Elvis's lesson

Elvis impersonators usually mimic Elvis saying "Thank you...Thank you...thank you verrry much." During his career Elvis was always grateful to his fans and the people around him. You can not say "Thank you" enough. Of course you should always thank your customers but don't forget to thank the receptionist who helped you to contact the owner or your support staff that helped you get the ad in the paper. I spent most of today in the field helping a rep work his territory. This evening I received a very nice thank you e-mail from him. I spend 2 or 3 days in the field each week and seldom receive a thank you. I think nothing of this and don't really expect to be thanked for doing my job. Still this simple act had an impact on me and makes me look very favorably on this rep. Saying thank you is an extremely easy and quick thing to do, but one that sets you apart from the crowd.

P.S. Don't forget to thank your boss every now and then, sales managers don't hear this often from those above or below their level.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Never ask for an appointment

Words are a sales person's tools. We should be very precise in their use. Asking for an appoinment sets the wrong tone. It is far better to ask for a meeting. An appointment is what your make with the dentist. You sit there and allow yourself to be acted upon. A meeting is an event where a group of people discuss an issue, make decisions and solve problems. Setting a meeting puts you on a better footing with the prospect. This may seem like I'm splitting hairs but success in sales is the product of paying attention to the details. If we work on improving every little detail in our presentations our success is assured.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

A customer's two favorite subjects

The hardest thing I do is to stand by and watch a rep screw up on a call. This is sometimes necessary, I need to see how their behave normally so I know how to help them. Today I was cold calling with a rep who did a good job opening a conversation with prospects. Unfortunately he was unable to keep them engaged and moving on to a sales presentation. I was able to observe him and how the customer reacted to what he was saying. He held the customer's attention as long as he was talking about their business and their customers but as soon as he starting talking about himself he lost them. When I am talking to a customer I like to picture an imaginary spotlight shining on us. When we are discussing the customer and his business, it is shining on him, when we are talking about me or my business, it is shining on me. Experience has taught me that I am much more likely to make a sale when I keep the "spotlight" on the customer. This is how we learn about the customer's needs and problem. I only talk about my products when describing how they relate to the customer's needs. Never forget, the customer is the star of the show, they deserve to be in the spotlight, I am happy to be the producer (of revenue!)

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Set behavorial goals for yourself

Luck always plays a part in our sales success. Sometimes customers will cooperate with us and sometimes they don't. As sales people there are always things that lie outside of our control. This is why we must control the things that do lie within our power. One of the best ways to do this is to step behavioral goals for ourselves. We can not say for certain "I will sell $10,000 per week." because this requires the cooperation of our customers. We can say "I will make 15 calls per day"--this is totally within our control. We can decide to refuse to accept the 1st or 2nd "NO" from a customer. The curious thing is that when we take charge of the things within our circle of control that circle expands. Setting rules for ourselves forces us to do the things which will make us successful. If we concentrate on our own behavior, the world will be much more responsive to us.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks Jim Busch

Weekly Quote

"Ask yourself 'What is the truth of this situation' Get to the heart of the matter; see the reality."
Spencer Johnson (from Peaks and Valleys)

It is amazing how easy we can delude ourselves. Delusion is like morphine, it can mask the pain of a bad situation but does nothing to effect a cure. We need to face up to the reality of our situation to change it. If we say "I'm doing everything I can to meet my quota" when we are only making a few calls per day or we are not planning our presentations, we are deluding ourselves. Only by saying "To be honest, I can work harder and smarter" can we change the situation. Improvement in any aspect of life, begins with an accurate assessment of the current situation.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks Jim Busch

Why we do what we do

In the last several days, I've heard some amazing success stories. The owner of an Italian grocery store told her rep that the ad she has been running for the last few weeks has brought in over 100 new customers. This increase has taken her year old business into the black. A dentist who has been running an aggressive program featuring full color full page ads for the last year doubled his patient base in 2010 over his 2009 count. He launched the program because he needed enough business to bring his son into the practice. Our advertising allowed him to realize this goal. He now hopes to keep growing to bring a son, currently in dental school, into the practice in a few years.

Henry Ford once said that "a business that makes nothing but money isn't much of a business." Of course our primary goal for doing what we do is to make money but we accomplish much more than earning a paycheck. We help our customers to be successful and to achieve their goals. My rep made a nice buck helping the dentist mentioned above, but the dentist made a lot more money and he was able to realize a lifelong dream of building a practice that he could leave to his sons as his legacy. I for one get a great feeling from helping good people achieve their life's goals. Keep this in mind when everyone is saying "NO" and you're wondering why you ever got into advertising.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks Jim Busch

Work while you wait

Waiting is a part of sales. We try to manage our time effectively but sometimes we have to wait for customers who are late for a meeting or who are busy with a customer. Since some waiting is unavoidable the best strategy is to use this time effectively. We all have many small paperwork tasks that need to be done. Updating calendars, completing orders etc. can be done while sitting in a waiting room. The key is to keep the necessary materials with you at all times. This is also a good time to catch up on business reading. I always keep a few articles from sales and business magazines or printouts from the web in my jacket pocket. I seldom have time to keep up in my reading at the office,but I can use waiting time to keep myself up to date. Doing this also has a good impression on your clients. They like to work with reps who value their time as they know these reps will also value the time of their customers.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch