Phil Lauterjung

When one has been in sales for more than a few years you think you’ve got it down pretty well.  If this recession has had any positives, it’s that we have had to examine our professional assumptions.

Difficult times force us to face reality as it is, not as we thought it was.  If you haven’t worked through this process it’s not too late.  If you’ve been out of work and frustrated with the lack of opportunities, now is the time to reassess.  If you have a job with constant pressure to “make the numbers”, this is for you too.

Here are six assumptions that you must address to make sure that you have a handle on reality today, and to position yourself for success.

“I know how to sell; I’ve been a top salesperson everywhere I’ve been”

Until now?  Ask yourself how many of those past deals did you sell by uncovering customer needs and clearly articulating how your company’s products and services address those needs.  Or were you simply in the right place at the right time because you put in more hours than the next person?  This process requires you to be brutally honest with yourself.

At one point you learned a sales methodology, and probably think you remember it well.  Go back and review those training materials from long ago.  Or take a refresher course, or even check out a different one.  You will be surprised at what you thought you remembered and have stopped practicing.

“I still know how to prospect.”

When business is good who really has time to prospect?  When the good times come to an end you have to prospect.  Today is very different from a few short years ago.  Buyers can find far more information without you than ever before.  You have heard of the internet haven’t you?

Today you need to do better research than ever before, and you need to use internet “listening” tools to discover those trigger events within a prospect company that spell opportunity for you.  (See Sales Tools for ‘Warm’ Cold Calling).

Your value proposition must do three things:  provoke interest with your prospect, persuade him that you have something of value, and propose action that he must take.  And in a few short sentences.

“At least I can rely on my good, established customers.”

So, tell me, how has that been working out for you?  The lesson here, if you haven’t already figured it out is to assume nothing!

You need to make sure that whoever your good, old reliable contacts were are still decision makers.  Who else has been added to the decision process that you don’t know?  You also need to know what their current drivers are for making buying decisions.  Chances are very good that those have changed significantly during this recession.

“I know my prospects and market pretty well.”

It used to be enough to get basic info from contact lists, check the company web site, and read an annual report.  Not any more.  Your competitors are doing more and you need to as well.

You need to set up news alerts for those key prospects so that anything about them hits your inbox instantly.  You need to do keyword searches on their products and services, along with their competitors; looking for those trigger events that spell opportunity.  Expand your search beyond the big three (Google, Yahoo, and Bing).  Regardless of how you feel about Twitter and Facebook, there is a lot of conversation going on about business.  You need to make sure you are at least listening and searching those conversation streams.

“Our marketing department is doing something to support sales.”

When was the last time you actually had a lengthy conversation with someone in marketing?  Do they know what you know about the current marketplace?  Do you know what they are doing to support your sales efforts?  How often is there meaningful, insightful dialog between sales and marketing in your company?

Go and ask questions about the metrics they are using for their analysis of customer buying patterns.  Find out what they would like to know about the market that you already know share it with them.  Make marketing your partner!

“I have a message (pitch) that works.”

Are you sure about that?  Every one of your customers and prospects are trying to do more, or the same, with fewer people.  Have you simplified your messaging to get it across in a short amount of time?  Do your voice mail messages convey your message in 20-30 seconds, or do you ramble on about how you’re just following up for the 23rd time and you know they’re busy and you hope they find the time to call you back sometime this year… STOP!

Make sure that your value proposition is a few short sentences and deliver them strongly with a brief, very brief, reference to another company that you have already helped.  Preferably a company that they would recognize and respect.  Practice your messaging over and over and deliver it with confidence.

So there you have six challenges to work on.  What have I left out?  Comment in the box below and let’s get to work helping each other achieve greater success.

Photo Credit: © Photo168 - Fotolia.com

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