From Andy Preston:
I always find it interesting at this time of year how people's attitudes can affect the actions they take towards having a successful year, or an unsuccessful one! Particularly given the current market conditions, a good start to the year is possibly more important than ever!
It's also a very interesting part of the year, as many people choose to set 'new year resolutions'. These resolutions are usually set around personal things like losing weight, stopping smoking, or exercising more often for example, but most people don't tend to set them for their sales careers or for their business.
On a humourous note, the resolutions that they do set are probably the ones they set last year (and broke in early January), and the year before, and the year before that...and so on!
With that in mind, below I've given you a list of areas to focus on, that if you read and take action based on them, will help to make 2009 your best sales year ever - regardless of the market conditions!
So let's have a look at these in turn……
Andy's Sales Tip No 1 - Get Focused
It's always very important to get focused on what you do and make sure you do it as well as possible, but in the current market conditions it's more important than ever! Perhaps over the past few months (or even longer in some cases) you've allowed yourself to be distracted by other things. Well now's a really good time to re-focus your energy and your efforts.
If you're a business owner or salesperson, look at your core sales proposition and your core activities. Are these as strong as they could be? Can you clearly articulate what benefits your product or service brings to the customer? Do you do that regularly enough on your marketing literature, your website, your emails and verbally to clients and prospects?
Andy's Sales Tip No 2 - Stay Positive
Staying positive is another crucial part of making 2009 your best sales year ever. As in any other year, you're going to experience some setbacks. If you've heard me speak you'll know how much I drive home the point that it isn't what happens to you that natters, it's your attitude to what happen to you that matters!
If you're been watching television, listening to the radio or reading newspapers for the last few months you'll have heard negative message after negative message about the economy, lack of sales and that people aren't buying. Is that going to help or hinder your attitude towards getting new business?
Which do you think customers and prospects value more, someone who sounds like they're terminally depressed, or someone who remains upbeat and positive about their company, products and services, and themselves? Which do you think they're going to buy from?
Andy's Sales Tip No 3 - Do More Prospecting
More than ever before, prospecting is vital to your chances of making 2009 your best sales year ever. The challenge is that when market conditions are easier (as they have been for the past few years) prospecting is one of the first things that a business owner or a salesperson stops doing!
In a market where people are negotiating harder with you and you're losing business through no fault of your own (customers being taken over, going out of business etc) then doesn't it stand to reason that you need to do more prospecting?
So whether you prospect by networking, referrals from existing clients, cold calling, whatever method you use, just make sure you do more of it! Let's be honest, there are people out there that have a need for what you offer, but don't know you exist! Make sure you do more prospecting, it's one of the keys to making this year a success for you.
Andy's Sales Tip No 4 - Look For More Cross-Selling / Up-Selling Opportunities
Once again, in an easier market, simple up-selling and cross-selling opportunities are often overlooked. You've probably got plenty of existing clients that don't use every product or service you offer, haven't you? I wonder if you've ever heard the immortal words from a client 'oh I didn't know you did that' when you asked them why they've just bought from a competitor?
One of the first things you can do is make clients aware of your full product range or all of the services that you offer. This maximises your cross-selling opportunities. In a market where the economic conditions aren't as good as they were previously, one of the quickest ways to get more business is to get more orders from your existing client base! Think about it - they already like you, have done business with you and have everything set up to order from your company - why not get them to order more items from you?
Another important area to look at is up-selling opportunities. Every single time a customer places an order with you, you've got an opportunity to 'up-sell' them to a higher priced item. A lot of people don't feel confident in doing this and 'assume' if the customer wanted the higher-priced item, they would have asked for it! Don't make the same mistake. Why not offer the client 2 options on their next order? It's an easy way to get more business!
Andy's Sales Tip No 5 - Keep Your Sales Skills Updated
This is always an interesting one! In any of my seminars of speeches, whenever I ask the question 'how many of you have read a sales book, listened to a CD or done something to hone your sales skills in the last 6 months?' hardly anyone puts their hands up! I find this astounding.
Some people say 'Oh I don't have time', some people say 'oh I don't need to, I know what I'm doing' and even more frighteningly some business owners say 'oh I'm not a salesperson'!! How crazy is that?
If you're in a competitive market right now (if you have competition, that's you!) then your sales skills (or lack of them) could be the difference between you winning a customer, and losing a customer. How are your cold calling skills? Your questioning skills? Your objection handling skills? Your closing skills? Could they do with some work? You have to work on these and keep yourself 'sharp' so you don't miss out on sales opportunities you could have won!
Follow the tips above and watch your sales soar! I look forward to hearing of your sales success!
(C) 2009 Andy Preston
Andy Preston is a leading Cold Calling and Sales Expert. You can see more about Andy and get his free cold calling and sales tips at http://www.andy-preston.com
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