4 Mistakes That Are Killing Your Sales Targets!

4 Mistakes That Are Killing Your Sales Targets!

 I love making mistakes and so should you. Mistakes are the greatest source of learning and when you decide not to repeat them, they become your lifetime treasure.

A wise man said, “It’s not how we make mistakes, but how we correct them that define us.”

Not learning from the mistakes is the biggest mistake most people commit. A lot of times not learning from mistakes can cost you an irreversible damage. And when you are in sales, the mistake can cost you a fortune. You miss out on your targets, lose out customers and your pipeline is drying soon.

In this article, I am going to share with you the 5 mistakes sales professionals commit and how can we overcome them.

1. Being Unprepared:

When the opportunity knocks only the prepared wins, yet many sales professionals commit the mistake of being unprepared. Whether you are making a phone call or sales presentation, whether it’s a new customer or an old one, it's critical that you prepare yourself well enough. You cannot just wing it. Preparation means knowing the customer, having all the relevant information, testimonials, samples and the list of questions that you are going to ask to take lead the sales conversation.

Make a checklist of all the information that you need and always review it before your next call or presentation. No matter how many times you’ve made a sales call or given the same presentation, always review your material ahead of time.

Remember the 5 Ps - Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.

2. Unable to Lead The Sales Conversations:

The one who leads the conversations always has an edge over the others. Often sales professionals let the conversation be lead by the buyer. This leads to buyer dominating the whole process of selling and in the end they also negotiate harder. When you do not lead the conversation, you end up spending too much time with suspects who have no plans of buying from you.

Leading a conversation involves you to ask relevant and tough questions. This ensures you gain an adequate edge over the buyer. One of the ways to qualify a suspect is by asking questions. Leading the sales conversations with questions help you understand the needs and wants of the buyer. Failing to ask questions puts in a disadvantaged position.

When you ask questions, you uncover specific problems the buyer is facing. It allows you to evaluate whether or not you can solve buyer problems. As you become aware of these problems, you are now are in power to position your product well.

So, before your next sales conversation, prepare quality questions to lead the conversation.

Questions create clarity and clarity is power. The one who has clarity is more powerful any day.

3. Not Saying “No”

You hate listening to a “NO” isn’t it? How about you say “NO” to your buyer?

As a sales professional, you crave listening to a “YES” and if someone says “NO” to you, you get disappointed and feel dejected. And that’s probably the reason you don’t like saying “NO” to others. Not saying “No” can be disastrous for your business.  

What we must understand is not every customer is an ideal customer. If we end up selling to a wrong customer only to close numbers can be draining. These customers demand more and trouble you beyond your imagination. I call such customers energy drainers. They rob your energy and want more out of less. They always raise concerns and find faults. They are never satisfied with any resolution you offer.

Sales professionals must identify them at an early stage and tell them “NO”

 4. Not playing as a Team

During my “Sell Like A Pro” workshop, I talk about the rules of the sales game. One of the rules is “Sales is a TEAM GAME”. I notice most sales professionals playing the game of sales alone. They refuse to support the fellow members and are only focused on their numbers. They might close the numbers and achieve their targets but end up creating an unhealthy work environment. This leads to de-motivation and lesser commitments among other members of the team. You often find everyone blaming everyone.

When you play as a team you create an encouraging environment for others and your performance improves too. Everyone is ready to extend support and no target feels impossible.

As sales professionals, you must know that culture improves competence. Learn to play the game of sales as a team and create an empowering culture.

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Do comment below and let us know what mistake are you making? What mistake is your team member committing and how much is it costing your business?