Practical Selling Strategies from America’s #1 Sales Trainer
If you truly desire to succeed in your selling career, dedicate yourself to being a student for your entire life. Your goal for the end of each and every day should be to be able to say, “I learned something new today.” It’s sad but true, that too many salespeople believe and act as if their education is complete once they’re out of the formal school environment. This is far from the truth. If you want to enjoy a successful life you must continually learn.
In business, the sign of a true professional is how much they can learn after they “know it all.” After learning all you can about your product, it’s still critical to watch and learn from every selling experience.
In sales, one of your most powerful learning tools is your power of observation. Many valuable selling skills and nuances can be picked up just from observing various business and personal situations.
Here are a couple of examples:
- Watch how a child gets his or her way with adults. They’re usually very specific about what they want and persistent.
- Observe waiters and waitresses, retail clerks and family interactions.
Who gets the “sale” of their point or product? How did they do it? Did they say something verbally or use body language or both to close the sale? Constantly think about how you can apply what you observe in your selling situations.
I’ll keep posting sales training strategies and tactics for closing more sales. To succeed in selling, keep learning!
Most sought-after audio sales training program: How to Master the Art of Selling Anything
This information is copyrighted by Tom Hopkins International, Inc. for reprint permission, contact Judy Slack (judys@tomhopkins.com).
Tom
I attended a 3 day boot camp you held at the University of NSW in about 1998 and learnt a lot. I also saw you at Darling Harbour a couple of times over the years. Your dummies books are essential reading for all members of our sales team of 20 and they are used a re-used. In fact I have a stock in my office and any staff member who shows the slightest interest in sales get a copy of your “Prospecting” together with a copy of “How to win friends” – so you are in the best motivational company!
Personally, I think I was pretty naive when I first saw you but have continued to hone my skills as a result of your guidance and have not stopped learning. I read each of your newsletters very carefully and most are passed on. Importantly, my sales team also never stop learning and we have made Continual Improvement one of our core values. So I agree. There is nothing more important that to continue learning.
Incidentally, our company had record sales through calendar 2009 finishing with 31% growth for the year. How? We refused to recognise negativity. We changed our tactics as you have recommended and created a set of value propositions that we aligned with market conditions. I think that this alignment of our “go to market” message and the market concerns, was pivotal to our success. Your disciplines are also responsible for a share of that success. Thanks! And good luck with the blog.
Tom,
Nice blog. The email you sent me about this said thanks for being a loyal subscriber. You got that right. I have been a Tom Hopkins fan for 30 years. My oldest copy of How To Master The Art of Selling has a 1980 copyright. I saw you in person a year or so ago and you looked a little older than you did in the 80′s. Me too! I’ll get one of grandchildren to show me how to get the best use out of the blog. Thanks!
Tom,
What you say about lifelong learning here is so true. Sadly, so many sales people feel that they know it all and don’t need to be taught anything. It’s only the top performers who really understand the importance of continuous learning in sales. I find that you even need to go over stuff that you know already many times before you really put it into practice with your clients. Thanks again Tom, David
Yes, I agree with David. It will teach you persistence and maybe some sales skills, but Darkside is right, telemarketing skills differ from real sales skills. Sales techniques are used in majority of sectors such as marketing right to Finance and IT, selling everything from software, a service or a product. After you are training to bring you up to speed about what you”re selling, you need start bringing in the business.
Tom,
I went to my first Champions presentation in Seattle in the 70s on the advice of Roger Crane (Spokane) and put the training to use as I sold real estate. Still selling and closing and learning and can’t thank you enough.
(I do not see failure as failure, but a chance to improve my presentation!)
Thanks again,
Ann
This is a good thing we should accept that learning is a continuous process and must consider ourselves students for lifetime for us to find skills, knowledge and related information that can help us to be productive everyday.