Question about learning sales

its' a great question.

I love reading the stuff.

but, like all of life, the best is your own experience and applying what you've read to see if it works, works for you, and then you really take off and do it your way.

IMO

If you don't have a consistent sales process, as I didn't for the first decade of my professional career, you don't know what's going on.

If you spend all your time reading books, you don't get any practical experience.

You know how things "stick"? You screw up.

And you know you screwed up.

You say to yourself, "That hurt. I know what I did wrong: I forgot to do this step (or use this technique). Next time I get into this situation, I'm going to remember the pain of not doing what I should have done...and do it."

And you will.

For the rest of your life, you will remember those incidents. One day, you'll even grin about them.

But if you don't KNOW the techniques or methodology...you will be like a struggler in quicksand. Down you'll go, and you won't know why or what to do to get out of it.

Yes, seminars/books/audiobooks are very effective to learn about sales. These are involves various effective resources, information, ideas and tips about increasing sales.

I would like that, thank you.

Maybe there is a thread with the best sales books on the planet?

I already downloaded some of the books mentioned

Real world selling along with this book, Zig Ziglar's Secrets of Closing the Sale: Zig... and you will be well on your way.

I am reading "how I raised... ".

It's very motivational, self helpy so far but I will give I a chance. Keeping a record of how many calls you make is a smart idea.

Is pitch anything too advanced?

Learning through the process definitely helps for hands-on experience, but you also want to utilize resources such as webinars and online articles as well so you can try different things on your selling pitches.

This way you'll learn from experience as well as try new strategies and test out what works best for your selling style.

Going through a seminar workshop, enroll a post graduate class or research would help

I agree with Claude, Jason and Kirby. I do recommend reading books, but I also think that the sooner you take action, the better. My experience is that those with the most success keep things simple. I believe it was the great Fred Gleek that said "Keep it simple, salesman" or "KISS".

I recall reading a story where Fred went on the "Tonight Show" (I think). He sat down and Johnny Carson said something like "I hear you're supposed to be this great salesman. So try to sell me something."

Fred thought about it for a moment, reached over and picked up an ashtray and asked Johnny, "If you were going to buy this ashtray, how much would you expect to pay?" Johnny thought about it for a moment and said "$1.00". Fred said "SOLD!"

I know I didn't get that perfect, but it's been a long time since I read it.

My point is this, study the best sales rep where you're going to work, just like Claude said, and use his presentation verbatim when you're first starting. Memorize any consistencies in their body language, voice fluctuation and how they deal with different types of people. There are only a handful of types of personalities. Study how they handle each type.

I've personally found that by asking a series of work related questions and letting the prospect talk you can usually discover what their pain points are. Some new sales people will get so excited and over the top that they actually talk themselves out of sales. They're incredibly nervous. Just be cool as a cucumber, but confident in what you have to offer. Ask questions and listen closely to the answers. Oh, and don't be afraid to ask for the sale!

I've met guys that knew many presentations and closes by heart, but only used a handful. They found what worked best for them and stuck with them. Most of them were very simple.

Start reading books, but you'll be best served if you get a solid presention and close memorized and just get busy. Like kirby said, you'll learn best by doing and get better as you go.

HTH

thet,

A couple of thoughts to help answer your questions about training. One rule for success in sales: Do what others are unwilling to do. Presentations and prospecting are the "heavy lifting" in sales. You know this already.

Practice helps you internalize these skills. Do more of them than others are willing to and you'll earn good money. However, you want more than just "good" money, right?

Being well informed signals to everyone who comes into contact with you that you're on the way up. Credibility is the currency of professional sales.

Learning from experts (through books, vids, seminars) provides you with a way of carrying yourself and speaking in ways that resonate success and professionalism. You are a resource for anyone that does business with you. In sales consulting, that's where you want to be, positioning yourself as a resource.

I attended an investor financing seminar where I first heard about this. The presenter, a 7-figure sales pro, said he uses the word "resource" with every prospective client. He does this by telling them that he wants to be a valuable resource for them with their investment goals. He slips it into the conversation in some way at least once. It made sense to me.

I began incorporating this into my presentations with high-income clients. I immediately recognized a favorable response. This translated into more sales and higher income. You pick up these methods through reading and learning.

You can look at it as balanced between two extremes: On one end you have sales pros with a great work ethic who charge into their territory every day and get the work done. They don't read or attend seminars. They never do anything to "Sharpen the saw." Many of them earn a healthy income through the sheer numbers of prospects and interactions they have.

At the other end of this you see fledgling salespersons who study methods and systems but never get into the field. It's as though they're always "Getting ready to get ready" to go and make sales. Jason Kanigan makes the point well with his comment, "If you spend all your time reading books, you don't get any practical experience."

I mentioned this to someone the other day: Sales is the lowest paying easy work, and the highest paying difficult work you can do. If you don't give 110%, it's average income or worse.

Productive sales persons earn more than cardiologists. To attain this income, you must work harder than anyone around you. Anything less than that isn't worth being in sales. However, you have to ask yourself if that's what you want to do day in and day out, year after year.

Sales success should accumulate and mellow over time. When your phone is ringing because of referrals, you have made it. You are a Consultant. Live like one. You don't want to run around like a Madman over your entire career.

You can achieve uncommon success sooner, and enjoy respect as a professional resource for any business lucky enough to have you, by studying and learning and practicing. It comes to you through books, journals, seminars, and the other media we discussed. It will return your investment of time and money exponentially.

~ atomAnt

Best sales advice I got when i worked for Fortune 50 sales org - follow the format. LOL. Stop tryna improvise. We have a successful selling format for a reason - it works. Find a successful formula, follow it, stick with it and you WILL close sales. They were right. :-)