Ever thought about how to find people to whom you can make a sales presentation? Well if you've been in the sales profession for more than an hour, it probably absorbs a good bit of your time. Most sales people have a positive attitude and truly believe that if they can get in front of a potential customer, they have a strong chance of making a sale.
Selling is a tough business and for those involved in outside personal sales, a large amount of time is spent in acquiring leads on potential customers. Some companies make it easy by running an effective advertising campaign that produces leads, or by aggressive telemarketing programs. But, these programs are expensive, the leads may be of questionable value, and in some cases, the company may even charge for the leads to defray the overall expense.
The basic rule of sales is that you have to talk to enough people (not everyone will buy), they have to be the right kind of people (they must have the need and the authority to buy), and you have to tell them your story (you have to present the features of your product) in order to be successful. How you develop those leads is basically up to you.
Most sales people I know tend to look at leads produced by others as a gift, rather than as a primary source of business. Highly successful sales people have developed their own lead production system and use it very effectively. The methods vary, but the result is the same, a steady supply of potential customers. In my experience training sales people, this message has come through over and over again. Once you positively identify the profile of your customer, then you have to figure out how to make contact and to obtain an appointment to present your product.
The best source of leads would obviously be a list of names of everyone in your town who has an absolute need for your product, is qualified to buy it, and can afford to buy it from you. If you were selling stethoscopes to doctors and nurses, the first part is easy. Go to the yellow pages of the telephone directory and get the number of every medical facility, doctor and nurse in town. Unfortunately you've only solved the first part of the problem. You know where they are, but now you have to figure out how to get through the layers of "interceptors" who will try to insulate your prospects from you. These "interceptors" are the receptionists, secretaries, appointment schedulers and other administrators who get in your way. You could get sick and schedule a lot of medical appointments in order to get in the room with a prospect, but that might get expensive and time consuming. So this is the point where the true sales person earns their pay.
To learn more details sign up now for the online course, "Ask For the Order"
For more sales and motivation techniques, try our our online courses.
| < Prev |
|---|
