Five Mistakes Made By Salespeople

Like most of us, sales people are no different in the fact that they make mistakes too. When mistakes are made in the selling environment, rarely do they get a second opportunity. These common mistakes made by sales people can be avoided and sales success can be achieved.

Here are some of the mistakes often made by ineffective sales people:

Mistake #1 - Pre-call Preparation

Does little or no research prior to the contact.

Sales people should use all available resources (Internet, Facebook, Google, Linkedin, etc) to research information on the company or specific contact. People appreciate other people who show an interest in their well-being and not just themselves. Don’t fail to educate yourself on your perspective client or contact.

Mistake #2 - Presentation Skills

Uses an inflexible sales process that is robotic in nature.

Sounding like a recording is a real turnoff to prospects. It does not demonstrate an interest in the person and makes them feel like they are treated like everyone else. Customize your presentation and allow for specific questions based on your research to make the customer feel like they and they alone are special and you took extra time and effort to talk to them.

Mistake #3 - The Closer

Lacks an effective close.
Listening throughout the sales presentation is the key factor in enabling the sales person to close the sale. Establishing the need must be completed before a trial close can even be made. Needs satisfaction is the best principle to use when determining the need to close and what close to use. A close can only occur when the need of the customer has been satisfied by the features and benefits of your product.

Mistake #4 - Relationship Building

Does not establish trust.
Trust is the common dominator to establishing a sale. Gaining favorable attention and establishing rapport are the two key ingredients to the start of a presentation. Both enable you to get the customer to elaborate on the specific need for which your solution is appropriate. Rapport building is also a component of understanding the behavioral style of the buyer to insure a better relationship.

Mistake #5 - Post call activity

Does not follow-up with client in a timely manner.
Most sales people fail to follow-up in a timely manner. Focus your follow-up correspondence (Letter, e-Mail, Text, or Fax) on the benefits that will be demonstrated once the solution is in place. Your product or service is just that solution. Even if the customer doesn’t buy today, make sure you use a CRM system to follow-up periodically. Testimonials and product or service success stories make a great follow-up.

Executive Summary: Sales people must understand their own selling styles and preferences and also recognize and understand Customer Buying Styles. Sales is all about building relationships. Relationship Selling allows you to adapt to your customer’s Buying Style so that a better connection between sales person and customer can be achieved. People who connect better to customers in a shorter period of time close more sales.

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