Always Be Selling

Excuse me, but you've got no business sitting on your butt watching that suspense-filled TV series!

Yes, you read that right! Have you made a sale today? Did you make any yesterday? Will you make any today? The answer lies in what you're doing today, right now!

Every day, every moment, you've got to be thinking 'how do I make the next sale?' 'how can I make my product better?' 'How can I package my services better?' 'What opportunities exist for me to meet my customer's needs?'

Don't get me wrong, I know you need rest to avoid a breakdown. But think about it, do you really deserve that rest? Have you done enough, really, to earn you a couch potato status?

While you sit watching Jack Bauer saving the world, send a tweet, reply a tweet, post a photo to Facebook/Pinterest, do something, anything, that moves you one step closer to making a sale.

Whatever you do, whether you sit or stand, whether Monday or Saturday, whether it's 9:00am or 9:00pm, Keep Calm and Keep Selling.

Your Personal Brand

You are a brand.
Start acting like one.
Stop defining yourself by where you work; start defining yourself by what you do- the problems you solve, the solutions you provide. 

If there's anything like a cliche question- "what do you do?" is top of the list. Everyday we bump into old friends from way back in high school, from way back in children's church, from that ballet class your parents made you join ages ago who are only interested in that one question "what do you do?" By the way I bumped into an old friend and I asked him that question, and he replied- 'I sit on my deep brown couch, legs propped on the bean bag, flipping channels and dipping my fingers into bowls of popcorn!"
(Believe that and you'll believe there are brick houses on the moon.)

Yes, you are a brand.

What problems do you solve at your workplace on a daily basis? What solutions do you provide for your company's clients? This is what you do. No, you're not a marketing executive with Ying&Yang Plc. You help businesses grow their customer base. You help businesses find and attract more customers for their business. So, when that C.E.O that thinks he's all that and a bag of chips sends you that letter/mail that says 'It was nice doing business with you, now clean up your desk,pack your bags and go home," you walk out of the building with a whistle, and your dignity right on top. And when you bump into that old friend from high school and he asks what you do, you don't say "I used to work for Ying&Yang until last week" or "ermm....I'm actually searching for a job" or "I'm in between jobs" (what exactly does this mean, by the way?. Instead, you put your chin up, look him straight in the eye and say "I help businesses increase their customer base."

So, what do you do?

Customer Intelligence- The Basics

Dear salesperson/entrepreneur, it's no longer business as usual.

Customers are dynamic, with ever changing desires and needs. New jobs, businesses, status, kids, interests, and yes- devices. Technology has changed, and is still changing, the way we do business. New avenues for reaching your customers and prospects have emerged, and the old ones are gradually fading away. Some have already faded away. 

You can no longer rely on the old ways of generating leads, reaching prospects, presenting- the entire sales process. Dear you, you have got to up your game! The world is fast becoming a global village, scratch that, the world became a global village yesterday! Virtually all the information you need is right there under your fingers- the internet. 

So much  information is flying around on the internet. You can get so much information  about someone you have never met, so much it seems like you've known them all your life.

To succeed in selling, you need to whip out all the information you can get about your prospects and customers. Their businesses, passions, activities, dislikes. You need to know what problems they are facing, what questions they are asking, what their goals are. Their businesses, who they sell to, what they sold yesterday, what they plan to sell tomorrow. Get all information you can about the problems their businesses are facing, recent developments, and all.

This is a key to making great sales.

Up your game, gain customer intelligence.

Forget those lessons you learnt in the 'Always Be Closing' sales trainings. Customer Intelligence will make or mar your sales progress.