39.5 Rules
CHRIS SCOVILLE·FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2020·READING TIME: 6 MINUTES
"Following the fundamental rules of selling will lead to sales success faster than any high-pressure sales techniques."- Jeffrey Gitomer
Wow, I just realized I have not published in a long time. There was a point last year I was writing each day. It’s time to start sharing again with you all.
Here are some great “rules” in sales...
1. Establish and maintain a positive attitude...The first rule of life. Your commitment to a positive attitude will put you on a path to success that will be unstoppable. If you doubt it you don't have a positive attitude. As positive attitude is not just a thought process, it's a daily commitment.
2. Believe in yourself...If you don't think you can do it, who will? You control the most important tool in selling; your mind.
3. Set and achieve goals. Make a plan...Define and achieve specific long-term (what you want) and short-term (how you're going to get what you want) goals. Goals are the road map that will direct you to success.
4. Learn and execute the fundamentals of sales...Never stop learning how to sell. Real, listen to tapes, attend seminars, and practice what you've just learned. Learn something new every day and combine it with hands-on experience. Knowing the fundamentals gives you a choice in a sales call.
5. Understand the customer and meet his/her needs...Question and listen to the prospect and uncover true needs. Don't prejudge prospects.
6. Sell to help...Don't be greedy, it will show. Sell to help customers; don't sell for commissions.
7. Establish a long-term relationship...Be sincere and treat others the way you want to be treated. If you get to know your customers and concentrate on his/her best interest, you'll earn much more than a commission.
8. Believe in your company and product...Believe your product or service is the best and it will show. If you don't believe in your product, your prospect won't either.
9. Be prepared...Your self-motivation and preparation are the lifeblood of your outreach. You must be eager and ready to sell, or you won't.
10. Be sincere...If you are sincere about helping, it will show, and vice versa.
11. Qualify the buyer...Don't waste time with someone who can't decide.
12. Be on time for the appointment...Lateness says, "I don't respect your time." There is NO excuse for lateness. If it can't be avoided, call before the appointed time, apologize, and continue with the sale.
13. Look professional...If you look sharp, it's a positive reflection on you, your company, and your product.
14. Establish rapport and buyer confidence...Get to know the prospect and his company; establish confidence early. Don't start your pitch until you do.
15. Use humor...It's the best tool for relationship sales I have found. Have fun at what you do. Laughing is tacit approval. Make prospect laugh.
16. Master the total knowledge of your support...Know your product cold. Know how your product is used to benefit your customers.
17. Sell benefits, not features...The customer doesn't want to know how it works as much as he/she wants to know how it will help him/her.
18. Tell the truth...Never be at a loss to remember what you said.
19. If you make a promise, keep it...The best way to turn a sale into a relationship is to deliver as promised. Failure to do what you say you're going to do is a disaster from which you may never recover. If you do it often, the word gets out about you.
20. Don't down the competition...If you have nothing nice to say, don't say it. Set yourself apart from them with preparation and creativity-don't slam them.
21. Use testimonials...The strongest salesman on your team is a reference from a satisfied customer.
22. Listen for buying signals...The prospect will often tell you when he/she is ready to buy-if you're paying attention. Listening is as important as talking.
23. Anticipate objections...Rehearse answers to standard objections.
24. Get down to the real objection...Customers are not always truthful; they often won't tell you the true objections at first.
25. Overcome objections...Listen to the prospect and think in terms of solution. Create an atmosphere of confidence and trust strong enough to cause a sale.
26. Ask for the sale...Sounds too simple, but it works.
27. When you ask a closing question, SHUT UP...The first rule of sales.
28. If you don't make the sale, make a firm appointment to return...Quite often if you don't make the next appointment when you're face-to-face it may be a long, hard road to the next one.
29. Follow up, follow up, follow up...If it takes between 5 and 10 exposures to a prospect before a sale is made, be prepared to do whatever it takes to get to the 10th meeting.
30. Redefine rejection...They're not rejecting you; they're just rejecting the offer you're making them.
31. Anticipate and be comfortable with change...A big part of sales is change. Change in products, tactics, and markets. Roll with it to succeed. Fight it and fail.
32. Follow rules...Salespeople often think rules are made for others. Think they're not for you? Think again.
33. Get along with others (co-workers and customers) ...Sales is never a solo effort. Team up with your co-workers and partners with your customers.
34. Understand that hard work makes luck...Take a close look at the people you think are lucky. They or someone they know has put in years of hard work to create the luck. You can get just as lucky.
35. Don't blame others when the fault (or responsibility) is yours...accepting responsibility is the point for succeeding at anything.
36. Harness the power of persistence...Are you willing to take no as a challenge instead of a rejection? Are you willing to persist through the 5 to 10 exposures it takes to make the sale? If you can, then you have begun to understand the power.
37. Find your success formula through numbers...By determining how many leads, calls, proposals, appointments, presentations, and follow-ups it takes to get to the sale. And then follow the formula.
38. Do it passionately...Do it the best it's ever been done.
39. Be memorable...In a creative way. In a positive way. In a professional way. What will they say about you when you leave? You always create a memory. You choose the memory you leave. You are responsible for the memory you leave.
39.5 Characteristic is the most important of them all-have fun! You will succeed far greater at something you love to do. Doing something you enjoy will also bring joy to others. Happiness is contagious.
Not following the rules leads to slow but sure failure. It doesn't happen all at once-there are degrees of failing. Here are 5 of them.
What degree are you?
1-Failing to do your best.
2-Failing to learn the science of selling.
3-Failing to accept responsibility.
4-Failing to meet quota or pre-set goals.
5-Failing to have a positive attitude.
Success is a level of performance and a self-confidence brought about by winning experiences. Failure is not about insecurity. It's about lack of execution. There's NO such thing as a total failure. Zig Ziglar has an answer: "Failure is an event, not a person." Vince Lombardi said it better. "The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare to win".
If you are interested in growing your contracting business, just give us at call at the number below. We will have a talk about where you are looking to go and where you are looking to grow.
Director of Business Development
Service Finance Company LLC
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