There is still one area in which every organization and individual can improve—that is in sales.
I have one client who has experienced a 20 percent increase in sales in a single year, while the competition’s level of sales has decreased by roughly the same amount. The difference was not due to a better product or a lower price.
Rather, the increase in sales and resulting profits happened simply because the organization made a commitment to improving their business sales effort.
People in business typically underestimate the value of the selling process because they usually assume that selling is something a person is either good or bad at doing.
To the contrary, selling is a learned skill, and even if most of us are not willing to admit it, we have been doing it since the first time we asked for an allowance or asked someone for a first job.
This article is for every individual who performs sales or has a business that would benefit from an increase in sales.
I have discovered that there are five principle methods for learning how to sell.
The first method involves trial and error. This encompasses people who began selling without any type of education or training. The individual typically begins making presentations that either do or do not secure orders.
At some point, fed up with the total amount of rejection they face a decision is made to find another job. Candidly, this “trial and error” method is a major reason why most startup businesses fail.
The person who starts the business never learned how to sell and when their cash reserves vanish, so does the business.
Fortunately, selling does not have to be this way. If we approach the selling effort as if it were a class or a research project, the odds of succeeding are in our favor.
Acquired knowledge on sales will certainly bring power. The good news is that you do not have to spend money to gain this knowledge.
The public library can (and should be) a tremendous resource for people working to improve their sales abilities.
