If you do just a brief study of the tools available to the new sales professional today you have to be impressed. Cell phones, notebook computers, color copies, hundreds of books and instructional manuals focusing on every possible approach to selling.

The first step in growing in sales is to learn a sales technique and then begin Prospecting so you can use that sales technique. There are tons of materials available to teach Prospecting.

Our BLITZ CALL® System for Prospecting (www.BlitzCall.com ) is one of the very few that addresses face to face Prospecting for the field sales professional who should be BLITZ CALLing every day since they are in the field and driving past Prospects all the time.

However, with this wealth of resources, I still find sales people are having trouble growing their territories and customer base. The reason is simple, they aren't DOING what they need to do. Common sense would say that since all these resources are available, sales people have it really easy today. It isn't so.

So here is some simple Common Sense advice so all of you can grab any sales professional that is having trouble and teach them what to do.

First, get leads. I have found recently that some of my client sales people don't even know who their Prospects are! I haven't addressed this situation in years, so was kind of taken aback when it came up. How can you work in a territory and not know who your prospects are? The cure, read local papers, use business directories, visit the chamber of commerce, read signs on stores, businesses, trucks, cars, ask your customers, ask the people with whom you work. You should know every person in your territory that can use your products and services.

Second, select a Prospecting system. Yes you need a system so select one and then learn it. Prepare the words that you are going to say, then Practice them out loud so you know them cold and are comfortable with them. The next step is simple, just go out and Prospect. Persist at Prospecting. Before you actually start, set up a follow up method since follow up is essential for any Prospecting system. Deciding how many Prospecting calls to make per week is important and then tracking those calls to be sure you actually make all of them is critical. All these elements are covered in The BLITZ CALL System Prospecting Kit or the books The BLITZ CALL and The Self Instruction Manual www.BlitzCall.com

Third, I think it is very important to have someone check with you on a weekly basis to see that you are actually doing all the steps in the process. If you have a sales manager, ask he/she to review your weeks Prospecting activities. If not a sales manager, have a peer, a friend, or a spouse. It is good to simply talk about your Prospecting activities with someone who can ask questions and cause you to think from someone else's perspective.

You would think that Common Sense would prevail when it comes to the selling process. After all it is relatively simple, find potential customers by Prospecting, discover their wants and needs using your questioning skills, present and sell your products and services using selling skills, keep the customers with great customer service. This is not rocket science.

Have a great week of Prospecting.

Sell Well and Often,

Bill Truax

© Copyright 2006 WJ Truax

I was asked to present ideas that would get them moving more products, that is, inspire the field force, if you will.

I fell back on the words of Vince Lombard, famed coach of the Greenbay Packers in the 1960’s. He focused on blocking and tackling. “Whenever you have a problem in football, it is because your guys aren’t blocking and tacking correctly. You aren’t doing the basics.”

So here is what I told them in a nutshell. You might be able to use this, since it is just as appropriate for good markets too.

First, Prospect. Be sure you have a significant number of new people coming into your system all the time. This is especially important when your market is down since you don’t know who will buy or when.

Second, have a lot of open end questions ready to so you can dig in and find out the real wants and needs of each of your Prospects.

Third, know the Features and Benefits of your products and services. I know this is basic stuff. But I could retire if I was given a dollar for every sales person I can find that doesn’t know the difference between the Features and Benefits for their products. It is hard to show how your products and services will meet the needs of your Prospect if you aren’t comfortable talking about Benefits.

Fourth, keep at it – Persist.

For many of us sales people, we don’t have to use many of our selling skills. Our customers just continue to re-order, so all that sales training we have gotten isn’t used much.

When our markets are down, that is when we need to use those selling and presentation skills that we were taught and the company spent so much money on for us. But often our selling skills “muscles have atrophied.”

So review all your sales manuals, rehearse with your sales team members, because it is back to basics again/still.

And nothing is more important than Prospecting. Be sure to fully implement your Prospecting System. It makes life a lot easier.

Sell Well and Often,

Bill Truax

Bill@BlitzCall.com

PS If you are interested in the BLITZ CALL Prospecting System and our self learning Prospecting Kit, go to www.BlitzCall.com It will probably be the only Prospecting training you will ever have!!!!

© copyright 2007 WJ Truax

Ask Bill Truax

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