General Forums >> Self-Improvement >> What should I study to prepare for a Sales Career?
What should I study to prepare for a Sales Career?
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Posted 2 months ago Most salespeople choose not to study their profession. Thats why 80% of the sales force struggles from week to week. The top 20% study sales. It's that simple. So what should I study? If sales is 90% or more about ATTITUDE, spend 90% of your study time reading how to develop & maintain a PMA. There are books, CDs & tapes with subjects like "Think & Grow Rich -Napolean Hill, See you at the Top-Zig Ziglar, 21 Secrets to Self Made Millionaires- Brian Tracy, to name just a few. The rest of your study time should be on Selling Techniques whether you are in Phone Sales or Face to Face. Subjects like How &What to Say on a call, How to Prepare for a Call, Selling Proccesses, Handling Objections, Overcoming Natural Sales Resistance and on and on and on. If you want to be SUCCESSFUL in sales STUDY SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE! If you study one subject 1 hour per day for 3 years, you will have the equivelant of a college degree. If you study that same subject 1 hour a day for 5 years you will be a NATIONAL EXPERT. IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITIES, IMAGINE THE INCOME! HAVE FUN. STUDY STUDY STUDY and just do what the pros do.
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| Posted 2 months ago This is a really good question. Colleges decided to make a business degree a science and the thought process is to teach management skills and it gradually grew to what it is today. Originally developed during the industrial revolution. Variation is the key like getback is suggesting. Study sales,marketing, and management,self help books. From health to mental self help books.Once you have the ability to think of yourself as the owner operator of the company you can reach unbelieveable heights when you decide you want to do this and provide the action to reach those goals. The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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| Posted 2 months ago
Since starting writing in forums a few weeks ago I am now more than ever convinced that the 80/20 rule is still working. Several people have started forums and they almost all turn negative.
What is sad is that this is a site for sales people who when asked say that having a PMA is 90%+ of the game. Yet so many comments turn bad. There seems to be a group that stick together and nit pick and look for the BAD in what people say & do.
Just because someone has a lot of "points" does not mean they are an "expert" in handing out advice. It just means they have a lot of free time to respond to all of the different forums on this site.
Just because one has a lot of experience selling in one industry does not make one an expert in sales. If sales is all about having the right attitude, I would rather learn from someone who has a lot of experience in attitude. Sales is sales. Whether it's inside or O/S sales is sales. So, to me it's ALL about having the "RIGHT" attitude.
Why can't these forums stay on the subject matter? Probably because the neg reps want to show what they "think" they know. So, if they have negative thinking they are passing out negative advice.
It's obvious that 20% of us are looking to share advice and experiences. And it's even more evident that 80% of the respondents just don't get it. But as B. T. says. "that's OK without the 80%s. there would not be a 20%.
I imagine that I will be slammed for this comment and that's OK. I could probably even predict who will say what. That's because success is predictable and so is failure. Again as BT says "success is as predictable as the sun rising in the east and setting in the west."
For those of you just staring out in the "GREAT' profession of sales, be proud of what you do. Study your profession. Study as much as you can on ATTITUDE, the techniques will come. Look for the good in this site and the different forums. For those of us veterans who are positive thinkers, stay positive and pass on your good advice and look for the good in things. This site is not about "points.' It's about sharing and helping and THAT is what sales & life is all about.
These are my comments and my opinion and thank God we are all entitled to have one.
HAPPY SELLING, HAVE FUN! STUDY, STUDY, STUDY. (and when you are finished studying for the day, read one more chapter). |
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| Posted 2 months ago Mike I am in this site and others to study people and sales professionals.I want to know other sales professionals process. What I find interesting the priciples are identical. The process is different. Seeing others highly successful is a turn on. What I really like is the difference between women and men. This is what I am researching for a book. Showing the differences between male and female yet they share the similar goals. The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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87 posts back to top |
| Posted 2 months ago Rich, in my seminars I teach the same subjects to both Male & Female. Results are results. As a manager I don't care where they come from. If my TOP producer is a cross dresser, I don;t care! |
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| Posted 2 months ago I agree. I just am amazed at how different they are and they do produce positive results. The research is to help prove their are different processes and they do work. It also proves that there are common principles that drive the success and without the principles you have limited chances tosuccess. What I am finding out is the relationship building is the major difference. It is facinating. I am going over 23 different sales processes that include both men and women. It also includes different countries and different levels of sales success.Everyone I am researching is b2b. I need to find some that deal with b2c and compare them. The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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| Posted 2 months ago Creative writing is a great way to prepare for sales. The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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235 posts back to top |
| Posted 2 months ago Rich, what are you talking about? What 23 sales processes? As far as men and women in the field of sales, I do not think there are any major differences. Sales people are salespeople, no matter their sex, and I can't think of how we would build relationships differently then men. having worked in predominantly male dominated fields, I pretty much see us all as selling similar, just with our own personalities involved. But that would happen if you were comparing 100 men. Same or similar process, 100 different personalities, and then an additional set of different personalities from the prospects. Maybe I am missing something? MAKE it a Fantastic Day!
"What the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve."
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| Posted 2 months ago Claudia I invited both men and women to send me thier typical sales process. I invited 36 however I have 23 different sales professionals daily routine and they are different. The prinicples of the sale are similar however how they go about the sales process is different. There are huge differences between men and women on the approach and how they build and nurture the relationship. There are differences in the style they present the proposal. Sales is sales is saying automobiles are automobiles however a rambler is not the same as a bmw.Each gets you to where you want to and some have a better ride. Sure you can get 100 men together the same with 100 men. Yepper some will be similar and some will be different. The exact same things that we visit on a daily basis here in sales hq the majority have a different way to go about receiving the same desired outcome. They are not wrong in what they do ,no one is suggesting that. It is different. Of the number of women's sales process I have found the majority are more simllar and different from the way that men handle thier sales process.Starting with the intial contact and how they speak to the client. So far another difference is the concept of what is important to the client between the men and women sales professional.Now I am nto saying that you will not find a man or women who are not similar. However an example ., Two pictures one a picture of a golf and the other apicture of family. The majority of men talked about golf majoirty of women talked about family. Subtle differences that allowed both of them to reach the desired goal. However they are differences. I can go on and on but then why write the book.
The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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235 posts back to top |
| Posted 2 months ago Rich, Is this a controlled group? Are they all from the same industry? Are they inside or outside sales? There are so many variables here, and yet we just cannot generalize any of it without knowing the variables. Also, I can take 10 women and 10 men, and depending on their backgrounds, exp, industry, etc, could cause that example to flip. Not, in my opinion, a very reliable study. We have to be more specific Rich, and also more consistant when doing studies. For example, take a group of 100 people, Divide them into 5 groups., 4 of these groups have "different" tasks, products, indsutries, etc, whatever you may want to put there, but the 5th should be a controlled group. Forgive my writing skills today, I worked very late last night, am working on a big project, and unfrotuately put sleep on the back burner, as much as I know it is important! We don't always do the right thing, lol! Rich, here is another example, what if you had 100 men that just did not like sports at all, in any way, what do you think their choice would be? Or, 100 women athletes? Totally different results. Hope I made some sense, lol. Oh well, go with the flow! Just want to help you make your survey a little more accurate, and also not sound so chauvinistic! I know some female golf pros that would take exception to this, as well as some family men! :) MAKE it a Fantastic Day!
"What the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve."
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| Posted 2 months ago I am not going to argue this. It is not a scientific study. What I am attempting to show , the basic principles are similar however each person has a different style of delivery,how they approach the sale. The difference in the presentation styles. The difference in proposals. How they discover what is important to the client. There are variables to selling in the same industry I belong. Yes you can pick ten men and ten women who are identical. I am not proving that or disproving that. That is not my point. My point is each person can do it differently and accomplish the exact same feat. That people can be different and accomplish highly successful results and that each is correct.Someone does not have to be wrong for the other to be correct. I am not really interested in the exceptions. You know the golf pro who picks up on the golf picture and decides to talk about that instead of the fmaily. I can pick 100 females on the street and what are the chances of me finding a golf pro. However send me to a golf tournament dinner and the chances are higher. Yep we can pick out with any event or tiem the exceptions and the differences. You asked for an example of how they are different I gave you an example. However the basic principles of selling in an industry will be similar however, how it is done is different. Examples of different; sandler training, selling to Vito,solution selling to name a few.Each have a different philosphy and each get the desired result but they have basic core principles that they follow thatcare similar.
Yes you are exactly correct if I have a controlled enviroment I can control the outcome. The trick here is I am not controling the outcome or enviroment. When you randomly pick 100 men I am betting that you will not find all 100 men do not like sports.However I put an add for 100 men who do not like sports and then use them in a asurvey I am conrolling the enviroment and outcome. Again this is merely to show others that they do not have to be the same to reach a desired goal. You make it your own and use that attitude to grow higher than you ever thought you could. I do not think you underastand what I am trying to accomplish. I will be taking all of the different sales process that I have and presenting thier way to others. An example; taking Zig Ziglar, Brian Tracy , Tom Hopkins Stephan Shiffman and presenting each one in one book.Do I need to insert 1000's of other sales authors or gurus for this book to be great?
1 : careful or diligent search Let us concentrate on number 3
The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
Join me at http://twitter.com/rich34232
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4511 posts back to top |
| Posted 2 months ago I think sometimes we over complicate sales. In another sales site I asked a simple question of what do you do with your time? In this particular site each answer from each sales professional believed a hidden reason for this question. Each assumed what I really meant by what do you do with your time. Each response started out I think he is asking this and then answered the question. In this site with that same question I was pleasantly surprised by Jack and Gold's response. They answered it with what they do with thier time. Sometimes the sales process is a simple process with no hidden agendas. What we need to study, all aspects, so we are prepared to understand our clients. Mental ,physical, and techniques we need to understand that there are many ways to accomplish and gain results with the sales profession. We defend the way we are most secure and have had the most success. Some scientific ,some is art and still others is sales will and or sales skill. Practical use that has provided a highly successful sales strategy.We must remember that the science of sales did not start to be a taught skill until the industrial revolution.At this time it was taught to teach management and grew into what it is today. What do we need to study ;everything and anything that helps expand our capabilities and the expansion of our minds. The time is now to grow and learn as much as possible. Take action and responsibility for your actions
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