"Note"able Organitional skills

One of the most powerful tools in your sales arsenal is a simple pad and pen. Good note taking skills keep you organized and moving in the right direction. The #1 complaint buyers have about sales people is "they don't follow-up or follow through on what they say." I don't believe most sales people are intentionally lying when they make a commitment, I think they are just disorganized. They just forget to do the things they promised to do. Good note taking can eliminate this problem. Some people may be able to do this on their Blackberry or I-Pad but I think a yellow legal pad is still the most effective way to capture the information you need to fulfill your commitments. Here are a couple of thoughts on this subject:

• Keep your notes in one place. Keep everything together on one pad or notebook. Place the customer's name and the date of the meeting at the top of the entry. This will allow you to quickly review your day.


• Leave the left margin blank. When you make a commitment or the client says something you need to follow up on, place a star in that margin. Doing this makes finding the key items from your day quick and easy.


• Circle all critical dates. This will help you to schedule follow -up appointments and actions.


• Use your notes to recap your conversation at the end of the call. This will avoid wasted time and often triggers the client's memory so that you learn something else about the situation.


• Send a follow up e-mail restating your commitments and reminding the customer of theirs.

Taking good notes is not a waste of your time, in fact it saves time. Good notes prevent expensive and time consuming mistakes that come from misunderstandings or forgetting a crucial date. Good notes make living up to your commitments easy and set you apart from the average salesperson.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

A notable idea

There is a Chinese proverb that says "The palest ink last longer than the best memory." This is why I always advise salespeople to take notes during a sales call. Note taking forces you to listen more attentively. Often reviewing notes allows you to see patterns that were not readily apparent during the call. I look for words or ideas that the prospect repeated several times. This is a sure way to identify issues that are important to the customer.

Taking notes sends a signal to the customer. It tells them that you are interested in what they are saying and that they are dealing with a professional. I find that recapping my notes on a follow up call saves time and moves the sales process along. Instead of covering the same ground you can begin acting on the information gathered on the first call.

Don't worry about writing done complete sentences. Record the key words and ideas and leave space on the page to fill in the blanks after the meeting. Underline or circle points that you want to explore further or want to act on.

I've found that many sales people are reluctant to take notes during a call. They seem to feel that note taking is awkward or inappropriate. I suggest you make a point of taking notes during calls in the next few weeks. You'll find that this practice will have a "notable" impact on your sales results.

Keep smiling, keep selling.

Thanks--Jim Busch