How to be good sales

7 steps to becoming a great salesperson

Persistence is a sales person’s number one asset in the face of the many challenges they will be
presented with on a day-to-day basis

Ability and willingness to listen

The most successful salespeople listen to their clients. Rather than launching into a meeting or call with
an over-rehearsed spiel, you should be able to listen to what a client actually wants and adapt your sales
pitch and/or business proposal accordingly. If you speak in terms that your client can directly relate to
by, for example, showing them the money you can specifically save or make them, you are far more
likely to strike a chord.

The ability to maintain focus

Having said all this, you need a clear understanding of the ‘sales process’, from how you target and
approach appropriate leads to how you approach sales meetings. Ultimately, you should never lose sight
that it’s your job to sell and generate revenue.

Strong communication skills

To be a successful sales person, you need to be strong on the phone to get your foot in the door at a
client and then strong in meetings to ultimately close a deal. But - most importantly of all – you’ll need
excellent communication skills to recognise the individual characteristics and needs of your clients.
You’re ultimately looking to gain their trust and become an advisor they turn to.

A hunger to learn

Customers tend to trust and respect knowledgeable salespeople. By the same token, they will also lost
interest at the first mistake made by a salesperson who is unprepared. You should therefore be seeking
to learn about their product, industry and competitors at every available opportunity. This knowledge is
what will ultimately allow you to be the trusted advisor you’re seeking to become.

Persistence

Persistence is a sales person’s number one asset in the face of the challenges they will be presented
with on a day-to-day basis. If you’re the sort of person who gives up at the first sign of difficulty, sales is
not for you. Whether a deal is rejected, a competitor makes an improvement to their product offering or
a business you have been dealing with can’t afford the minimum price set by your company, you need to
be able to react positively.

Essentially, you need to understand that you’ll put a lot of work into deals that ultimately come to
nothing. But – at the same time – there’s another opportunity just round the corner.