Does confidence play a role in sales? According to Sales Coach Ben Brown it does. In one of his popular articles, he explains why confidence is key when it comes to sales. He also provides strategies on how you can build your confidence in this area. I thought it was a great article to share with those of you who are business owners. With his permission, I have quoted it directly. We hope it will help you with your process.
“When I finished serving on active duty with the US Marine Corps, the first position I took was as a personal trainer at Gold’s gym. I enjoyed working as a trainer but found out I could earn more by working in the sales department. Why not give it a try?
Sales easily became addictive for me. Gold’s Gym had a process I followed, and it worked. One of the first things I learned was you had to listen to the potential customer and understand where you AND they were in the process. You also have to listen and understand what they are or aren’t telling you. Turns out, I did very well in sales and thus began the journey that would bring me to where I am today. I now own two successful businesses one of which is 360 Sales Consulting where I serve as a Sales Coach and Trainer.
When I am asked about the skill sets that empowered me to become a successful Sales Coach, the first thing I tell someone is confidence. You have to be confident.
As an entrepreneur or business owner, you have a product or service you are selling someone. In order to earn the sale, you have to believe in the product or service you are selling. Believing in the product will allow you to be more confident when you are speaking to potential customers. If you don’t like or love your product, it may be time to move on to something else.
You must also know all there is to know about the product/service. Have you ever talked to someone and they could not answer any of the questions you asked? You may have been really interested in the item but there inability to talk about it lead you to doubt if the product was even worth buying. Know your product so you can easily describe how it works to others.
Sales is a skill, you have to practice. Practicing will build your confidence. This means more than just reading a book once a year. You can attend a course, in-person or online, where you can not only learn, but meet others in the industry. Record your sales conversation and play it back and listen to see if you actually follow a sales process. Did you truly listen to the needs of the customer?
Another way to build your sales confidence is to work with a sales trainer. They can look at what you have been doing with your business and give you feedback along with steps and strategies you can use to improve. You can also share the recording you did with them. They can analyze the recording with you and provide feedback on your current sales process.
Even if you are doing well with your business, plan to attend some type of training, every six months at a minimum. This will keep you up to date on what is trending and informed about current sales tools and resources. It will also allow you to refine your current approach to continuously grow your revenue and maintain strong connections with your current and past clients. My book, “Master The Art of Closing the Sale”, provides a ten step process you can learn that will help to unlock your true sales potential.
If you find yourself stuck and not sure where to go next with your sales strategy, let’s schedule a time to talk. We can walk through where you are now to get you quickly to where you want to be. You can schedule your appointment here – http://meetwithbenjamin.com.”
Build your sales confidence…
So, what do you think? One important thing to remember is this doesn’t happen overnight. You must have patience and stick with it as it will take time to build your sales confidence. Go at YOUR own pace and next thing you know, you’ll be closing those deals!
Carolyn R. Owens has over 25 years of proven experience and serves as a Career Strategist, Executive and Leadership Coach. She is the President of Infinity Coaching, Inc. where she can help you up-level your skills, so you can up-level your income, career, business or life. Infinity Coaching, Inc. provides one-on-one and group coaching, organizational training, personality assessments, and a signature program, the Infinity Coaching Inner Circle. Carolyn is certified to give both The Energy Leadership Index Assessment and Myers Briggs Type Indicator Assessment. You can find out more he about both assessments and other products and services at https://infinitycoaching.net
