Sales Blog: Developing the Behaviors and Attitudes of a Successful Sales Professional

“Great dancers are not great because of their technique; they are great because of their passion.” A quote by the pioneer of modern dance and one of the most influential choreographers of the 20th century, Martha Graham. Graham describes the relationship between technique and passion in the art dance, but this relationship can also be applied to the art of selling. 

When managing a sales team, you cannot instill the “want to” in any of your constituents. The sales person needs to find their passion and keep striving to improve despite rejections. Other sales training courses focus solely on the techniques. These techniques include steps and activities that may yield higher revenue. Sandler Training focuses not only on these techniques but behaviors and attitudes necessary to take selling to the next level.

So, how can you change the attitudes of your sales team and help create more effective behaviors, ultimately improving the foundation of your business?  Here are three things your sales professionals can do on a daily basis, that will increase their organization, help them connect with more prospects, and aid them in the discovery their passion for the art of selling. 

1. Schedule time for cold calls – Often salespeople dread making cold calls, because of the rejection. By  ensuring your team schedules a time for cold calls and sticking to their assigned time, you can increase the likelihood that the calls will be made and more prospects will be contacted. An issue many sales people face in cold calling is the “I’ll think it over.” A more assertive attitude and creation of an upfront contract with the prospect, can solve this dilemma. Make sure your sales force lets their prospects know is all right to say no. By scheduling time in creating that upfront contract,  unnecessary additional time spent on cold calling can eliminate and your business can increase the number of prospects who are genuinely interested in your product.
2. Make business partners, not friends – Many times our high desire to be wanted and the need for approval can be putting our wallets on a diet, as you lose money due to free counseling. Have your sales team talk about the hard subjects, such as budget and expectations with prospects. By having these conversations, you can help to reduce the empathy your sales professionals hold for a prospect and stop giving inaccurate quotes. By practicing the behavior of building a business relationship, rather than a personal relationship your team can make the hard decisions and give prospects honest answers, ultimately helping close the deal and setting realistic expectations.
3. Stop limiting yourself by what’s inside your head – A lot of what people believe is true, actually is not true. Most things believed to be true are our beliefs not facts. Encourage your sales team to have a positive attitude, rather than thinking a prospect will not be interested in your product or service, because they have not called back. Beliefs cannot be turned into actions. If someone has not called back,  have your sales professional call them. Actions lead to results. The prospect might have a lot going on that week, or have forgotten to call you back. By changing your teams behaviors to take immediate action, you can increase the likelihood that a prospect will purchase your product.

By instilling these three attitudes and behaviors into your sales professionals, you can help your team master the art of selling while finding their passions. Thus, leading to a more impactful sales force with higher closing rates and more revenue for your business.