The Sales Profession

The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style.

Selling is a craft. Craftsmanship in selling is a satisfying and rewarding profession. Like every craft there are fundamental skills that are required. The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style. The fundamentals of the the professional salesman consist of:

• Building meaningful relationships
• Understanding the needs of your customers
• Making recommendations using features and benefits
• Resolving objections and closing the sale
• Following through and obtaining the next sale

ACTION POINT: Study and master the craft of selling.

Following Through

Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

When you follow through, you do more than you need to. Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

• Regularly check how things are progressing internally, and communicate effectively to everybody involved on a day-to-day basis.
• Send your customers a list of follow-up activities and deliverables', including dates; make sure you meet them consistently.
• Let your customer know well in advance if for some reason you can't meet a deliverable.
• Send emails updated your customers requesting a response. This instills confidence that you have their interests in mind all the time.

ACTION POINT: Surprise your customers by following through.

Following Up

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter.

Follow-up is doing whatever you committed to do at the end of the sales meeting with your customer. It is a process that you initiate to ensure that objectives are accomplished and commitments are fulfilled.

It is your responsibility to make sure that all of your organization's resources are doing what is needed to move the relationship to the next level. Will the samples be there on time? Is everyone aware of and able to meet the agreed upon delivery dates? Is the team committed to participate in the next meeting?

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter. This can be a letter, an email, or even a handwritten note--whatever suits both your style and the occasion--but must follow every call. The letter should thank the customer for their time, review what was discussed, and define the next steps. It can also serve as a reminder of who committed to do what by when.

ACTION POINT: Follow up on every single sales call you make.

Moving Beyond the Close

if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

After you have closed, you earn yet another great opportunity to differentiate yourself from the competition. Following through goes beyond just following up on your promises--doing what you said you would do professionally and on time. Following through means exceeding what's expected of you and so sending the clear message to your customers that you are consistently thinking about them.

Time speeds by. It's not hard for 90 days to pass before you realize that you haven't made any contact with a customer. "Out of sight...out of mind" may be a cliche, but it's true: and if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

ACTION POINT: To prevent long silences, track how often you make contact with your customers. Use whatever suits your style to record every face-to-face meeting, as well as pone calls, letters, and emails.

6.4.2 Art of Communication

Many times what we communicate is not really what we mean.

Accurate communication is close to impossible verbally. A person remembers very little of what he hears. There is little wonder why distortion and confusion abound with verbal communication. Written documentation is a must for communication to have any chance of accurate transfer.

We must also be aware that the sender has their own problems. Many times what we communicate is not really what we mean. Many times it is not effective, it does not get the job done. As we try to communicate both parties have inherent responsibilities. If at all possible, communicate in writing.

ACTION POINT: Communicate clearly both verbally and with the written word.