Let’s face it. It feels great to close a sale! This is especially true if you’ve been working it for awhile. And the more sales you close, the better, right? Well, that depends.
Closing sales is part — a big part — of what you signed on for. And on the surface, it would seem that as many sales closed as possible is always going to be good thing.
My guess, though, is that you are a wise salesperson, too. You know that how you got those sales matters as well, and if you got most or all of them by cutting your price, then you are setting yourself up for failure. I know that sounds harsh. I stand by my mantra, though. You will never ever be able to discount your way to success.
If you are closing tons of sales at full price, then quantity definitely has value. But just in case you’ve been falling for the idea that “quantity no matter what it costs” is worth it, below are some helpful tips.
3 Rules to Live By When it Comes to Quantity vs. Quality
1. Believe in your product or service 100%. If you believe that what you have to offer genuinely benefits the customer, then you will be less likely to discount. In fact, you’ll feel offended internally if someone suggests you should discount your price.
2. The profit you lose when you discount a sale goes beyond that sale. If you discount once, you’ll be more likely to discount again. Period. If you are discounting, you will never be able to make up lost profit, no matter how many sales you make.
3. A sale at full-price strengthens your sales motivation. When you become confident in selling at full price, you will do it again and again.
So, is quantity better than quality? Well, as I said earlier, if you are always selling at full price, then quantity does have some value.
But if you are sacrificing full-price quality just so you can boost quantity in your sales numbers, then you’re laying the perfect foundation for a mediocre sales career. Nothing sounds appealing about that.
Copyright 2011, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog.
