It’s one thing to develop a comprehensive strategy for sales success.
Execution is another …
We’ve all been to enough sales seminars to have seen some variation on the average calls graphic. The average salesperson will call on a prospect two, maybe three times before giving up. The average opportunity is discovered on the fourth or fifth call.
The result? A lot of salespeople sabotaging themselves with impatience.
It’s terribly easy to talk yourself into cutting a project short. Surely if this prospect hasn’t called back yet then there isn’t a potential project in play. Time to move on.
It’s easy because on an individual basis it’s probably true. That one prospect probably doesn’t have anything pending, thus the lack of returned phone calls. The problem is that, short of telepathy, there is no way to know which prospect has nothing going, and which just happens to be busy but really, really meant to call back that last time.
Give up and get crushed.
That’s where engaged sales management is critical. Sales is about volume and averages, and a sales rep in the trenches can’t really be trusted to maintain the discipline needed to consistently hit that fourth and fifth call attempt. The sales manager has to force it.
Even the most conscientious, ambitious sales rep needs that push. The sales manager must have visibility into the day-to-day calling activities – the flashlight – and keep the rep accountable.
It’s not fun for either party. Tracking call patterns is dull. Nagging about it even more so. But sales don’t come from charm or fun. They come from diligence and work.
