In the opening of A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; ... we had everything before us, we had nothing before us ..."

It sounds a little like the sales profession. There are those "best of times" when you have everything before you -- unlimited opportunities, responsive prospects, repeat customers, and numerous referrals. Life couldn't be any better.

Then there are those "worst of times" when it feels like you have nothing before you. Prospects won't take your calls. Customers cut back on orders. The supply of leads from the marketing department dries up. In Dickens' words, your "spring of hope" turns to your "winter of despair."

During the "worst of times," you can give up, sit on the sidelines, and wait for things to get better. Or, you can knuckle down and do what needs to be done to search out and identify, qualify, and develop viable opportunities. Is it harder to develop business opportunities when prospects aren't lining up at the door? Certainly it is. Is it impossible? No. It just takes the appropriate mindset, dedication, and discipline to do the necessary behaviors. If you make prospecting calls, you'll find prospects. If you ask prospects to make commitments and buying decisions, you'll obtain commitments and buying decisions. If your behaviors are correct and consistent, the results will follow.

Often, it is during the "best of times" that salespeople let their behaviors slip. When prospects are plentiful and demand for their products or services is high, they don't feel compelled to maintain the same prospecting routines. When there are plenty of opportunities in the pipeline and many presentations scheduled, salespeople are more likely to let a prospect slide on a commitment and accept a "think it over" rather than be firm about obtaining a decision. They allow the relationships that got them through the worst of times to become stale or disappear. They transition from proactive behaviors to reactive behaviors. During the best of times, they can become sloppy and still do quite well. Eventually, however, the tide will turn. And, the behaviors that would have prevented productivity from plummeting are absent.

Do the behaviors. Do the behaviors. Do the behaviors.

If you are in the sales world for any length of time, you will enjoy the best of times and you will face the worst of times. Performing the appropriate behaviors consistently is the key to maximizing your success during the best of times and maintaining a consistently high level of performance even during the worst of times.

© Sandler Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
 

COLD CALLING BOOTCAMP
Thursday - Dec 4th, 2008 | 3:30-7:30pm

Seats going fast, CLICK HERE for more info and to register for this powerful, hands-on workshop.