Some Advice for Sales Newcomers

 

New to sales? It can be an intimidating industry, and not every salesperson is fortunate to have a quality mentor to help guide him or her. When a newbie is entering the field during a recession, the transition to experienced salesperson may be even more difficult. Author of Selling to Big Companies and contributor to Rain Today, Jill Konrath has some advice for new salespeople.

Inspired by a recent discussion with a co-worker about advising a new salesperson, Konrath got to thinking about what guidance she would impart. In her article “ Sales Basics: Top 5 Tips for New Sellers,” she lays out what she believes every new salesperson should know and follow to be successful when starting out. Below, I’ve included a particular tip that stands out for me personally, and the remaining tips can be found here. After reading them, do any strike you as good advice? Is she missing a vital piece of advice?

Slow Down to Speed up Your Sales

This was one of the hardest things for me to learn. When I first started selling, I was so eager to be successful. I tried to wow my prospects with my great product knowledge. I closed often and early. But the more I tried to rush things, the more resistant to moving forward my prospects became. They’d throw out obstacles and objections that I couldn’t overcome. When I learned to slow down, parcel information out over multiple meetings, and simply advance the sales process one step at a time, suddenly my sales increased.

When you’re scared about not getting the business, your prospects can intuitively sense your fear. One of the major symptoms is rushing the sales process.