I have been teaching sales people Prospecting skills for over 25 years. With all the advances we have experienced in business during that time I thought sales people would have "wised up" to what is required to be successful. But it doesn't seem like it.

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.

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.

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,

Copyright 2006 WJ Truax