Tag: Sales Leadership

3 Ways To Be Remarkable And Win In Sales

On By Joe DeRosaIn Sales2 Comments

Remarkable

So you want to make the sale.  You want the plaque, the commission check, the trip, the recognition…you want it all.  Great sales people know that winning a sale doesn’t happen by shear force of will.  Sure you need to be persistent, tenacious, focused and disciplined.  No doubt.  But there are 3 things that will make your sales presentations stand out and create a remarkable experience for your buyer.  These things that make you remarkable are the exact things that put you in a position to win. While you may think these are basic, I can assure you that I continue to be amazed at just how often these 3 things get overlooked, drowning out any chance of the sales person appearing remarkable.

  1. Be early.  Urban sprawl has created a great excuse for showing up late to a sales appointment.  I’ve worked in every major city in the United States over the past 20 years.  Whether its Atlanta, Philly, NYC, Boston, LA, Seattle, Phoenix or Dallas, traffic is the perfect excuse for being late.  But it shouldn’t be.  Plan your day to anticipate traffic. If you’re on time, you’re late.  I’ve been on ride-alongs with sales people where we’ve been late to an appointment because of traffic and it throws off the entire cadence of the call right out of the gate.  Get there early and it will give you time to focus on the buyer rather than focusing on finding a parking space because you’re already 20 minutes late.
  2. Be prepared.  This is a big one.  This speaks to everything from knowing some details about who you are meeting with all the way to having any materials you will be handing out ready, organized and crisp.  Do you know if you’re connected to the buyer?  Did you check them out on LinkedIn?  If what you’re selling requires an online demo?  Have you tested it? Will it work over cellular or will you need a WiFi connection?  If the latter does the buyer know you’ll need this when you arrive or is the plan to surprise them when you ask for the office password to log in?  Do you have an agenda for what you plan to cover?  Have you shared it with the buyer in advance? The better prepared you are, the smoother the conversation will go. And, in the event you are late due to some cataclysmic event, you’ll be better able to flex and adjust seamlessly with the buyer.
  3. Use the buyers name. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been on sales calls where the sales person never uses the buyers name after shaking their hand.  It could be a 30 minute call or 3 hour call.  How can something so basic continue to be such a common miss amongst sales people?  Isn’t that one of the first things we’re all taught?  Smile, have a firm handshake and use the buyers name.  Here’s a quick test. Next time you’re with your family or friends pay attention to the conversation.  Listen for how often names are used.  It’s actually quite often.  Using someones name throughout a conversation builds a bond. It’s a sign of respect as much as it is a sign of caring.

Focus on doing these 3 things on every sales appointment and observe the change in your buyers behavior.

How Pressure Affects Performance

On By Joe DeRosaIn Leadership2 Comments

Pressure

I work better under pressure.  Courage is grace under pressure.  When you work under pressure you trade perfection.  Pressure is something you feel when you don’t know what the hell you’re doing.

Perhaps somewhere along the way you’ve heard someone say one of these things, or maybe you’ve been the one saying it.  Regardless, pressure takes many forms, and delivers an equally different number of outcomes.  But harnessed properly, pressure can create a winning edge in business.  I had a former boss that said, “it’s my job to back the bus up as close to the edge of the cliff as possible without going over”.  That’s pressure.

Pressure develops our ability to adapt.  Under pressure we may be tempted to look for the path of least resistance yet it’s most likely that the situation created by this pressure has already eliminated all the paths without resistance.  All that’s left are the paths that present resistance ,including conflict, confusion, and discomfort.  The better equipped we are to effectively deal with the confluence of these challenges the better we are able to succeed.

While human nature leads us to avoid pressure I would submit that seeking pressure improves performance.  Diamonds are made under enormous pressure; without it they are just rocks; carbon deposits.  But with pressure they turn into beautiful gems of great, and often times, enormous value.  Top performing athletes are molded under pressure moments.  Peyton Manning holds the record for the most 4th quarter comeback wins with 44.  By definition, comeback, means pressure.  You’re behind.  You’re losing.  That’s pressure!

Look for opportunities to experience pressure.  Volunteer for a project at work.  Offer to bat clean-up on your baseball team.  Commit to losing a certain amount of weight in a specific period of time.  Tell others that you plan to get a certification or license of some sort by the end of the year.  All of these create moments of pressure. Only in times of pressure will you be able to see what you’re truly made of.  Remember how diamonds are made, and even further how that process creates the hardest, natural-made material known to man.