What Makes a Great Sales Person?
Recently I was with a group of sales managers and a discussion began around the question, “What separates top producing sales people from the others”?
The discussion was lively and often animated, but in the end, most agreed on the following list of ten points.
Take a look at the list and let me know if you agree, or if you would have added other items to the list.
1. Clearly Defined Expectations
Does everyone in the organisation understand the company’s vision, strategy and objectives? Sound performance across all areas of the business requires the clear communication of expectations. For sales staff, for example, are you looking for short term revenue or are you prepared to forgo this for more strategic sales that will have longer sales cycles? Sales representatives should:
• Know their roles and responsibilities – what they should and should not do. For example, should they let customer service representatives service while they themselves focus on consistently executing the sales function?
• Understand their targets.
• Set goals and use these goals to measure their performance.
2. Planning
Planning and organization are critical to sales success. Each sales representative must develop and execute a strategy that proactively addresses the dynamics and changes in his territory. Effective planning means establishing clear objectives and organizing specific sales activities into integrated yearly, quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily work plans. The sales representative should:
• Develop a plan for maximizing the territory’s potential.
• Follow a process that begins with an annual plan and filters down to shorter-term plans – even to daily plans if this is appropriate for the type of sales activity.
3. Understand The Customer’s Needs & Business
It is often said a good sales person is defined by “3 E’s” – Ego, Energy and Empathy.
The most successful sales person has highly developed empathy that allows them to see things from the customers perspective and position the sale to best meet their needs. Each sales representative should:
• Focus on the customer as a “market of one.”
• Drive discussion around the strategies, objectives, and initiatives of his customer’s business.
• Avoid dumping information, and instead, listen while the customer does most of the talking.
• Communicate effectively at all levels in the customer’s business. This includes participating in quality business discussions with those higher up in the customer’s organization chart and if appropriate bringing in those higher up in their own business.
4. Creativity & Innovation
Developing new and better solutions to customer problems requires creativity on the part of the sales representative, the ability to communicate this to those in their organisation making product decisions and the talent to influence these decisions . The sales team must understand that:
• Required solutions are not always easy to find.
• The sales cycle at times may become a drawn out process. The sales representative must find ways to stay engaged and lead that process.
5. Create new opportunities
Good sales people don’t just take orders and they don’t promise the world.
The most successful sales people are solution providers who qualify and listen, always looking for new opportunity, either from existing customers or new prospects.
Top-producers not only take advantage of existing opportunities, but find ways to create them as well. Our sales representatives must understand that:
• Selling requires more than sustaining current business.
• They must create new business not only within current accounts, but also through new accounts.
6. Know Your Company & Your Competition
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.
- Sun Tsu – Chinese Military General: lived c500 – 320 BC
Only by fully understanding the resources and total capabilities of your company and that of your competitors can we know what it is we take to market. Because of this, sales teams must understand:
• Their company’s capabilities and those of their competitors – what they do well and not so well.
• The suppliers they represent, product offerings and the applications that they best address.
• And most importantly the value propositions and competitive advantages of everyone in the game.
7. Know the Market
“The ability to learn faster than your competitors,” says business strategist, Arie de Geus, “may be your only sustainable competitive advantage.” Because markets and tastes change, our selling opportunities change. Our sales representatives must learn all they can about their selling environments, including:
• The markets and industries in which they compete.
• The strengths and weaknesses of their competitors.
8. Personal development
Tennis champion, Venus Williams’ candidly observed, “You either improve or retire. I try to keep evolving.” Likewise, survival in today’s business climate mandates a continued evolution. “All of the top achievers I know are life-long learners looking for new skills, insights, and ideas,” says author, Denis Waitley, “If they’re not learning, they’re not growing . . . not moving toward excellence.” Our sales representatives must:
• Desire continued growth and accept the support our company offers to achieve it.
• Commit to continued growth (When is the last time they did something for the first time?)
• Agree to after-hours development and personal investment – one of the most successful sales persons I ever managed had a budget to invest in his personal development. It was a percentage of his commission so the more he earned, the more he developed.
9. Collaboration
Collaboration allows us to “huddle” with co-workers to produce greater results than we could ever achieve on our own. It’s based on the belief that early involvement, teamwork, defined responsibilities and processes can turn good ideas into dynamic solutions. Our sales representatives should demonstrate the willingness to share knowledge and expertise.
10. Integrity
I have ‘stolen’ this from an anonymous quote sent to me by a friend, but thought it too good to leave out.
More people are watching you than you think. The University of Notre Dame Athletics Department advises participants in its sporting events to be their “best” selves because “everything we say and do (and don’t say or do) sends a message about our values.” Notre Dame describes integrity as doing what’s right even when it’s unpopular or personally costly. “By not making a wrong right, you are supporting the wrong. By inaction, you condone the behaviour. If you know the truth, speak it loud and clear. In other words, don’t hide behind the presence of officials – play as if you are refereeing the event.”
What Are Your Thoughts?
So there’s my list of what separates top producing sales reps from the rest. What did you think of this list? Do you agree? Disagree? Have others to add? Let me know – I look forward to your input.