Sales and Marketing Warrior

Like any other job being a salesperson is also tough as there is an uncertainty attached to the profile. You meet different clients with varied needs and desires. In the initial days you may find it really difficult because, however well you prepare for a call you may have to face situations which you had never dreamt of. On the contrary, this is also a reason why sales is an exciting job.You never know what's in store for you.       But once you grow in the role, you identify certain clusters of clients or situations and you program yourself to handle them accordingly.Taking the various cues into consideration you switch yourself to that programmed mode and you handle the call based on your assumptions. There.. I said it.. "Assumption". This is a very dangerous term in sales and it will even cost you the sale. We tend to be a ' Know it all salesperson'. The truth is, even if you are a very seasoned salesperson, you may go wrong in your assumptions.          

Procrastination: "The action of delaying or postponing something" The above mentioned is the reason why there was no blog post here last month. I guess this phenomenon happens to everyone, it does happen to me all the time. Since I have had this realization many times in the past, I decided that now I should sit and act immediately. This tendency to delay things can cause serious harm when it comes to sales. It creates a sense of guilt and anxiety and procrastinating does not make the task go away.Salespeople often tend to procrastinate the following activities Making calls for new prospects Returning phone calls or emails Informing the client that you cannot satisfy their requirement and many more What causes the salesperson to procrastinate? You want to avoid the discomfort that might be caused by that action You feel it is really simple, so you can do it at a later time Self doubt. You are unsure of completing the task. So you rather not start it

When you're in the field, meeting people after people, how can you identify which of these people are really worth your time? This is known as qualifying prospects. A lead is a potential buyer. A prospect is a lead that is qualified or determined to be ready, willing and able to buy. For qualifying prospects you need to ask him questions to determine if he has the desire and ability. One of the biggest and common mistakes salespeople make is to right away present the product to the prospect without even trying to understand what the prospect wants. You need to sit back and do some probing to make sure you are talking to right person. Prospects will want to talk if they are asked the right questions. 5 ways for qualifying prospects are as follows #1 Does your prospect have a need? Is your customer actually having the need for your product or service? If he doesn't, no matter how great your pitch/sales presentation is, he will not say a yes. #2 Does he/she have the

When we get into a sales career  we commit lot of blunders and mistakes. We carry along with us lot of wrong assumptions and most of us learn from those mistakes and that make us more wiser salespeople. So what are those 7 common blunders that we often make? Blunder #1 Thinking what the client tells you is the exact problem We often think that the client is being honest about why he is not interested in your offering. But he might be lying to you in order to hide the exact reason . He might say that he did not like the colour of the product but actually he might not be able to afford it. So as a salesperson you need to put an extra effort to understand the exact problem and try to find a solution for it. Blunder #2 Talking and talking and talking....... I have often heard people say to a talkative person, "You are good for sales". I disagree. It might help you in certain situations but not all. Salespeople often think they need to be talking all the time but actually t

If you are in sales, people often ask you how you are able to work in an environment when the axe is always hanging over your head.  Well I believe that no matter what job you are in there is an axe which hangs above your head, and if you are in sales you will atleast have better control of the axe!! Now what are some pros and cons of a career in sales? Income: Pros: Sales people are one of the most highly paid employees in an organization. They bring in the revenues so they are really important for the organization Cons: As Spider-man's Uncle Ben says, “With great power comes great responsibility”, with high incomes comes great accountability and responsibility Freedom/Flexibility: Pros: You need not be confined to a cubicle or an office if you are in sales. You have the freedom and flexibility to be in the market, travel around meet people etc. Cons: As long as you have that freedom, you will be on your own. Challenging: Pros: The sales job is really

As promised in my previous post, let me tell you why I strongly feel that sales is not that bad. Are you able to pick up the phone and communicate confidently, demonstrating some charm to the person on the other end, who most of the time will probably be a complete stranger? This is an invaluable business skill which will come to you automatically once you spend some time in sales.In almost every role you go into there will be some element of sales. For instance when you go for a job interview you have to sell yourself, pitching yourself as a product and trying to convince them that the company will benefit from you.In a client meeting you will be convincing others of the value of the brand. The ability to sell is a critical skill. Lots of people do not want to do it because they are scared. Taking a sales job that forces you to learn and master the art of selling early on in your career is a great move.Part of making a sale is negotiating. We exercise negotiation at various