In Sales Your Work Week Starts on Sunday

So you have enjoyed the weekend, you've appropriately addressed your spiritual needs and your family commitments have been satisfied! It's Sunday evening time to relax right? WRONG! In sales your work week starts on Sunday evening. Here are a few things to get you off to a winning start for the weekend:

1. Handle your administrative task before your selling week begins. (ie expenses, emails, letters etc)

2. Plan or revise your customer routing on Sunday.

3. Prepare your sales bag with a week's worth of tools.

4. Follow up on unfinished business from last week.

5. Review last week's sales numbers ie goals, pending, actuals and review upcoming sales goals.

Following these simple steps will increase valuable selling time and skyrocket your sales!

The aforementioned task will save valuable face-to-face selling time! Your most valualable time is spent in front of customers.

TOP 5 RECOMMENDED SALES SUCCESS BOOKS

Success Magazine's recent issue with a pull out section on Selling Success recommends that you "Work hard on your sales. Work harder on yourself"!

To that end, I have listed My Top 5 Sales Success Books:

1. Strategic Selling (Miller Heiman Series) by Robert B. Miller
2. SPIN Selling by Neil Rackham
3. Integrity Selling for the 21st Century by Ron Willingham
4. Selling to VITO by Anthony Parinello
5. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (not a sales concept book but one that addresses positive thinking)

Even with over 20 years of sales experience, I reach back to these staples to reinvent my business.  Enjoy!

To Greater Selling

Get the Most of You Every Day!

Sales is a tough job!  If it weren't most everyone would chose it as a profession.  There is no question why sales people are some of the highest paid professionals (and some of the most stressed) within corporate America today.

As competition increases and clients clinch their purse strings, the sales professional becomes increasingly more challenging to maintain and CONQUER!! Having over 20 years in sales and sales management, I too have experienced the evenflos of good, bad and indifferent economies!  Here are 5 simple principles to follow to continue your journey, be super SUCCESSFUL and get the most of you every day:

1. START WITH GROUNDING-Rather this be mediation, spiritual, motivational begin your day EVERY DAY feeding your mind and feeding your soul.  Here are some favorites that I have utilized to keep this in practice; "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill & "Super Rich: A Guide to Having it All" by Russell Simmons.  Feed your psyche every day.  Hearing "No" all day can get tough!
2. PLAN YOUR WORK..THEN WORK YOUR PLAN- It amazes me how many sales representatives charge their way to the field every day without a plan!  Pre-call planning is perhaps one of the most critical components to an effective, successful sales call and sales day.  Spend time each morning researching prior day activity, past results, WIIFM for the customers, strategies and necessary material for the day.
3. EAT THE FROG FIRST- Now I know a lot of you are saying great thanks, I really needed that visual right before my morning bagel and coffee.  Despite its gory imagery, it is perhaps one of the most important concepts that I had to learn within my career.  If scheduling allows go to your most difficult customer 1st!  Get it over, get it out of the way while your energy is the highest and all of your great planning is fresh!  If you followed my advice in step one your grounding will get you through the call!
4. SAVE YOUR EASIEST CUSTOMER FOR WOUND LICKING- Again you are probably saying, thanks yes another great visual!  After your beastly customers have eaten you alive, your mid-afternoon "Favorite Customer" is just what the doctor ordered.  This call where you know they love you will help you get through the day.
5. MAKE ONE LAST CALL-Okay I know you are saying has she been conferencing with my manager?  But it is true and a staple of sales. I have made my most productive, most rewarding (both financial and otherwise) sales calls when all the rest of you reps have gone home!  Many customers have a deeper appreciation of the hard working rep who doesn't keep banker's hours (no offense to the current or former bankers out there reading this post).  They have more time for you and can appreciate your sensitivity to their time.

These are just simple steps to help make you wildly successful in any sales arena.  HAPPY SELLING!!!!!