By Bruce Keith
If a brand-new salesperson came to your organization, you might be asked to mentor them. You might be asked to help them get started and “show them how you do it. What would you tell them? What things would you suggest they do to build a strong foundation for their new sales career? Here are five excellent answers to get them started:
1. Have a business plan. Know exactly what your targets are.
2. Have a list of five to six personal goals that you review first thing every day.
3. Set aside two to three hours every day to prospect for new business… preferably in the morning. Stick to that schedule no matter what.
4. Practice your objection handling, your sales presentation and your closing techniques for a minimum of 15 to 30 minutes every day.
5. Study your craft and always be looking for new and innovative thinking to keep you current and inspired. Keep your mindset strong.
Bonus point: Start to build up a list of past clients and centres of influence that you will stay in touch with every 90 days and ask them for business/referrals.
Now comes what I call Holding the Mirror Back to You. This is the fun part. This is where you look at what you tell others to do and then ask yourself the following questions.
1. Is that what I do every day? Do I mirror the recommendations I would offer someone else?
2. Where are the loopholes in my approach? Where have I gotten a bit sloppy?
3. What do I have to do to get back on track?
The key is to “walk your talk” and lead by example. Consider what you would tell a rookie and compare that to what you do today. It is a great barometer to help you stay at the top of your game. This isn’t about perfection; it’s about doing the right thing for you. Look for the loopholes in your current business and start plugging the holes. This is a case where you really need to be more selfish. Look after you first. In other words, mentor yourself. Everyone will benefit, including your customers. No excuses.
Growth is good: The best way to stay ahead of the competition is to grow faster than they do.
There is a theory that says to expand yourself all you need to do is grow at a rate of one per cent per day – to be “one per cent better today than I was yesterday.” That way you don’t have to make quantum leaps just continually move in the right direction. Do you have a personal development plan to make this happen? Here are some of my collected thoughts on personal development:
1. Learn to work harder on yourself than you do on your job.
2. Work hard on your job and you can earn a living. Work hard on yourself and you can earn a fortune.
3. Success is what you attract by being the person you become.
4. To attract attractive people (people who want to buy from you), you must first become an attractive person.
5. Who you become is much more valuable than what you get.
It takes courage to get out of your box. It takes courage to take on new challenges, learn new skills and be held accountable. The opposite of courage is complacency. To eliminate complacency, you must have a strong personal development plan. Part of your plan must be having someone to hold you accountable for the things you need to do… especially on the days you don’t feel like doing them. Think about it. Do you have enough accountability in place or are you trying to do it all on your own? No excuses.
Bruce Keith is a leading trainer for sales organizations in North America. He was trained in the corporate world as a marketing and sales manager for 15 years. His education then moved to 25 years in the real estate industry, 10 years as a successful sales rep followed by the last 15 years as a keynote speaker, seminar leader, author and one-on-one coach. His high energy coupled with a “No Excuses Accountability” approach has helped thousands increase their production significantly. www.BruceKeithresults.com
Bruce Keith is a leading Real Estate Coach/Author/Speaker. Like Bruce Keith Results on Facebook or connect with Bruce on Linkedin. Email Bruce Keith.
