Becoming a gold-medal salesperson requires some of the same strategies used by top-level Olympic athletes. Stretching, practicing, competing and using feedback from your coach are all excellent ways to grow in sales. Improve your sales performance by learning to think like an Olympic superstar. Here are a few tips to get you started.
1. Stretch Regularly
Reaching for the gold requires stepping outside of your comfort zone. Do you have a pattern that you repeat regularly because it produces results that are good enough? Sticking to that same pattern is not going to boost your sales performance. Instead, you have to stretch yourself a little further. Ask more people for referrals. Follow through on difficult leads. Make one more phone call when you think a path is a dead end. Try a new sales technique. Taking calculated risks can make you uncomfortable, but it is a great way to build a larger sales network that reaches new clients.
2. Try to Beat Your Own Record
Let competition drive you to better sales performance, but don't focus on competing against the other guy. Instead, look at your own totals, and strive to beat them. The best Olympic athletes strive continually to beat their own scores. They realize that their top levels might be well above those records set by the competition. Use the same strategy to push yourself to improve and discover your own personal best.
3. Solicit Feedback
Regular and timely feedback shows you both where you're going wrong and what you are doing right so that you can make modifications and do better the next time. Athletes talk to their coaches after each competition and regularly during practice. Build your own coaching network to help you with your sales performance. Look to your manager for tips on doing better. Compare notes with your co-workers to learn from each other. Consider joining or developing a mentor program for support and feedback. Most importantly, make sure you are using feedback to make changes for better sales results.
4. Maintain an Olympic Frame of Mind
Olympic competitors know that having the right mindset is essential to being able to stretch further, compete their hardest and listen to constructive feedback. Cultivate the mindset of a winner to give yourself a solid foundation for improving your sales performance. Start by knowing the value of your expertise and your product. Then, approach clients as an equal, not a vendor. Remember that you are bringing them opportunities to improve their businesses and that your advice can help them grow. Make sure that you really know your product or service, and listen carefully to prospective clients so that you are able to work with them to best meet their needs.
Aim for an Olympic-level sales performance by remembering your worth, seeking out coaches and striving to reach new goals. Try keeping a training journal to track your progress as you work towards the gold. With the right mindset and a few clear goals, you might be able to go beyond beating the competition and reach new levels of success as you beat your own personal best results.
Photo courtesy of khunaspix at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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