I think every entrepreneur, business or corporation wants to win more sales and keep them. In this article, I want to show you how to book our your diary like a pro, get more referrals, ask for the sale and get the sale – every time!
People say to me, Camilita I don’t like sales, well get used to it, you’re either selling or being sold to everyday. When you sell your husband, partner or wife an idea, you’re in sales. When your children want something, they sell to you. When you recommend a great product to someone else, you just sold that product largely without being paid for it.
So selling is not a bad thing . However, if you are in sales and not selling, your family will starve and you will end up broke! Plain and simple.
Ready to get more sales? Let’s get started.
1. Have a model sales week every week with:
- Sales calls
- Follow up calls
- Networking events
- Company meetings
- 3 way calls
- Webinars
- Hangouts / Facetime
- One to one or group bookings
- Income goal for that week
- Joint Venture Sessions
N.B. Put each activity into time slots in your calendar
2. Sync contacts – live / phone / media / etc.
Have a clear list of who you’re going to call or prospect. Be direct and focused – who is your target list/audience? You can be busy going after the wrong people, so it’s key to know your product/service and be clear why people would want your product/service. Do a spreadsheet, make a list of names, phone numbers and responses/actions from the calls you have. Have that list with you all the time so you can make sales calls in the car or between meetings or send messages online to your contacts. Go and find out a bit about your prospect/contact online so when you pick up the phone or send that message/email they know you have done your research about them. I hate when someone is trying to prospect me and they have no clue who I am because they didn’t even take the time to find out about me. Doing some research pays off.
3. On the phone…
- Smile
- Ask about them
- Ask or remind them where they met you and what you discussed
- Ask how you can help them
- Ask for the sale (if it leads to that)
- BAMFAM (Book a meeting from a meeting) FIND OUT MORE AT MY UPCOING 7 STEPS TO 7 FIGURE SALES® TRAINING EVENT – always, until you get a yes (like the dentist and doctors)
My strategy when on the phone:
- Have my goals in front of me so when I pick up that phone I’m asking for that
- Ask for referrals – do you know at least 10 people who…
Asking for referrals can double your warm market contact list if done correctly . As an example, this is what I do -Hey John, who else do you know who could use my service . I promise I won’ t call them and will wait until you have spoken with them . Who else do you know… .
If they are a cold call – get help speaking to the right person .
Again… John you don’ t know me but I need your help… . I’ ve just launched a start – up business in …and have an opportunity
for someone you may know to help me expand . Can I ask you to pass on my details to them and I can follow up with you say Mon / Tue / Etc .
Or– John, do you know anyone in the area who has a contact list / client list or runs a networking group that I could talk with?
4. At a networking event…
- Use your pitch – focus on the value you give, not how good your product is
- Become a serial business card collector
- Aim to BAMFAM at the event – have your diary and pen out or at least confirm a time to follow up on them to book an appointment.
- The goal is not to sell, it’s to network to find people who fit into your sales model – always.
- Take the time to phone everyone after the event and also send an email
- Connect with everyone on social media and start posting/messaging them specifically. Key: Be consistent on social media – people are watching you and so your audience is too.
- Go online and find out more about them
- Get on the phone with them – wherever in the world they are, use hangouts, skype. Facetime, webinars, etc.
Always remember, as much as we do online and on social media, it’ s so important to pick up the phone and talk to your prospects and potential clients . Arrange a time that is mutually beneficial for both of you . When you speak with them don’ t just focus on wanting the sale, talk about the benefit of your product / service too.
5. If they don’t answer, always leave a message
How many of us never leave a message to a prospect and never call back either? Sometimes you need to leave more than one message as they may not have gotten the first one – they may be on holiday. I remember following up on someone for one year in the past at least once a month, then once every 2 months. They eventually called back and I got the sale!
6. Ask for a low-level commitment
Say 3:45pm or 3:50pm for 10 minutes – usually you will be there for 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on their schedule and commitments. Most people, if you tell them 3pm they will think you’ll be there till 2pm – so ask for a low-level commitment for 15-20 minutes, a short enough time to be seen and heard and if you run over they are ok.
7. Be brief, exact, polite, on time and specific
Make sure that your prospect feels comfortable around you, if they aren’t comfortable they won’t buy. Remember it’s about them, not you. Share testimonials and stories – people remember stories. Don’t look or sound desperate, they can tell a mile off if you are. Find out about their circle of friends and colleagues, are they involved in any groups, activities, part of any clubs, associations, organisations? Would it be appropriate for you to come along as their guest to share your opportunity or just network?
8. Ask for the sale
So many people do an amazing presentation / slideshow / advert / launch event / opening and they share value. After they finish, they then talk about everything else than just asking the prospect to make a commitment. I was guilty of this – I would do an amazing presentation and then stop, hoping the client would ask me! I lost hundreds of thousands in sales because I didn’t just ask for the sale. When asking for the sale don’t just start from the bottom up, but from the top down in price. Give the best value first then work your way down. Be prepared to explain why and give suitable answers. Want help with your sales process, find out more here.
9. Ask for referrals – this here can triple your sales
In first business, I was a top sales professional in 2 companies with thousands of distributors. The reason I built fast was because I always asked for referrals. As an International Speaker & Trainer now, I am constantly asking ‘Who else do you know?’ or ‘Where can I speak?’ because speakers speak! With a referral, they now become a warm market lead, and people buy from people they know and brands they know, love and trust. So, make a list of your warm market leads and ask them for referrals. Take the time to go to their offices, homes, golf course, meetups, networking events and get ready to double or triple or even grow your contact list by 10 or 100 times more in 1 week.
10. Be prepared to work to different time zones
The world is such a small place right now that you can literally build a global brand from your home office or computer using the internet, so be prepared to work in different time zones.
- Find out products/services that are offered in their time zone
- Is there a Language barrier or otherwise?
- Have all pricing, materials and structure for the different countries you operate in before you do anything.
- Find a successful person in that country you can possibly partner with or learn from
- Make sure your website supports this growth
- Be prepared to travel to these different countries if need be.
11. Follow up with precision!
We have heard it many times that the fortune is in the follow up. How many times have you called a prospect once and then never called them again? Are you guilty of the ‘1 phone call syndrome’? Most sales people or start-ups in business generally fail here – they never follow up correctly. Statistics shows that most sales are made on the 5th–12th contact.
Tell me something, if your best client, a million-dollar client will come from your 5th-12th contact would you keep calling till that sale happened? The thing is, most people don’t. The prospect says, ‘not today’ and you think it’s a no. They say to call them in two weeks and you forget, they say connect with this person instead and you think they are just trying to get rid of you. No means not yet or not today. Find out more at my upcoming Sales Seminars.
Sometimes that contact is not for you but for someone else who can potentially open up some major doors for you, but because you are so focused on that one, you miss all the others you could get.
Follow up online is the same – keep them in the loop with everything – slowly, strategically and with precision.
12. Measure your success weekly – how?
- Income generating – that determines if you are winning or losing.
- New people you are engaged with or who are joining your team and business
- Business growth compared to the week or month before
- Getting referrals from your clients without them asking you or do you constantly have to go out to get new business?
- Who is talking about you or your business online, in groups or in the media
- Your call to meeting booking ratio
- Your follow up to meeting booking ratio
- Your call to sale ratio
- Your leadership skills
- Your prospect to referral ratio
Remember, if your business isn’ t growing, it’ s dying, there is no such thing as a stagnant business.
Remember to celebrate your own and your team’ s success as some people live for praise rather than profit. Need help? Take my Entrepreneur Assessment here.
