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In this article, leading Sales Expert Andy Preston explains what actions you need to take, now that the summer holidays are over, in order to get your sales figures back ‘on track’…….Continue reading

In this article, leading Sales Expert Andy Preston explains what sales lessons we can learn from England’s dismal failure at the World Cup….and how you can ensure you and your team perform far better!….

Well.  I don’t know about you, but I found England’s dismal performance at the World Cup embarrassing.  The debate about what went wrong has been raging for a while now, but the fact remains that a bunch of highly-paid, professional sportsmen (who should have had a good chance of winning ‘on paper’), massively under-performed.

So what sales lessons can we learn from the dismal failure?

Sales Lesson No 1 – Motivation Is Crucial!

Of course you’ll already know that motivation is crucial to success, whether that’s in sport, in business and particularly in the sales arena.  However it’s motivation on a CONSISTENT basis that’s vital to producing good results in sales over a period of time.

Consistent motivation is even more important when it comes to ‘new business’ activities.  For example if you know you’ve got cold calling (or even follow up calls) to do, and you’re not feeling motivated, how likely is it you’ll do the calls you need?  Not very likely!

Alternatively, you may do the ‘task’, but in reality you’re just ‘going through the motions’, and even through you’ve done your ‘activity’ it was never going to produce any kind of results for you.  Some people then even use that ‘result’ to justify saying ‘cold calling just doesn’t work for me’ or ‘I’m no good at that’ for example!

You saw the impact that lack of motivation had on the England team – make sure it’s not happening to you or your team right now!

Sales Lesson No 2 – Don’t Play People Out Of Position

This is one of the biggest lessons to come out of the World Cup.  Not just for football, but for sales as well.

I’ve lost count of the amount of people that have said to me over the past year or so that they’re having to get people who were previously ‘account managers’ to do new business activities.  When I’ve asked the question ‘and what training have you put in place to support them in getting the results you need?’ there’s usually been an awkward silence!

That means their answer to that is ‘none’.  How likely are those account managers to succeed?  Not very!  And the more ‘new business’ the activity is, the less likely they are to do it well!

This is compounded when managers and directors then get ‘non-salespeople’ involved in the sales process – like marketing making appointment calls, and administrators taking incoming sales enquiries for example!  You aren’t doing any of that in your business…..are you?

Sales Lesson No 3 – Be Flexible In Your Approach

Fabio Capello insisted on sticking to a 4-4-2 formation, even when the commentators, the fans, the media and even the players were asking for a 4-5-1 to be tried!  He again showed his unwillingness to be flexible even when the players complained about being stuck in a boring routine.

Now, putting your thoughts about the players and whether they should just have put up with it or not aside, there is another valuable ‘sales lesson’ there for us as well.

Whether it’s following up a marketing campaign that isn’t generating results, a sales system or ‘script’ that is ‘imposed’ on you by the company, or continuing to do things that aren’t working just because you’ve ‘always done them that way’, you need to have flexibility in your approach and consider changing things when the evidence shows that they aren’t working for you!

Also the market has changed for the majority of salespeople over the last few years – are you still using techniques that were developed in the ‘old market’, or are you training your team (and using) newer, more effective ones?

Sales Lesson No 4 – You’ve GOT To Handle Pressure!

Another reason (excuse) given by the England team and those involved with it was that fans were piling too much ‘pressure’ on the team.  Now I don’t know about you, but I’d be of the opinion that handling pressure is part of their job?!!

In the business world, salespeople, managers and directors do this everyday, so why on earth should footballers be different?

As a salesperson, there’s pressure on yourself (to perform well), pressure from your boss (usually about figures), pressure from clients or potential clients, pressure from production staff – in fact pressure from pretty much everybody associated with your job!

Especially with the pressure of hitting your sales targets and bringing in ‘new business’, EVERY salesperson needs the ability to handle pressure, or they’re going to struggle in the role.

Sales Lesson No 5 – Stop Being A ‘Sales Whinger!’

Now, if you’ve worked with me or trained with me in the past, you’ll know I talk a lot about the ‘sales whingers’ – salespeople whose only purpose in life appears to be to complain about anything and everything!

One of the key attributes of a sales whinger is that they ALWAYS blame someone (or something) else for their misfortune – it’s NEVER their own fault!

Now, think about this in respect to the England team, their management and their poor performance.  First of all it was the fault of the ball, because our players weren’t used to it!  Conveniently forgetting the fact we were offered the ball to use on 3 separate occasions over the last 12 months and we refused!

Then it was the fault of the fans and the media, putting too much pressure on the team and certain individuals in it.  Then it was the fault of the Premier League for wearing out those poor professional athletes?!!  Obviously ignoring the fact that Premier League stars playing for other countries were doing pretty well!

So how many things are you and your team blaming their poor performance on right now?  The market?  People’s budgets?  The recession?  Nobody wants to buy?  The target is unrealistic?

Stop blaming on other things and get thinking about how you can improve your own performance and that of your team.  And then let me know what you come up with!

So, take action on the above and the best of luck with your sales!

About The Author:

Andy Preston is a leading Sales Expert, Trainer and Motivational Speaker

He runs the Ecademy ‘Sales And Cold Calling Tips Club’ as well as writing for magazines, newspapers and trade journals all around the world on anything related to sales and selling.

You can get Andy’s free cold calling and sales tips HERE

This article is copyright Andy Preston 2010. To copy or syndicate this or any part of this article contact Andy Preston for guidelines. Media enquiries – details here

In this article, leading Telecoms Sales Expert Andy Preston explains some of the ‘buyer thinking’ that goes on in prospect’s buying process – that most salespeople aren’t even aware of!…….

Whenever I’m working with a telecoms company, one of the main reasons they tell me they wanted to work with me specifically, was that they wanted to get more of an insight into the way that buyers think.

And by the word ‘buyer’, we’re not just meaning professional purchasing staff here, we’re meaning ANYONE that has responsibility for dealing with the purchase of mobiles and associated products.

A lot of my work is about the ‘buyer mentality’ – and how to tap into that, as before I was a top-selling salesperson in my own right, I was a professionally-trained buyer – which gives me a unique perspective on what makes people buy, and what makes them NOT buy.

So why do I say that most telecoms (and specifically mobile) salespeople are often ‘too late?’ Here are my reasons……

Andy’s Reason Number 1 – You’re Too Late In The Process

If the prospect has been looking at their next mobile contract for a while, the fact that you’ve only just bothered to call them up is going to count against you in most cases. They might give you an appointment – they’re going to get a number of ‘competitive quotes’ after all – but just because they’ve agreed to speak with you over the phone (or see you face-to-face) doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve got a good chance of winning their business!

Add to this the fact that most of your competition will only call the prospect shortly before their contract end date, and then you wonder why buyers think you’re all the same?

That isn’t really helping you stand out from the competition, is it?

Andy’s Reason Number 2 – You’re Too Late To Be Considered Properly

I’m talking specifically here about the timing of sending your proposal. In my experience proposals about mobile phone contracts fall into one of two camps, the ‘back-of-a-fag-packet’ type, and the ’20-page proposal’ type.

If you prefer the longer type proposal, be aware that the time it takes you to prepare the proposal is crucial. Note – I’m not advocating you do a ‘back-of-a-fag-packet’ job here, just making you aware of the impact time can have on the success of your proposal – or not.

Here’s a bold statement. The LONGER it takes for your proposal to reach the prospect, be prepared for the fact that the LESS likely you are to win the deal.

Why do I say that? Simply because the proposals that reach the prospect first are more likely to be studied closely, compared to when they have 5,10, or more to look through! And if they’re read through a few already, how closely do they really want to study yours?

Andy’s Reason Number 3 – You’re Too Late In Getting Back To Them

Another big reason that most mobile phone salespeople lose deals, is that they take too long to get back to prospects – and some don’t even get back to them at all!

This applies if the prospect asks you to send them an email. It applies if you’ve promised to lend them a handset. It applies if they’ve asked you to find out some specific information for them.

In all of these situations, like it or not, you’re also being judged. Why? Simply because the longer you take to get back to the prospect, the longer the prospect thinks you’ll take to sort out future problems for example.

How likely is it that the prospect will do business with someone that takes ages to get back to them? Not very….

Andy’s Reason Number 4 – You’re Too Late To Change Their Mind

This is a HUGE mistake that most mobile phone salespeople make – and if you can avoid making this in future, you’ll go a long way towards bringing in more business and improving your sales figures!

Most salespeople think that the PROPOSAL is the main thing that helps them win (or lose) the deal. They’re wrong.

Often, often buyers have made their decision on who they’re going to use (or at least have a good idea) BEFORE the proposal stage – and if most of your effort goes into the ‘proposal’, then you’ve got a problem.

Managers – have you ever interviewed for an employee, and even though you’re going to a 2nd interview, you’ve already got a ‘favourite’ or ‘favourites’ from the 1st interviews? Of course you have. Exactly the same thing happens in a buying situation as well.

So, in order to increase your chances of winning the deal, focus on the things that happen BEFORE the proposal stage – like your questioning, your understanding of their TRUE needs, and their appreciation of you and your solution – and you’ll be much more successful!

Follow the tips above and watch your sales soar! I look forward to hearing how you get on……..

About The Author:

Andy Preston is a leading Sales Expert, Trainer and Motivational Speaker

He runs the Ecademy ‘Sales And Cold Calling Tips Club’ as well as writing for magazines, newspapers and trade journals all around the world on anything related to sales and selling.

You can get Andy’s free cold calling and sales tips HERE

This article is copyright Andy Preston 2010. To copy or syndicate this or any part of this article contact Andy Preston for guidelines. Media enquiries – details here

In this article, leading Sales Expert Andy Preston explains how ‘digital selling’ is impacting the way sales is evolving, and whether you’re ahead or behind your competitors in this area……

‘Digital Selling’ is changing the way sales and prospecting is done. That doesn’t mean that older, more traditional methods no longer work, more that there are new tools and platforms available to the average salesperson that weren’t there 5 years ago for example.

‘Digital Selling’ is the process of engaging more online with business and social networks, plus using the ‘digital sales tools’ available to drive more sales opportunities, that you otherwise wouldn’t be aware of.

Failing to use Digital Selling could mean you and your team losing out on valuable sales opportunities. But if you ARE going to embrace it, or at the very least dip your toe into the Digital Selling water, there are some things you need to be aware of, in order to make sure you’re maximising your potential sales opportunities.Continue reading

You know, it’s always interesting to read articles on cold calling….from people that don’t have a clue what they’re talking about! A client sent me a few articles this week that he was laughing about – all about cold calling – all written by people that can’t, won’t or don’t cold call – hilarious!

Firstly – Cold Calling Isn’t ‘Dead’

All of them were saying how it doesn’t work, how it’s ‘dead’ etc etc. They’re wrong. Cold calling is still one of the best (and quickest) ways to get new business. But it’s evolving. And you need to be aware of what’s changing so you can stay ahead of the game….and your competition.Continue reading

Please watch the video below, and refer to the list of some ‘sales fundamentals’ you should have in place (or be doing on a consisent basis), which is directly below the video.

For those who can’t see or hear the video due to local restrictions, please see the ‘written version’ below the sales fundamentals list. Enjoy!

List Of 10 Sales Fundamentals You Should Have In Place

1. A written, focused sales plan.
2. A ‘perfect customer’ profile
3. An ‘irritational 25’
4. ‘Blocked out’ new business prospecting time (no distractions and never moved!).
5. A structured, customer focused Opening Statement.
6. A minimum of 20 Sales Questions of at least 5 different types, designed to make the customer think.
7. An individual client referral strategy.
8. A monthly sales meeting (even if you’re a 1-person business, you still need to ‘meet’ with yourself weekly to focus on sales!)
9. A training and development plan for each employee that has a ‘responsibility’ for sales – otherwise how can you expect them to improve?
10. A sales-focused Social Media strategy for driving sales leads through your sales funnel.

If you’re missing any of the above, give me a call on 0845 130 6779, or contact me here and I’ll see how I can help!

The ‘written’ version of the blog is below…..

I was speaking at an event last week and had decided to do feedback forms, as the majority of the audience hadn’t seen me speak before and I thought it would be useful to see what they thought!

If you’ve worked with me or been to one of my events before, you know I’m not a big fan of feedback forms as people seem to write quite bizarre things on them! I remember a piece of feedback we got from an event years ago that read ‘Great speech Andy! Got loads from it. Feeling really motivated! Food was a little bit spicy though with too many onions’. How funny is that?!!

However because of the amount of people that hadn’t seen me speak before, I decided to do them for this event. The vast majority of them came back very positive, but one in particular got me thinking. It said ‘Good event Andy, but the speech was bit basic for someone of my level’. Now that sort of thing always makes me smile, as the minute a salesperson refers to something as ‘basic’ I get concerned. That usually means that they consider it beneath them (i.e cold calling), or that they already know it and they don’t need to think about it. They’d be wrong! There’s a HUGE difference between ‘basic’ and ‘fundamental’.

Why Salespeople Should Think In Terms Of ‘Fundamentals’

I remember an old sales manager of mine, years ago. He took me to see a speaker that he really enjoyed listening to. The seminar itself was on a Saturday morning, so being a young salesperson at the time, I was already thinking of what else I could be doing, other than being at the seminar with my boss at that moment!

At the first break, my boss turned to me and asked me what I thought. I replied ‘yes, I think he’s quite good, he’s got some interesting things to say, but it’s a little bit ‘basic’.

My boss said ‘Andy, you’re wrong. This isn’t basic. This is fundamental to your success’. His belief was that anyone who called it ‘basic’ thought it was below them, they didn’t need to pay attention to them, and they did it all ‘naturally’, without having to worry about any of it! He said to me ‘Andy, these things are FUNDAMENTAL to your success. Another way of describing them would be CRITICAL. Or ESSENTIAL. These are things that you need to be doing on a DAILY basis to ensure that you get as many sales in as you can. If you want to be successful that is…..’

Learn The Lesson Of ‘Fundamentals’

That ‘lesson’ has always stayed with me. Because I think there’s a HUGE difference between ‘basics’ and ‘fundamentals’. If you dismiss something as ‘basic’, then you’re probably not going to do it, or be concerned about it.

If you think of something as ‘fundamental’, it’s something you’re going to focus on and make sure you do every single day to make sure you’re successful.

So for me, I think we should be thinking of things in terms of being ‘fundamental’ instead of ‘basic’. I’ve made a list of things below that I consider fundamental to the success of a salesperson, or a business owner.

So, take a look at the list below. And look at how many that you currently DON’T have in place. Then give me a call on 0845 130 6779, or contact me here and I’ll see how I can help!

List Of 10 Sales Fundamentals You Should Have In Place

1. A written, focused sales plan.
2. A ‘perfect customer’ profile
3. An ‘irritational 25’
4. ‘Blocked out’ new business prospecting time (no distractions and never moved!).
5. A structured, customer focused Opening Statement.
6. A minimum of 20 Sales Questions of at least 5 different types, designed to make the customer think.
7. An individual client referral strategy.
8. A monthly sales meeting (even if you’re a 1-person business, you still need to ‘meet’ with yourself weekly to focus on sales!)
9. A training and development plan for each employee that has a ‘responsibility’ for sales – otherwise how can you expect them to improve?
10. A sales-focused Social Media strategy for driving sales leads through your sales funnel.

I got some great feedback on an article I wrote previously entitled ‘How To Lose Business At Exhibitions’ with a lot of people saying how it had helped them get better before their next exhibition, and how useful it was etc etc.

However, after attending the ‘Destinations’ exhibition at Earls Court in London at the weekend, either the salespeople there hadn’t read that article, or were ignoring it as they seemed to be doing their best to lose their company and potential sales leads and business that could be gained from it!

I realised it was time for another article – but this time to be more specific on the stupid mistakes that salespeople (or anyone ‘manning the stand’) make that cost them leads, business, and the company valuable sales!

Stupid Mistake No 1 – Judging Prospects By Their ‘Name Badge’

I’ve seen so many salespeople do that at exhibitions it’s ridiculous! Far too many people ‘gaze’ at prospects’ name badges, in order to find out their job titles, to see whether they’re worth talking to or not!

Prospects know you’re doing this – as the salespeople on pretty much every stand they’ve walked past so far have done that to them as well! They tire of this very quickly. You might as well be saying ‘Excuse me. Do you mind if I stare at your name badge in a really weird kind of way? I’m just looking at your job title to find out whether you’re worth talking to or not. If so, great! I’ll be really nice to you. If not, move along. And don’t think you’re taking one of our chocolates either!!’

Experienced exhibition visitors (myself included) will go to exhibitions and either not fill in the correct details on the name badge (because we don’t want to be ‘leapt’ upon by every salesperson), or give a more junior job title – because we know that salespeople won’t bother us if we do! How many of those prospects are you missing out on by using your current approach?

Stupid Mistake No 2 – Drinking Too Much The Night Before

I thought long and hard about including this one. Every time I thought about I wondered ‘surely salespeople know this isn’t a good idea?’ and ‘surely I don’t have to remind them not to do it?’ Unfortunately based on the exhibitions I’ve attended recently, I do!!

Even though salespeople KNOW this is a bad idea, somehow they always end up doing it! The idea of ‘just going for one or two’ turns into quite a few, a late night and usually a VERY large hangover the next morning!

Being on an exhibition stand when you’re hungover is not a very pleasant experience. Either for you, your colleagues or your prospects. You look awful, feel awful and smell awful. And no matter what you do, people can tell. Imagine the impression you’re giving if you’re best client turns up unexpectedly, or your best prospect walks up? Not good.

Whenever you have to be on a stand the next day, avoid drinking at all costs! If you don’t, you’re costing yourself leads, sales and your company valuable business. Not to mention probably creating an HR issue as well. Don’t do it!

Stupid Mistake No 3 – Not Being ‘Welcoming’ Enough

Far too many people aren’t ‘welcoming’ enough on their stands. Prospects are walking around looking at various companies while their salespeople are busy talking to each other, not looking around for potential prospects that would like to engage in conversation, stood with their backs to prospects etc etc.

Some prospects aren’t necessarily confident to ‘march’ right up to you on the stand and ask for details of your latest product or service! They’ll ‘linger’ a little off the stand, trying to work out what you do and if they want to engage or not. If you and your stand look more ‘hostile’ than ‘welcoming’ they’ll move on to one of your competitors instead!

Start being ‘alive’ and ‘awake’ to opportunities with prospects who are lingering just off your stand itself. Look for opportunities to engage them and make them feel more comfortable talking to you, rather than driving them away.

Stupid Mistake No 4 – ‘Breaking Down’ The Stand Too Early

This is one of the stupidest mistakes of all! I think this has happened at EVERY exhibition I’ve ever been too, but it was very noticeable at the ‘Destinations’ one last weekend.

The exhibition’s last day was Sunday, where it was due to close at 5.30pm. At 4.30pm, not only were a number of people ‘breaking down’ their stands and packing up, but some had already done so and their stand was empty! Are these people crazy?!!

There were still prospects walking around the exhibition at 5.20, never mind 4.30!! When I went over to a few stands and said them ‘you’re packing up early aren’t you?’, guess what their responses were? ‘Well it’s been a long weekend’, ‘We could do with getting home now’ and ‘We want to get a head-start on the traffic’.

Now, whilst I realise that exhibitions can be tiring, how ridiculous are those statements?!! How could they know that some of their best prospects weren’t coming to look at those times? What about the impression it had on potential customers if they say a stand being packed up, or worse still completely empty?

What kind of impression might that give someone? In the economic climate maybe even that you’re gone out of business? Or that you can’t afford to pay for the stand? Neither of these are very good impressions to give people, are they?

There is NO EXCUSE for packing a stand up early. Ever.

Stupid Mistake No 5 – Various Related ‘Stupid Mistakes’

Here are some more ‘stupid mistakes’ that you need to make sure you’re not making. They’re all ‘related’ to each other, so I’ve included them all together here. I’ve seen all of these personally at exhibitions over the past year, so don’t think people don’t do them!…..

Eating On The Stand – I’m astounded how many times I see this! Why on earth would you want to eat or drink in front of a potential customer? Would you go to see them at their offices, and then pull out a pre-packed sandwich from your case and start to eat it in front of them? So why are you doing the same thing at an exhibition? Bizarre!

Sitting Down – Now, I know exhibitions can be tiring, but sitting down does not show you in a good light. If you really have to do (on the stand), then make sure your stand is designed so you can sit on bar stools, rather than anything at normal ‘chair’ height. If you’re sat down, the unconscious message you’re sending to prospects is that they have to ‘disturb’ you to speak to you. So they probably won’t bother!

Reading A Book On The Stand – Even more stupid than the last one! I saw a lady on a stand at an educational show last year break out a book and start reading it on the stand! What faster way of showing people you’re not interested in them is there than that?!!

Texting Or Using Your Mobile Phone – You’ve just found the faster way than the reading example above! I’ve lost count of the amount of salespeople that I see sat down (see above) and texting on their stand – meaning they’re looking down at their phone, not at potential prospects!

Even worse is making/taking calls on their mobile – you might as well say to people ‘I’m more important than you because I’m on my mobile phone. And the person I’m talking to is more important than you, everyone else here, and the amount of the money the company has paid me and the exhibition company to be at this event otherwise I’d wouldn’t be on the phone, would I?’

Pathetic! There is NO EXCUSE for being on your mobile on your exhibition stand! If you were in a client meeting, you’d turn it off wouldn’t you? So why don’t you do that now? And if you really do HAVE to make/take a call, why not get a colleague to cover you, while you step off the stand to make it. Not hard is it?

Follow the steps above and make sure you don’t make these mistakes and lose valuable leads, sales and your company business at exhibitions in future….

You can ask any questions about this article or sales in general, by contacting Andy here

Andy Preston is a leading Sales Expert, Trainer and Motivational Speaker. He runs the Ecademy ‘Sales And Cold Calling Tips Club’ as well as writing for magazines, newspapers and trade journals all around the world on anything related to sales and selling.

You can get Andy’s free cold calling and sales tips HERE

This article is copyright Andy Preston 2010. To copy or syndicate this or any part of this article contact Andy Preston for guidelines. Media enquiries – details here

2009 was an interesting year for many ’mobile phone’ salespeople and telecoms companies I’ve been speaking with recently. Whilst some had a successful year, many others were grateful for making the sales they did, and some were grateful to make it through the year at all!

2009 had some interesting lessons in terms of sales and sales tactics, things we should all learn from whether we’re a salesperson, manager or director.

Follow the tips below and watch your sales soar in 2010!…..

Sales Lesson Number One – Prospect Continuously

If 2009 taught you nothing else, it taught you that you can’t always rely on renewals or re-signs from your existing customers to hit your targets! 2009 was the year that existing customers were looking for ways to cut costs in their businesses – and I think it’s fair to say mobiles and telecoms were among the first costs to be looked at.

Far too many salespeople stop prospecting when they’re busy. Then they wonder why their sales figures suffer afterwards. Prospecting should be done on a continuous basis, not just when you’re quiet!

Sales Lesson Number Two – Control The Sales Cycle

2009 highlighted the need for the salesperson to control the sales process more than ever before! It was the year where customers started asking for proposals, but then didn’t seem to proceed with the buying decision anywhere near as fast!

In a lot of cases, prospects were trying to get a ‘feel’ for what was available and what it would-cost, before trying to get approval for who to go with, which often resulted in internal discussion and slow decision making by potential clients! So the salesperson does lots of ‘running around’ for very little reward!

Sales Lesson Number Three – Know More About The Competition

Again, 2009 showed us that we have to be sharper in this arena. Many telecoms companies were finding increased competition when trying to make appointments and also when trying to close the deal face-to-face. Often this was happening in existing accounts as well!

If you truly want to be able to sell against your competition, you’d better know them – inside and out.

You want to know about their marketing and promotion, their sales campaigns, their offering, where they’re strong (and weak), and how you can sell against them effectively. That is, if you want to be more successful this year than last….?

Sales Lesson Number Four – Write A Sales Plan

I’m often amazed how few people have a proper sales plan in place! I mean a specific document, written down, with a focused plan of how the individual, team or business is going to win business for the forthcoming year.

Without a proper sales plan in place, most people will miss opportunities that they could have converted, and miss other opportunities they weren’t even aware of.

Not the best thing to happen in a tough market, so start your year off well and get a written sales plan in place, right now!

Sales Lesson Number Five – Examine Your ‘Selling Level’

2009 was the year that purchasing and ‘sign-off’ responsibility shifted somewhat. Managers or Department Heads that were previously able to sign-off quite large sums of money were ‘reigned in’ somewhat, and Directors and Owners started taking more interest in exactly where the company’s money was being spent.

This means that all the salespeople that were selling at ‘user’ or ‘manager’ level found that decisions were going ‘above’ – and that they weren’t coming back as positively or as quickly as previously might have happened!

Sales Lesson Number Six – Ask Better Questions

If you or your team are still asking mainly ‘fact-find’ questions of prospects you’re speaking to, then you’ll probably be one of the first to be left behind in 2010!

If your prospects and clients are considering you as a potential supplier for 2010, do you really think questions like ‘how many handsets have you got?’, what network are you on?’ and ‘when is your contract up for renewal?’ are really going to help you build your business or your desk in 2010?

Your questioning ability can be one of the biggest things that differentiates you from your competition. How does yours (or your team’s) currently measure up?

Sales Lesson Number Seven – Re-Establish Contact

As businesses have ‘re-engineered’ themselves and their business offering over the last few months, for some companies that’s meant re-shuffling their staff and their responsibilities. This is worth looking at closely from a sales point of view however, as we want to make sure you aren’t losing any opportunities through any re-structuring or re-organisation.

Think about some companies that you (or your team) have sold tot in the past. Are you completely ‘on top’ of those companies? Even the ones that haven’t been ‘in the market’ for ages? Do you know every contact in the account that’s involved in telecoms? Do they all know you and would call you first when they need someone?

Many salespeople are in for a shock this year if they only have one or two contact s in an organisation. If those contacts have left or changed responsibilities, they could find themselves having to start again with new contacts. Not the best start to 2010, is it?

Sales Lesson Number Eight – Work On Your Sales Skills

2009 taught us that many of the basic sales skills that are needed for success in a telecoms role had been ‘taken for granted’ – yet were lacking in a large number of the companies and the salespeople I spoke to! Particularly in the cold calling/new business arena.

Last year was the year where sales skills mattered far more than in years previous. Prospects were taking longer to make decisions, higher level decision makers were getting involved, ROI needed to be proven at every stage, more competitors were involved in every sale and prospects were looking to negotiate all your profit out of every deal!

What are you doing to make sure that doesn’t happen to you in 2010?

You can ask any questions about this article or sales in general, by contacting Andy here

Andy Preston is a recognized Sales Expert, who specialises in working with mobile phone companies in particular – helping them generate more appointments, stand out from the competition, and close more deals.