Time and again, in my long career in sales, I have come across terrible salesmen who fail despite their good performance in interviews. The failure may not be the fault of the individual.
Salesmen’s ineffectiveness can be due to multiple reasons that are not fully controlled by the salesperson. They falter because of a lack of selling skills, inadequate sales knowledge, inaccurate information about the industry, and even the absence of good leadership. Hence, good and successful sales managers always scrutinise their subordinates and identify the type of behaviour, traits, skills, and creativity that are discussed below.
What is the difference between a good and a bad salesperson? The simplest answer is that a bad salesperson cannot sell. However, it is more complex than it appears. Failures in sales most often do not arise from a lack of selling skills but rather from the personality traits, attributes, and attitudes of the salesman.
During my long career in sales, I have come across people who are not really interested in sales but take over a sales job only because they need employment. This is one of the key reasons for failure in sales performance. The frequently heard phrase regarding this is that there were no other alternatives at the time, and I was compelled to become a salesman.
To prove this sentiment wrong, the salesman must immediately change his or her attitude after getting into selling. Selling as a profession is complex and needs a commitment. Hence, the salesman must ‘love’ the job to be successful.
Attitude
In sales, a half-hearted attitude does not work. However, a portion of these newcomers, who enter into selling because they have no alternative, adjust to the sales profession quickly and carry on for the rest of their careers.
It was revealed by studies that most salespeople fail at the closing stage due to fear of rejection. Such salesmen keep postponing the closing of a transaction and producing excess details for the customer. The salesmen must be taught that their job requires rolling with the punches.
In selling, “ego-driven” or persistence amidst rejection, is a key theory to facing rejections or refusals. It is true that in the face of repeated rejections that can happen to any salesman, energy levels and confidence can take a nose-dive. Yet, good salesmen, with a battle-hardened mentality, go on unperturbed.
In my experience, I have seen companies, particularly small and medium-sized organisations, throw salespeople into the deep end without induction and product knowledge training stints. This is a grave mistake. Nothing can be more embarrassing in a sales situation than being asked a basic question about the product and having no correct answer to give readily. Selling requires an abundance of preparation, training, and practice.
The failure rate can be high if the salesman is too lazy to study the product he sells, the company, and the competition. As believed long ago, just the gift of gab or charm does not work any longer. The famous slogan joke-telling, cigar-smoking, back-slapping image created by Arthur Miller’s celebrated 1949 stage play ‘Death of a Salesman’ does not work with modern, well-informed customers. Therefore, salespeople must possess thorough knowledge of the product, company, competition, and industry. Excellent and effective sales professionals must have a lifetime of motivated and active learning.
Often, newcomers to the selling profession assume that selling is talking, and most of them love it. This belief is totally wrong. Selling is a communicative process. Although the presentation skills where the salesperson takes centre stage are extremely important, listening to the customer to fathom his needs, feelings, and ideas are also important ingredients in sales success.
Approach
If the salesperson’s approach is monopolised by chattering, the customer may feel that the salesman is trying to force him to buy. No customer in this world likes to be sold. They always like to buy it. A salesperson’s constant pratfalling is not only irritating, but it may give the customer the impression that the salesperson is attempting to force-feed him. Hence, while conversing effectively, the salesperson must also intently listen to the customer.
Selling is done through communication, where both speaking and listening play a pivotal role. During this process, the salesperson should ask questions to understand the customer’s exact needs. Asking appropriate questions not only improves relationships with customers but also gets the salesman closer to completing the sale.
Asking the most fitting questions during the sales conversation is a methodical art that may take time to master. Salesmen sometimes lose sales because they do not have the right questions for the customer.
Empathy is an extremely important ingredient in salesmanship. Getting into the customers’ shoes to think like them is called empathy. Selling is a people-centric profession, and the social skills of the salesperson matter greatly in a selling situation.
Social skills for salespeople are important to open up a friendly and pleasant conversation with the customer.
No customer in the world would like to continue a discussion with a pompous person. Human nature is such that they always like others to be empathetic and understanding. Salesmen flop because they fail to establish an authentic connection with customers, over and above sales relationships.
When someone becomes a passionate seller, he or she attempts every trick they have learnt to make a sale. However, when the customer declines to buy, half the salesmen give up and turn to the next prospect. According to studies, at least 50% of salesmen abandon the prospect immediately after the rejection of the customer.
However, good salespeople usually start the second attempt unless they know for sure that the customer has purchased the product or service elsewhere.
Follow-up
Instant and well prepared follow up by way of a call, e-mail, or even a simple text message can re-open the communication. In follow-ups, replacing persistence with patience can be a good strategy. The salesman’s energy is important, but it is also important to balance follow-ups without being a nuisance.
Business is becoming more customer-centric. Hence, focusing on people rather than products is vital in modern markets. Prospects are concerned about how the products they purchase cater to their needs. They do not care about raw products any longer. Most unsuccessful salesmen focus on studying product features and mechanically studying benefits, yet neglect to place emphasis on people.
Selling is all about people and their behaviour. Therefore, understanding the psychological patterns of the customer segment the salesperson is catering to is of utmost importance. They must never meet customers without customising the sales pitch to their context and needs.
The good news is that any bad or mediocre salesperson can improve with self-commitment.
If the salesmen are making any of the above mistakes, they should rethink their new strategy and approach. Selling is a tough profession, but anyone can make changes in behaviour and become better. Behavioural modifications, sales training, and good sales leadership can help non-performing salespeople become great sales professionals.