Stay in the Game – A Strategy for Salespeople
What does sales success look like to you? Think about how many first-time encounters you’ve made in sales. Then think about how many follow-ups you do when your first attempts don’t end in a close.
We can liken most sales scenarios to batting in baseball. A typical baseball season is 162 games. A hitter is considered great if his batting average is .300. Mickey Mantle said, “During my 18 years in baseball, I came to bat 9,000 times. I struck out over 1,700 times and I walked over 1,800 times. That means I played 7 years in the major leagues without ever hitting a ball.”
If a baseball season is 162 games and a hitter is successful if he fails 70% of the time, then what is your sales season? What is the magic number that denotes success in your market? For most sales models, success means failing 80% of the time. We’re successful if we close only 20% of the leads, deals, customers, what-have-you. That sounds crazy, but if you’re closing at 20%, you’re probably bringing home a nice paycheck.
What is your season? What are your stats? How many times are you “connecting” with your customer? Whatever those numbers are, don’t focus on the times when you strike out. Focus on the hits. If you hit a slump (when you encounter your own sales reluctance, impatience, or procrastination) keep your head in the game, get back up to bat. You have to swing the bat to hit the ball.
Don’t be reluctant. Get up to bat again and again. Even though you might strike out several times in a row. Each miss brings you that much closer to your next success. Don’t be lazy—don’t procrastinate. Procrastination avoids following up on leads.
Connect with customers by creating a relationship—a partnership. Show empathy, and be genuine. Lead with your heart and not your wallet. But most of all…
“Stay in the Game”
