Fast Five! 'Giving Yourself a Raise'- By Christine Beckwith- National Vice President of Realtor & Sales Management

'How top sales people gain vast wealth by driving hard to very basic daily best practices'

Motivation comes in many different drivers.  We all are driven by many things.  We know what they are, as all sales people pray to a handful of common ones which include but aren't exclusive to:  Recognition, Reward, Legacy, Competitiveness, Security, Wealth & Family.    When top sales people are surveyed they will most commonly say that they want recognition more than anything and that they gain a sense of pride from being at the top.  However, every person who enters sales does so with the idea of getting rich quick.   Those who truly rise to the tops of their sales field are the ones who will tell you there are no short cuts to success, however there are a lot of distractions, hiccups, speed bumps and plenty to derail you on the road to the pot of gold.  More often than not, weak workers enter sales with the idea of flexible schedules and end up broke.  So, if you aren't one of them, read on.  God knows reading a whole article for an impatient sales person is a challenge enough.  This will be worth those five minutes, I promise.

I have been managing and leading top sales people for 3 decades.  I am a winning sales person myself, a decorated veteran.  I am a fierce competitor, however, the whole money thing has come as a secondary perk to my main motivator which is helping others. Before you call BS on that statement, I will add that early on I was told by a great mentor to "come from a genuine place and you will always make a lot of money" and that I have learned is a very true statement.

I could write a library full of books about great sales guys that don't do well due to the obvious distractions.  Instead, I will make this simple.   When we are in a drought of any kind, a market shift, a rate hike, a dry spell...we tend to over think our way through it, create further complexities and end up back to the basics before we are done.  GREAT sales guys do not vary from their paths.   Like the tortoise and the hare, they are steady as they go, consistent and that consistency pays huge dividends.

FASTEST FIVE WAYS TO GIVING YOURSELF A RAISE!

1.  Assess your daily activities:  Make sure 75% of your weekly hours are spent on sales prospecting efforts:  Marketing, Sales Meetings, Sales Calls, Sales Quotes, Sales applications, Sales referral Meetings, etc.   Do NOT sit on your horrible pipeline like you are laying the golden egg.   You can't excel if you are too busy counting the pennies in your wallet/purse already.  Yes, manage your pipeline effectively with great service but do not obsess.  Pay attention to this.  You can meet 75% in many ways, you can have all sales days and half sales days, but when it adds up at the end of the week, it needs to be 75%.   Great sales guys do this automatically and innately.
2. Vet your referral partners:  How many of you are spending time trying to get business where the well is dry.  The first guy or girl that approaches you at the networking event is sure to be the one that has the least business.  Happy to just be there for the free appetizers and cocktails, hoping to make some affiliations and usually have very few loyalties to anyone.   The top producers are already in bed with someone and you know what top producers think about that?  They don't care!  In fact, they do their homework before they network just to find them, not avoid them.  They find the big hitters and they say "so what" to the idea they have their own guy/gal already.   They go after a piece of the pie.  They innately understand that every relationship is either growing or waning and they take their chances on getting a foot hold and then working their way in from there, understanding their competitors strategy and playing against it, subtly.   In short, they find the prize and they go for it.  They aren't excuse makers or afraid.
3.  They BELIEVE in what they are selling:   Show me a guy using a script and I will show you a guy whose phone is being hung up on frequently.   Nobody wants to talk to that guy.  Or the corny one-liners that they try to keep customers on the phone with.  No.  In 2017 the top sales guys are winning because they approach their consumer intelligently, confidently and with solutions in mind.   Their product is solving a problem and they get to work on finding that problem and solving it, as quickly as possible while gaining the trust through intelligent statements.  They are also great listeners and they NEVER OVER SELL.   I really dislike the guy who goes on just to hear himself speak.  When it's sold, pull the trigger, set the gun down.  Sure, do a happy dance, then take a seat.  When you believe in what you are selling it comes through.  When you aren't sure, that comes through as well.  Notate!
4. They act, look and speak professionally.   I know a lot of hood sales guys. Yes, I said "hood".  I love them all, so no offense.  We all come from different back grounds and trust me I am not a silver spoon girl.  That said, people want to buy from someone who makes them feel they made an educated choice, not a guy with hair do like the Flock of Seagulls and the crack of his ass showing through torn jeans that are being held up by boxer briefs.  I don't care if your job is 80% telephony either.  Dress for success.  Trust me on this.  Yes, I dress down at times, but even then, if I were surprised by a customer I would not be out of place.   Think about that. Also ladies, stop dressing like you are about to be photographed for Playboy, I realize for some of you (us) it's hard to down play the beauty, that said, keep it clean and professional, you will not be taken seriously otherwise, trust me on this.  You can be beautiful while dressing sharp and professional.
5. This is a contact sport!   You can't hide behind your telephone if your a top producer.  Top producers are everywhere.  I use to wonder how top producers could be at all the networking events, doing radio, TV, social media, meetings and still have top numbers.  It's because they understand their name is their brand, their company is their brand and it's vital to be SEEN more than heard.  They also usually have a team of people helping them.  I realize most companies have a point of allowed staffing before you can get paid for hired help, find out what that number is and until you get there be willing to use interns and other professional help that will allow you to be in touch, out in front, always networking and the face of your sales engine.  Top sales guys are face to face with their clients more than not, they get making that relationship and emotional connection breeds referrals.   Desk jockies do not get this.  They are typically people hiding behind their phones and do not like the face to face.  This alone, can be the difference in you advancing your sales.

In ending, one thing I know is true about successful people and I can say this is true about my self too.  Always evolve.  Always try to be the better you.   Accept every invite for free education that increases your sales skills set.  Do not believe you know everything and do not sit back on the laurels of what makes you successful right now because it is sure to change.   I can recall someone telling me when I had won 3-4 years of annual sales contests in a later era of mortgage sales to "dust off my trophy case" because "this was a whole new market".  They were right, what I did back in the day I could no longer do then, but I evolved and through it, still rose to the top to win.  I then was not a "one hit wonder" and that my friends makes a career.  A series of winning through ever changing markets.  Willingness to move with the needle.  But make no mistake some tried and true traits will always be true.  Hard work and working smart.  I believe the things above will make you a better sales guy.   End of discussion.

This is not my opinion, it's a fact.

#mysalestruth