The Selling Newsletter for Sales Professionals
SALES QUOTE
“I’ve stayed calm when I’m winning and I’ve stayed calm when I’ve lost. Tennis is a sport where we have a lot of tournaments every week, so you can’t celebrate a lot when you have big victories, and you cannot get too down when you’re losing, as in a few days you’ll be in the next tournament and you’ll have to be ready with that.”
–-Rafael Nadal
For Salespeople…
So the year is almost over. You have either made your sales goals–or you haven’t. Either way, you have a choice. I say stay calm. Certainly celebrate in some way if you had a great year. Just don’t go overboard. Why? It’s just like Rafa says. Next year is just around the corner. Why live your sales life on a roller coaster? It’s much better to be calm, focused and recognize that next year will give you another chance to do even better than this year.
To my newsletter readers: Thank you to all of you and those who send comments. I always enjoy hearing from you!
PS Happy New Year!
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THE BLOG S AND OTHER COLUMNS
I’m now writing The Real Deal, a column on women in business for Allbusiness.com Hope you’ll read more ideas so you can achieve your success in business.
You can get RSS feed for the blog.
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THE SELLING IDEAS FOR THE MONTH TO SELL MORE NOW
Now That It’s December…
Your turkey leftovers may finally be disappearing. Hopefully, Thanksgiving gave you a few days of relaxation and not too many midnight madness sales. Now it’s back to selling and the few days left this year. What can you do now?.
Look back. Schedule a very important appointment. It’s not with a customer. The appointment is with you. At this appointment you are going to look at
this year’s business. Have you identified your most important accounts? Are these the same ones that you spent 80%of your time? Just remember, most important customers
are not just your largest accounts.
Most important accounts could be strategic for other reasons. They could be industry leaders who confer credibility to you and your business. They could be very
profitable for you to serve despite buying less. They could be customers who you plan to increase your sales to by taking business away from your competitors. If you’re
serious about increasing your business then you have to spend time with the customers who will help you meet your goals.
Do a gut check.Successful selling requires stamina and a positive attitude. They both come from taking care of yourself. Are you? Salespeople burn out. I realize that with the Christmas holidays approaching that stress is very real for a lot of people. What I mean is that your job is to realize that you and only you
can manage the stress that impacts your selling. Do you work seven days a week? For too many salespeople electronic devices make their work week an uninterrupted
on-the-job nightmare. I say that’s got to stop.
You can choose to check your Blackberry all the time. You can also choose to be “off the clock” one day a week. This means you don’t check email during that
weekend day. Think your work will suffer? I don’t. You simply tell your key contacts that you don’t check emails on whichever day it is. Your job is to set
boundaries for your life so you get the break you need. It’s the only way to maintain your stamina.
Get out. Now look at your calendar. Is it filled with business activities where you’re meeting new customers, influencers and others who can help you
in sales? I certainly hope so. December is the logical time for company and trade association holiday parties. You need to go. You also need to remember that even
though there’s a festive mood, you’re there for business.
Plan for each event before you go. Who us likely to be there? Who do you want to meet? What topics could you prepare to discuss with a stranger or a key manager
at your company? The topics are probably different. Be positive, knowledgeable and professional. Now is not the time to blow your successful sales record with
too many drinks.Ê If you are bringing a guest to a company event, give that person a brief overview of who the key people are at your party. You will be judged by
the company you keep.
This selling year is coming to a close. Hopefully, you don’t have too much left to do. So take the time to look back at your business. You’ll be ending
this year with a great finish when you learn what worked well for you this year and know to do more of it next year.
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ACTION ITEMS
1. Are you getting out and meeting new people and prospects?
2. What are you doing to take care of yourself?
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DID YOU KNOW?
Here’s a tip this week for your sales success.
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Programs
You can check for current programs.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Here are some selling tools to help you sell more now. Click on the photo to find out more!
Monday Morning Sales Tips : A book that has quick ideas for you to be more successful in sales. Real-World Selling: A book with selling skills and strategies that work in the real world of sales. Secrets of Persuasion: Audio CD for the clues to use to speed-read people and close more business.