| An important lesson to learn in life,
as well as in the sales profession, is that everything
that happens to us is for a reason. I suggest there
is a positive reason for everything that happens to
us. It may not always be as obvious as we might like,
and sometimes we may have to search harder to find it.
It may not always produce the outcome we would like,
but if we look for the positive in everything that happens,
we will find it. If we look for the negative, we will
find that, too. Most people today want instantaneous
reward. Often, the best things take time to occur. We
cannot look at the immediate result and assume that
there will be no positive future outcome.
The sales business is a never-ending series of events.
These events are open to interpretation, and each can
be labeled positive or negative. Whether you make a
sale or miss a sale, if you keep an appointment or end
up late for an appointment, if someone stands you up
for an appointment or you write an order, everything
that happens is just an event. I learned a valuable
lesson when I realized this. I choose to make each event
either positive or negative. Until I decide which meaning
I assign to the event, it is merely an event. You can
assign a positive value or a negative value.
Many sales people get upset when they arrive to see
a prospect and the prospect cancels the appointment
or will not see them. One positive value that could
be assigned in that situation would be that at least
he or she did not take up a lot of your time, considering
that they must not have been interested. Fortunately,
you found out before you expended a lot of time, effort
or even money. Many prospects will allow you to make
your presentation even though they have already made
the decision not to buy your product (or service). They
simply could not bring themselves to say ‘no’
when you called for the appointment. Rather than having
your time wasted, it is better to save it for something
more productive.
I worked for a company selling a service to business
owners. My employer provided its sales representatives
with appointments. When sometimes appointments didn’t
materialize as anticipated, the representatives often
complained about the lack and all of their idle time.
However, I found a major positive in idle time. I chose
to look at it as time I could work on my presentation,
read a book, listen to audiotapes or otherwise improve
myself. As Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) was quoted as
saying: “A man should always have with him a book
to read and a book to write in.” Indeed, he understood
how to redeem the time, making a positive situation
out of life’s negatives.
Many of the representatives focused negatively on the
hour or two during which they were sitting around inactive
without an appointment. I believe some representatives
miss some sales because the prospects can sense the
frustration the sales professional carries into the
appointment with them.
Many sales people spend considerable time trying to
figure out why the last prospect they went to see did
not buy. If you were applying for a sales position,
the sales manager told you his sales people were selling
or closing 100% of the prospects they saw, and they
had a never-ending supply of leads and prospects, how
much do you think the commission would be?
I have always found a positive side to every event,
and so can you if you look for one. |
