Sales Tips from the Tee

Sales is like golf: there are successes, failures and the rare hole-in-one, but most importantly –they both need caddies.

When I’m playing golf and go over par, it affects the rest of my game. The same happens in sales –if I misfire on a prospect, it can seriously derail my week –unless I have someone to coach me through it. That’s why pro-golfers don’t fly solo without a caddie. They need someone calm when things go awry, or when over-competitiveness surfaces and does more harm than good.

Consider the ‘sales caddie’ the voice of reason that provides advice, gauges the situation and offers fresh eyes. If you’re a salesperson, you need a caddie. If you’re a sales manager, you need to be a caddie. Here’s how:

1. Survey the course. Know your market, identify trouble spots, and let the salesperson know what the next hole brings.

2. Clean the clubs. Ensure your team’s tools are in top-notch condition, such as making sure your salesperson has solid Client Relationship Management (#CRM) skills.

3. Stay positive. Even when a golfer hits a bad shot, the caddie stays positive. Do you provide your sales team positive feedback, or do you criticize them every time they hit into the bunker?

4. Read the putt. One of the most important roles a caddie plays is to help the golfer better read the putt to finish out the hole. Can your sales team rely on you to help ‘read the green’ to close the deal?

5. Get out of the way. When a golfer wins, the caddie steps aside and lets the player take credit. When your salesperson lands an order, do you give them credit or do you take part of it as your own?

Bottom line: It doesn’t matter if you’re a #salesperson (get a good caddie), or a #sales manager (be a good caddie), we can all take some golfing lessons.

-Tom Niesen, Owner & CEO, Acuity Systems, Inc.