I am constantly amazed by the number of business owners I meet that are complaining that sales are down or that the sales team is not as effective as they should be.
My first question to them is ‘when was the last time your sales consultants went on a sales training course (this applies to small businesses and coaches as well)?
Ninety percent of the time the answer ‘years ago or never’
Shockingly, a recent poll of mine on LinkedIn showed that over 50% can’t remember when they were last trained or even worse, had never been on a sales training course.
If you look at any top sports achiever, they are constantly being trained and coached to be the best they can be.
They seldom look at the competition and only want to improve their ‘personal best’
Why is it any different in sales and why are so many businesses training their people to be the best?
I have achieved the highest level in sales and was recognized among the top half percent of salespeople worldwide which led me to a career speaking at conferences on sales and marketing.
I remember when I started in sales in the 1980’s…..
We were put on a three-week sales training program with role plays (terrifying) that prepared us for when we would be out in the field selling.
After that we were constantly put on training course on the psychology of selling, personality styles, sales leadership systems and so many more.
I then started investing my own money on sales courses and bought every program by Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, Allan Pease, Paul J Meyer and many more.
I also made it a goal to meet and interview all of them and some have become great friends. Zig Ziglar left a lasting impression on me.
I even paid to go on a three-day training course in Arizona with Tom Hopkins who was the worlds top sales trainer at the time.
The first morning I met two super salespeople who had flown in in their private aircraft.
Both earned over a million dollars a year in sales.
When I asked them why they were there they said that it was the 13th year in a row that they had attended.
Every year they heard the same things and realized what they had forgotten or not doing. When they returned their sales skyrocketed for three months and then started to fall as they took shortcuts and that was why they returned each year.
The first day was so basic that I sat there feeling a bit bored.
That evening we were given homework to do, and I ignored this because I thought I knew it all.
The next morning, we were given a test and I failed. Tom stood up front and asked all the failures to go to the back of the room and get a refund and leave. No-one moved.
The second evening when we were given homework, everyone was up all-night studying.
The next morning, he pulled 20 people onto the stage and got them to recite the 26 ways to close a sale, everyone was brilliant.
The result, I was at the top of my game when I left the course and always broke my sales targets.
At the course I also formed relationships that are still strong today
Back then all the big companies put their people through rigorous sales training courses.
I remember my cousin who was working in sales for IBM was sent home one day to change his socks because they were the wrong color.
I also learned about and now teach sales teams the CASH formula to success.
C – Comprehension.
Ø Knowledge of your company
Ø Knowledge of your product or service
Ø Knowledge of your competition
Ø Knowledge of personal marketing
Ø Understanding your value proposition
A – Attitude
Ø Behavior at work
Ø Attitude with team
Ø Attitude with clients
S – Skills
Ø Psychological skills
Ø Technological skills
Ø Systems skills
Ø Marketing skills
H – Habits
Ø Habits at work
Ø Habits at home
Ø Habits with clients
Would you like to increase sales by 33%...It is fairly simple if you follow the following formula…
To increase sales by 33.3%, this is what you need to do each year:
Ø Increase the number of clients by 10%
Ø Increase the ‘average spend’ by 10%
Ø Increase the number of times people purchase by 10%
Your Turnover will increase by 33.1%
Would you like to increase sales by 100%, this is what you need to do:
Ø Increase the number of clients by 30%
Ø Increase the ‘average spend’ by 20%
Ø Increase the number of times people purchase by 30%
Your Turnover will increase by 100%
This is the amazing power of compounding activity.
With sales training you always go back to basics to remind yourself what you should be doing, such as
Ø Body Language
Ø Neuro Linguistic Styling
Ø Cross Selling and Up Selling
Ø Eight power strategies to prepare for every sales call
Ø The magic of telephones and how to get results (word psychology)
Ø 21 proven prospecting methods
Ø Developing rapport
Ø Priority questioning
Ø Selling pleasure, not pain
Ø Closing and overcoming objections
Ø Understanding the sales process
Ø Solution based selling
Then it is all about moving forward with more strategies such as:
Ø Knowing how to do Boolean searches and use advanced Google search strategies
Ø Understanding the power of LinkedIn and how to connect with your target audience
Ø Knowing the 5 different types of posts on LinkedIn and the two that have the algorithms promoting them for you
Ø Knowing when to post and turn posts into real leads
Ø Understanding the marketing power of blogs, podcasts, and social selling
Ø Discovering free tools that can double your productivity
Ø Understanding the power of video and the three secrets to viral videos
Ø Using video email to get 99% responses from clients
Ø Using software to turn articles into videos and podcasts
And of course, to be the best you have to be confident and motivated, so:
Ø Understand the strategy of setting and achieving realistic goalsØ Dreaming big (my sales team on average wrote 10 time more business than our closest competitors)
Ø The resilience to stay positive even when things are not going well.
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If any of this resonates with you, please email me on frank@frankfurness.com or call me on +447711672888 and let’s chat about your opportunities.
Frank Furness CSP CFP is a professional speaker, trainer & coach specializing in sales and marketing. He has educated, entertained, and inspired audiences in 69 countries.
His Online Sales Courses have sold globally and Franks Social Media Tips weekly publication subscribed to by thousands.
Please email frank@frankfurness.com or telephone+ 44 (0) 7711672888 and connect to his social sites at https://linktr.ee/frankfurness
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