5 Ways Sales Is Like Going to the Gym

“How do you generate your leads?” I’ve answered this question multiple times just this week alone, which tells me it’s time for a LinkedIn article about it. 

Lead generation and building your network can be a tricky nut to crack for many people in all industries and trying to meet people during COVID is a whole new ballgame. I launched The Collective just 3 months ago, prime pandemic, so I get it. In a nutshell, I match companies with a select group of highly vetted agency partners - digital marketing, PR, social media, branding, creative. I’ve spent over 300 hours vetting agencies. I know who’s good. 

Since launching, I’ve connected with a steady flow of high quality companies and been able to match them with the very best agency partners for their specific goals. My sole mission is to help companies find great agencies faster and with a better fit and it’s wildly rewarding to help these companies save weeks of blindly searching for agency partners and quickly be matched with incredible talent. 

When I started my company, I knew networking and relationship building in a time of no gatherings, no travel and no events would be tricky. I also knew it was possible. I started with this mindset:

“Business development is like going to the gym. The key to success is daily dedication, consistency and trust that the process works if you stick to it.” 

Here’s how sales is like going to the gym. I’d love your thoughts in the comments.

1. Systems: I truly believe the key to smart business development is clear systems. Just like you wouldn’t walk into the gym without a plan for the day - upper body, lower body, cardio… You need a clear system for lead generation. How often have you stared at your email, LinkedIn or phone contacts trying to think of someone to reach out to? What a mind bender. Create an outreach flow and system that works for you. I have my own system and use Hubspot for my CRM (but it only works if you dedicate yourself to the reminder systems), Convertkit for my emails and ClickUp for my task manager. If you don’t have a simple clear system for staying in touch with your contacts, dedicate the time to set one up and stick to it daily. 
2. Consistency: Just like I go to the gym every morning at 8 am, I also schedule business development every day. Since I’m on the East Coast, I try to slot it into my afternoon so that anyone I’m chatting with on the West Coast is online when I reach out. Commit the time on your calendar, treat it like a meeting and use that time to work your systems (see above).
3. Start where you are: When I go to the gym, I know how much I can lift and I do that. Then, over time, I add a small amount of weight. I don’t try adding 20 pounds to my bar overnight. With business development, the best success is found when you first nurture the people you know. Most sales people get frustrated because they spend 80% of their time trying to meet people who are strangers and 20% staying in touch with close contacts. Flip the script.
4. Be a short term pessimist and a long term optimist: Most days at the gym, I look the same, feel the same and don’t notice a difference. But then - BAM! - 3 months later I can lift more, feel stronger and sleep better. That’s how it works. I don’t stop going to the gym on Wednesday because I didn’t get stronger on Tuesday. I just keep on trusting and keep on going. Sales is like that. In the short term, you might not see much of a change. But then you get a lead. Then a sale. Then an unexpected connection. Trust. The. Process. 
5. Keep it simple: one of my favorite sayings says, “the best workout is the one you’ll do.” I couldn’t agree more. I don’t disagree boxing is probably a great workout, but there’s no way I’ll do it because there isn’t a boxing studio near my place and I don’t particularly like being punched in the face. The best sales system is the one you’ll do. There’s a reason I didn’t share my exact sales system here - not because I’m keeping secrets, but because I don’t want you to try and force yourself to do what works for me. Don’t try to force yourself to adapt to a “proven” sales system that works for other people. Do the one you’ll actually commit to and do. It’s that simple. 

You can do this - let’s hit the gym. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I’m Amy Ogden. I ran agencies for 20 years and launched The Collective to help companies find incredible agencies faster and with an even better fit. www.amyogden.com