesn’t come on day one, that you need to build your sales skills over time.

Look at who is successful in your industry. What do you need to learn if you are going to achieve the goals that they have already accomplished? What do they have that you don’t, yet?

It’s important that you don’t confine this attitude to your current role. Think about your next role and even the one after that. Build a personal development plan that will get you to where you want to be.

3 — Speak to people

‘It’s very rare that you find a path that has not been trodden before. There are some really successful people out there and often they are happy to help, but be specific.’

You can’t approach a successful sales leader with, ‘Hey. Can we have a coffee?’ and expect them to do it. However, if you’re specific, you have a much better chance. Think about what you want to learn from these people, what it is you admire about them, then go and pick their brains.

You will be surprised how many people are happy to talk to you.

Over to you

It was great to get Ben’s take on how to be exceptional in sales. Now, we want to know what you think.

What are your overarching tips for sales mastery?

What about speaking to successful people in the industry? Have you done it? If so, how did you get them to meet you?

Leave the Sales Confidence community a comment below and fill us in.