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The Even Dirtier Selling Secret
Posted by Laurie Page on Tue, Nov 10, 2009 @ 07:17 AM
 I stopped by Paul McCord's blog recently and this post really caught my attention: " The REAL Dirty Secret about Selling that Will EXPLODE Your Sales Career". I thought - what have I missed all these years?
The gist of the post was that every day we are exposed to ads that promise to deliver the "secret about Selling". Paul argues that this is a cycle: us wanting an easy road to success, and somebody more than happy to promise quick fixes. 
Think about the first time you worked with that Rep, the one who kills their number every quarter, seemingly without breaking a sweat. Was it because they have a better territory? The best accounts? A tested, honed and proven process? Nah, they must have figured out the secret.
I guess it's human nature to hope such secrets exists. The discussion reminds me of all the products geared towards hitting weight loss goals quickly and easily. I'm no dietician, but the consensus seems to be consuming fewer calories and exercising works. We can call that the boring little secret.
So, what about the secret about Selling? According to Paul, top producers:
- Learn successful processes for identifying, finding, and connecting with quality prospects. There are a number of very effective prospecting and marketing processes. Learn and implement several. Don't let anyone tell you there's only one way to find and connect with prospects.
- Learn and implement a dynamic, proven sales process. Again, there are several highly effective processes. Find one that fits your personality, your market, your product or service. Learn it, implement it, and perfect it.
- Commit yourself to learning the essentials of being a successful seller - how to communicate; how to negotiate; how to manage your time in order to give your prospects and clients a purchasing experience that keeps them loyal...
(Laurie here: Remember, your professional development is your responsibility not your employers.)
- Learn to walk away when you can't perform as a prospect demands or when your product or service isn't right. Knowing when to walk away is just as important as knowing when to fight for the sale.
Here's my take on the secret - selling is hard work which requires focus and commitment. We know the old saying "time is money". That holds especially true for sales people. Ask yourself, "Are all my activities focused on generating sales?" It's easy to become reactive when you have dozens of activities coming at you, but if those activities aren't progressing the sale they probably aren't necessary.
Here's a final word from Paul:
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The secret to becoming a top producer (is) investing the time, energy, and dollars required to learn, implement, and perfect proven processes to find, connect with, sell, and service great prospects, and then committing (yourself) to getting dirty by getting in the trenches and doing the hard work of turning those processes into a successful sales business. |
So you see the dirty little secret is YOU. You have to commit to the hard work, dedication and passion that make people the best at what they do. You're in charge of your destiny - so get out there and explode your sales career!
(Photo credit: ianus & Tim Dorr)
COMMENTS
I have always thought that selling was a science. More and more colleges and universities (such as MIT) are providing senior level courses in exactly how to pursue the discipline. There is a top echelon of sales professionals who approach a sales pursuit like a doctor- choosing the patient, evaluating the risk, guaging the options, diagnosing the pain, suggesting a solution and addressing that in a way that builds trust, has confidence in an initial transaction and then builds a lifetime relationship. In my experience, it is a combination of skill, experience, hard work, strategic thinking, planning, action on the plan and then repeating. No magic bullets, lots of hard work and compensation commensurate with the results.
Great post, Laurie. I was just at a Million Dollar Women conference and the women there echoed your same thoughts...it's all about commitment and passion. And knowing what you're selling. Thanks!
I take issue with Paul's blog post a bit, in that he says it is up to you and what you choose to do. But as Sharon Drew Morgan so ably points out in Dirty Little Secrets, buying your product or service is bit the tip of the iceberg. The underwater portion is the customers internal processes and people whose natural state is supporting the status quo. In my mind, the best salespeople ask questions and help these buyers navigate their internal processes. I saw nothing of that in Paul's blog article. Jeff Ogden, President Find New Customers <a>www.findnewcustomers.net
Good posting. The secret to more sales is not a secret! The problem with a lot of sales people is that they are looking for a "magic pill" I.e they will go to bed one evening and take the pill with a glass of water and settle down for the night. When they wake up they do everything perfect without even thinking about it! Well, guess what? You don't need the magic pill you just need to get into effective and consistent selling habits. You need to focus like a lazer beam and treat your work like a doctor does his craft. If you add up all of the study and the reading and the classes that a doctor goes through before they are fully qualified then it amounts to about 10,000 hours. What commitment! How many hours does the average Jo SalesPerson study and learn their craft? Some people throw them in with nothing and say "go and sell!" Instead, you need to be a pro and when you start to have that mindset then everything else will fall into place. And that includes determination, study, hard work, perfecting each element of your sales process and above all else - never giving up! Sean McPheat
Laurie, Great post! First of all, thanks for summarizing McCord, and second, I totally agree with you. Beyond a doubt, hard work is the secret. This is a "reveal" that speaks to more than just sales, too. Weight loss, relationships, marriages, etc. ALL require hard work for them to be successful. No magic pill is going to make us better "__(fill in the blank)__". Good stuff!
I found it interesting there were so many comments comparing the level of commitment to what a Doctor will do to learn “their craft”. True story, my first sales manager used to compare us (sales reps) to Doctors and Lawyers. He said a good sales person can earn as much $ without all the loans. He used to reference the hours of ongoing commitment required to do well – Sean I think you referenced 10K hours for a Doctor… Can you imagine? Bottom line, sales is a profession (like a Doctor or Lawyer) that requires commitment - the point being if you focus you can succeed. I couldn’t agree more and think every sales person should ask themselves “How many hours do I (the average Jo SalesPerson) study and learn my craft?”.
Your comment about the secret being hard work which requires focus and commitment, reminds me of the quote attributed to Thomas Jefferson: "I always find that the harder I work, the luckier I become."
Trish, Thanks for reference to my post. I would like to address Jeff's comment: Jeff, I agree with Sharon Drew that there's more to the sale that what we bring--the prospect has issues in the background that they must deal with in order to be able make the purchase. That, however, doesn't change the fact that we are alone responsible for our success or failure. My post argues that the 'secret' of sales success is investing the time, the money, and the energy to learn successful processes for finding, connecting with, selling, and servicing quality prospects. That covers a great deal of ground--including learning how to facilitate the buyer's need to get their background in order. It is simply another process that must be learned and perfected--it is no more the magic bullet than any other process. You're right, I didn't specify that. But I didn't specify a lot of the processes that must be learned and implemented. Sharon Drew's process is important--but ultimately no more important nor less important than any of the other processes. The post discussed the problem that we so sellers so desperately want a magic bullet that we willingly support the hucksters selling the snake oil of sale success when in reality we know the real secret—us, our skills, our commitment; it wasn't a menu of the processes that must be learned.
Wise words. At the end of the day it is you, and only you that holds your destiny in your hands. It takes a special type of personality to really succeed at salesmanship, but there still is no substitute for hard work.
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