We’re nearing the end of the year, and now more than ever, your sales motivation is critical. I don’t say this lightly, the 4th quarter of the year for too many salespeople is a time where they’re either fired up 100% or packing it in and giving up. My problem is with the people who are packing it in, because they’re going to let far too many leads they’ve been working on go cold.
No matter where you are in terms of making your quota, it is absolutely essential you maintain an even flow of communication with your sales prospects. It might be tempting to focus your time against a smaller list of prospects, due to how you might be doubting your ability to hit your targets for this year. In doing so, though, you’re already making decisions that are going to negatively impact the numbers you will hit for next year. Prospecting is key to sales, yet for most salespeople, the quality of prospecting they do is in direct relationship to their level of sales motivation.
If you’re behind in your number for this year, one strategy I like to use is to reset in your own mind on what your 4th quarter number would be without adding in any of the misses from the previous quarters. There’s no sense in destroying your sales motivation by focusing on a number that’s incredibly high, because in order for you to hit it, you first have to hit your 4th quarter number. Focus on the quarter number and celebrate the successes you achieve along the way. Then as you achieve success, you can slowly increase your target number. By keeping yourself focused on a number you can achieve, you will be able to keep your level of sales motivation up
