How will you improve sales in 2012?
Will you rely on techniques you used in 2011?
Problem is if the techniques you used in 2011 to no avail, then what makes you think using the same techniques in 2012 will yield different results?
Here are 4 things you can do right now to improve sales in 2012:
1. Conduct a referral blitz.
Take the time to contact each one of your existing customers with one objective — get referrals. The way you do this if by first engaging the customer in a conversation about what they’ve gained from working with you.
As the customer shares with you why they like working with you, the door will open for you to then ask them who they know who would also benefit in the same way.
2. Build your confidence.
Sales is about confidence. The customer having confidence in what they’re buying and confidence in what the salesperson believes. Too many sales are lost because the salesperson isn’t confident.
When the salesperson isn’t confident, they miss opportunities to close sales. More importantly, they miss the opportunity to close sales without offering a discount. Believe in what you do. Believe in your belief in being able to help others. Most of all, believe in yourself that you will succeed.
3. Create new habits.
If you’re not happy with the results you’ve been getting from what you’ve been doing, there’s no reason to think continuing to do the same thing is going to yield better results.
Start the year out by changing significantly one process. The best process to look at changing is the number of contacts you make. If you had been shooting to make 20 calls per week, then go ahead and say your new objective is 25 or even 30.
If you don’t set your goal high, you’ll never achieve it. Habits are created because there is an objective or goal you are looking to achieve.
4. Get others selling for you.
Why do all the work? Gee, that almost sounds like I’m encouraging people to be lazy. Sorry, that’s not what I mean at all.
What I’m talking about is creating a unique selling proposition that is so special and different that your current customers, prospects and other people are encouraged to tell others about it. This is not nearly as outlandish as you might think. People love to talk about what they like. The more you can have people like what it is you sell, the more likely they will be to tell others.
Over the coming weeks, I’ll be digging much deeper each of these four ideas and explaining in-depth how you can leverage each one. Until then, be committed to take each one seriously and put them into action.
Copyright 2011, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog.
