Making time for the ideal sales week

If you were to outline the ideal sales week, what would it look like? That’s a question S. Anthony Iannarino, president and chief sales officer of Solutions Staffing, tackled on his sales blog, and his insights were wonderful. Iannarino’s suggestions all center around the idea of blocking out time for the various activities that makes for sales success. When you work these activities into your week is up to your priorities and unique business model, but the ideas apply universally. 

Here are eight activities to make time for in your ideal sales week, in order of priority:

• Prospecting – Opening relationships that open opportunities is the most important activity a salesperson can undertake. Consequently, it deserves a high priority and requires proactive planning and scheduling. Where will you turn to meet prospects? Be sure to go beyond the obvious, easy sources. Know your target audience and then think of where they would congregate – both online and in person.
• Face-to-Face Sales Calls – There is no substituting good old-fashioned face time, especially when it comes to developing a clientele. In-person interaction provides the greatest opportunity for value creation and advancing your sales opportunity. “The quality of your results is the quality of your calendar as it pertains to appointments with your dream clients and clients,” Iannarino said. Start scheduling these meetings in advance, and keep at least a few scheduled a week or two out at a time.
• Nurturing Activity – “The best opportunities for producing killer sales results lie with your coldest non-opportunities, your dream clients who are presently using a competitor,” Iannarino said. Place your focus on a dream client whose business would put you to the top of the leader board.
• Sales Call Preparation – Sales calls are not a time to “wing it” or play things by ear! Do your homework first, researching the client’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. What can you offer to them that will solve their problems? Remember, focusing on benefits is far more effective than drilling into your product’s features. Make solving their pain points your top pitch.
• Follow-up Activities – The trust that underlies all relationships (especially in business) is built on a foundation of commitments kept. Even the most effective sales calls may fall flat with results if no follow-up work is done, so be sure to do what you say you’ll do, from emailing along an article that would be a value-add for your client to checking the stock of their favorite product. As you’re drumming up new business, don’t neglect to reach out to current clients and contacts with phone calls or thank-you cards.
• Voicemail and Email Responses – In today’s always-connected communications climate, responding to emails and voicemails can be a never-ending task. Iannarino suggests blocking out a couple of set times (i.e. 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.) to respond to incoming communications, rather than breaking to do so constantly throughout the day.
• Update Sales Force Automation – Customer relationship management is critical, and a number of automation software options can make it a breeze – as long as you use it. Don’t let too much time pass between updates, or else important information can fall through the cracks. “The best time to do this is with the last half hour of the day, while the conversations and ideas are fresh in your mind,” Iannarino said. He recommends spending a half hour each day to input notes from sales calls, new contact information, action items, and pipeline progress.
• Personal Improvement – Of all the investments you can make, investing time in yourself pays off the most long-lasting dividends. Make an effort to always be honing your abilities and advancing education, whether it be listening to an audiobook while driving between sales calls or reading a chapter a night of a book that will help your professional development. Remember to expand beyond “sales” titles, too. That professional development can come most effectively in strengthening people skills, not just sales techniques.

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REVIVING THE LOST ART OF CONNECTION

In today’s fast-paced, digital world, it gets easy in the hustle and bustle to overlook the human aspect of a business relationship. “The foundation for successful networking and relationship building is making a good connection—that initial contact with someone rooted in mutual interest or experience that breaks down the wall that exists between us,” said Randy Haim, managing partner of Atlanta-based Bell Oaks Executive Search. “These connections should emanate from your genuine desire to learn about the other person and determine what you have in common.” 

In his whitepaper “Connecting… The Forgotten Art of Social Interaction,” Haim outlines 10 connection-building skills to develop before your next big networking opportunity. Here are a few: 

• Ask questions – This may be one of the oldest pieces of networking advice, but it holds true: you are more interesting when you ask questions. People love to talk about themselves, particularly to someone they can tell is listening with genuine interest. As you get them talking, listen actively, looking for common ground.
• Get personal – We’re often trained to avoid personal information in business conversation. However, conversations are human interactions, and those personal components – faith, family, values, perspective – are what make us who we are. Don’t shy away from sharing your values and talking with someone about theirs. However, getting to this personal level is uncomfortable for some, so gauge the reaction you receive and proceed accordingly. When done well and with a warm reception, this is a powerful way to an authentic, deep dialogue that can lead to a strong relationship.
• Use humor – Laughter is one of the easiest icebreakers. Jokes veer toward awkwardness, but when you use humor by making light of a situation or poking fun at yourself, it can build an instant – and positive – bond.
• Connect through content – Don’t be afraid to take the next step in showing someone you’re genuinely interested in what they have to say by putting that interest into action. If your contact mentions struggling with a professional development challenge and you’ve recently read something on the subject, go ahead and send them an email with the link to the article or a review of the book. This creates a point of discussion and follow up for future interactions.

 
As you work to better connect with new contacts at a personal, human level, you’ll be surprised at how naturally and easily networking becomes. Focusing on individuals as people, not stepping stones to success, forges a deeper bond that may sustain beyond the business at hand.

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Baby Steps Toward Social Media Prowess

Recently I was talking with a friend whose baby girl has just started to crawl. While watching footage of this little gal get around – hesitantly and haltingly at first – it made me think of how important it is to progress strategically and methodically toward any destination or goal, including in social media.  

While it’s important to begin with the end in sight, we also need to take joy in the journey to get to that end. If you want to be a social media pro, remember to value and savor the steps along the way as you engage with the various tools and methods to tell a story. Make sure you learn to walk before you run: 

• Crawl – When entering the world of social media, it’s vital to remember that you’re still dealing with individuals interested in human stories. Don’t get distracted by the tools and platforms. Take the time to first understand what your (or your institution’s) inherent systems and processes, resources, and culture are. What are institutional barriers you may face in going social? Public companies face different issues than private companies, and different platforms make more sense for different audiences (e.g. a LinkedIn group vs. Facebook, depending on if you’re B2B or B2C). Thinking through what makes the most sense before starting will increase your chances for success – and decrease the chances your institution will write off social media as a fad or flop.
• Walk – After you’ve made a strategy, begin engaging with one tool at a time. It’s important to take a note from the Johnson & Johnson playbook and get a presence in one platform launched and running well before branching out into another. Also, don’t discount the importance of building on your own real estate first. Platforms like Twitter and Facebook may be buzzing upon everyone’s lips, but they could be supplanted by the next big thing – remember MySpace and Friendster, after all? If you start an in-house blog on your own website, you’ll have control over it regardless of external forces. Be flexible as you try new things, remembering that nothing is permanent, but also be committed to the overall purpose behind social media: connecting with your audience. See what works, changing and adjusting as you go.
• Run – Once you’ve mastered getting a social media presence launched, you’ll hit that prized end point of having a fully integrated social business, complete with measurable tracking and analytics that help you better understand the impact communicating with customers has on your business. Remember, the connection between social media and ROI may not be measurable in strict numbers, but social breeds customer loyalty, and that’s something that can’t be slapped with a price tag.

 
The process of implementing a winning social media strategy takes patience, but as you enjoy each milestone on the way to running with the best-practice examples, you’ll be able to savor the successes along the way with your lasting audience.

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Protein-packed breakfastS improve weight loss

There’s a reason bacon and eggs have been a breakfast staple for ages – a protein-rich breakfast does wonders to keep one’s body satisfied longer. But did you know that a healthy, protein-packed breakfast will also curb your cravings and reward-driven eating behavior? 

According to Heather Leidy, an assistant professor in University of Missouri’s Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, lots of protein in the morning reduces the brain signals that control food motivation and reward-driven eating behavior.  She reached this conclusion after studying breakfast-skipping teens for three weeks. One group continued to skip breakfast or ate 500-calorie breakfasts of cereal and milk while the other group ate high-protein meals of Belgium waffles, syrup and yogurt. 

Immediately before lunch, researchers used fMRI technology to study participants’ brain activation responses. Results showed that while both meals led to increased fullness and reduced hunger throughout the morning, the breakfast with more protein led to even greater changes in fullness, appetite, and reward-driven eating behavior.  

Here are some ways to be a better breakfaster:

• Be handy – If weight loss is a priority for you, don’t leave the house empty-handed in the mornings. Keep portable protein-rich foods on hand. Hard-boiled eggs, nuts, and string cheese are great to grab and go, either for an immediate breakfast or a healthy mid-morning snack.
• Cook quickly – If you can spend a few more minutes in the kitchen, shoot for a slice of toast with peanut (or almond) butter, a quick scrambled egg, or a smoothie with protein powder. One of my quick favorites is to warm a whole-wheat tortilla, spread it with almond butter and cinnamon (which is proven to help your body process sugar), and then wrap it around a banana.
• Order wisely – If the drive-thru still calls your name, be sure you order the right item. Egg McMuffins are surprisingly diet-approved – they’re only 350 calories each and are packed with protein. Go for an egg burrito over anything starchy like French toast sticks, and if you have the willpower, skip the hash browns.

 

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How to Work a Room

Have you ever wondered how to master the art of mingling? At social functions, you can always spot a person or two who seem to effortlessly work the room, weaving in and out of conversations as they connect with almost everyone in their path. Networking with that kind of social finesse doesn’t come naturally to most – but thankfully it’s a skill that can, in fact, be learned and mastered through practice and preparation. Here are some tips to develop the skill set to catch the attention of those who will benefit your professional network: 

• Be positive – When you meet new people, what runs through your head? Your instinctive reaction may speak volumes in terms of the return you receive. Attitude often guides behavior, and what you think before you walk through the door will influence the “vibes” you give off to those you meet. Are you prone to negative self-talk? (“Why would they want to talk to me anyway?” “There’s no way I’ll stick out from the crowd.” “Meeting people just isn’t my strength because of _____.”) Believe it or not, many – if not most – people have the same reaction in group settings. When you shift from thinking you can’t to thinking you can, however, you can take the lead and bring others out of their shells. That kind of initiative radiates positivity and will make an impact on those you meet.
• Make it all about them – In his seminal How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie emphasized the importance of sincerely showing interest in other people. A person’s name is the sweetest and most important sound in any language, according to Carnegie, and remembering it works wonders to win a good first impression. Try to find ways to make the other person feel important, like talking to them about their interests. It’s easy to find common ground with most people if you listen actively when asking where they’re from, where they went to college, asking about why they chose their career path or enjoy certain hobbies. Be sure that you do so sincerely, though – there’s nothing more off-putting than faked interest. Sincere interest is usually met with reciprocal sincere interest, however.
• Identify clear goals – What is it that you’re hoping to take away from the event? Defining even one or two objectives for a networking event or situation will help you hone in on what you need to do to meet those as well as to measure success after the fact. Are you looking to learn more about a particular field? Develop prospective sales contacts? Meet a particular person about whom you’ve heard good things? When you have your objectives in place, work backwards and prepare how to meet those, thinking of what questions to ask, how to approach a new contact, etc. This will help you avoid being tongue-tied and uncertain when in the moment, instead coming off as confident and natural.

 
After you’ve done all your preparation, make sure that you physically work the room – moving around increases the number of people with whom your path will cross, after all. Get out there and show them all you’ve got!

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How to Work a Room

Have you ever wondered how to master the art of mingling? At social functions, you can always spot a person or two who seem to effortlessly work the room, weaving in and out of conversations as they connect with almost everyone in their path. Networking with that kind of social finesse doesn’t come naturally to most – but thankfully it’s a skill that can, in fact, be learned and mastered through practice and preparation. Here are some tips to develop the skill set to catch the attention of those who will benefit your professional network: 

• Be positive – When you meet new people, what runs through your head? Your instinctive reaction may speak volumes in terms of the return you receive. Attitude often guides behavior, and what you think before you walk through the door will influence the “vibes” you give off to those you meet. Are you prone to negative self-talk? (“Why would they want to talk to me anyway?” “There’s no way I’ll stick out from the crowd.” “Meeting people just isn’t my strength because of _____.”) Believe it or not, many – if not most – people have the same reaction in group settings. When you shift from thinking you can’t to thinking you can, however, you can take the lead and bring others out of their shells. That kind of initiative radiates positivity and will make an impact on those you meet.
• Make it all about them – In his seminal How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie emphasized the importance of sincerely showing interest in other people. A person’s name is the sweetest and most important sound in any language, according to Carnegie, and remembering it works wonders to win a good first impression. Try to find ways to make the other person feel important, like talking to them about their interests. It’s easy to find common ground with most people if you listen actively when asking where they’re from, where they went to college, asking about why they chose their career path or enjoy certain hobbies. Be sure that you do so sincerely, though – there’s nothing more off-putting than faked interest. Sincere interest is usually met with reciprocal sincere interest, however.
• Identify clear goals – What is it that you’re hoping to take away from the event? Defining even one or two objectives for a networking event or situation will help you hone in on what you need to do to meet those as well as to measure success after the fact. Are you looking to learn more about a particular field? Develop prospective sales contacts? Meet a particular person about whom you’ve heard good things? When you have your objectives in place, work backwards and prepare how to meet those, thinking of what questions to ask, how to approach a new contact, etc. This will help you avoid being tongue-tied and uncertain when in the moment, instead coming off as confident and natural.

 
After you’ve done all your preparation, make sure that you physically work the room – moving around increases the number of people with whom your path will cross, after all. Get out there and show them all you’ve got!

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Getting the Right Landmarks on Your Success Roadmap

Picture this: you’re heading off on a road trip to exciting – but unfamiliar – territory. Do you just set off on the open road and hope you eventually somehow reach your destination? 

While some adventurers might take this approach, most people start out a journey with a roadmap, complete with landmarks that help them identify they’re on the right track, whether it be roadside attractions or cities that are along the way from Point A to Point B.  

The same principle applies in life – and especially in sales, where success is determined by our ability to bring together skills, business processes, resources, and natural talents in order to help customers and contacts buy into our vision of value within whatever product or service we’re selling.  

Here are some benchmarking landmarks to include on your roadmap to the destination of success:

• The essentials – Your trip won’t go too far if you don’t include some gas stations and pit stops along the path, right? Similarly, it’s critical to focus on the essentials from the get-go. These would include any metrics and benchmarks that are reasonable to expect when looking at one’s skills and effectiveness. While the specifics will vary by industry and objective, they generally will include a strategy for growth, basic sales processes and systems, personal competencies, management practices, and skills development.
• Goals and objectives – If you think you’re driving to California and your passenger thinks you’re off to Calgary, there’s a problem. Sharing common goals and objectives helps everyone involved understand how to get to your overarching organizational vision. These goals and objectives should be specific and measurable, with intermediary expectations set along the way (i.e. quarterly performance goals of a certain dollar amount or number of sales conversions that will show progress toward the annual goal).
• Values and principles – What’s the purpose behind your journey? Undertaking a long trip to see a close friend or ailing relative will drive you with more meaning than traveling for an obligatory appointment. Likewise, these values and principles breathe life and heart into your sales journey. How do the two differ? Values are broad fundamental beliefs– things like acting with integrity, exceeding expectations, or serving the community. Principles are more a part of the everyday tactical business execution, like nurturing client relationships, knowing the competition, or proactively managing risks and promoting awards.
• Reward systems – Remember asking “are we there yet?!” on childhood road trips? The promise of a cookie or some other tangible reward at the next gas station can work wonders for encouraging patient behavior for a child. The same idea applies to adults in a sales environment. Acknowledgement for reaching a certain goal, exceeding performance expectations, or winning a competition gives team members an added boost that helps them drive on in their sales efforts. The best rewards are those that are outlined in advance, giving all team members something to work toward, and align closely with your overall business strategy.

 
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Making the most of your mornings

Does getting out of bed the hardest part of your day? Most people aren’t naturally what you’d call a “morning person” – the types who are bright eyed and bushy tailed upon rising at the sound of their alarm clock. Just because it doesn’t come naturally doesn’t mean it can’t happen, however. By following a few simple tips, you can train your body and up your A.M. productivity – and, in doing so, increase your health by sleeping more and starting your day without the stress of running late.

• Set a sleep routine – Don’t underestimate the importance of your circadian rhythm. This regulates how your body runs, and it craves routine. Ideally, you should wake up from a light phase of sleep, not a deeper stage. It’s that deeper stage that leads to a foggy head and lower functioning. If you set a bedtime and stick to it (within 30 minutes) and get up around the same time each morning, your body will reset to the routine. The hope is that eventually you will be able to wake yourself up sans alarm.
• Get active – Working out first thing in the morning may not sound tempting, but the effects pay off. Even if it’s as simple as taking a half-hour stroll, kickstarting your morning with cardio will boost your energy levels throughout the day AND help you wind down at night, leading to a deeper night’s sleep.
• Provide the right fuel – While a donut and a cup of Joe may be an easy way to get your blood sugar rising, it can also lead to a sugar crash a few hours into your day. Reach instead for some quality fuel – oatmeal, fresh fruit, or a veggie omelet. Always on the go? Make hard-boiled eggs that you can grab on the run for a protein-packed breakfast.
• See the light – Light has a huge effect on the body’s triggers to sleep or wake up. Switch on a bright light or open your blinds right when you wake up. Conversely, avoid bright lights – yes, including electronics – for that last hour before you plan to hit the hay. This will help your body begin to wind down from the busy day and slip into that deep sleep you need for rejuvenation.

 

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Sharing the Vision

What is it that makes you passionate and motivated? For conductor Benjamin Zander, it’s classical music – and as a leader, he works to help his musicians catch the vision. 

“It’s one of the characteristics of a leader that he not doubt for one moment the capacity of the people he’s leading to realize whatever he’s dreaming,” Zander told the audience at TED in 2008.   

As a musician matures, he or she learns to play with passion and engagement – and their impulses are reduced as they focus on the entire piece instead of notes. Likewise, as a leader, our focus should be on the long line of the vision.  

Zander had a leadership revelation the moment he realized that he, as the conductor, doesn’t make a sound. Rather, all of the conductor’s power is in making his players powerful, helping them to carry out his vision. 

“I realized my job was to awaken possibility in other people,” he said. “If their eyes are shining, you know you’re doing it. If the eyes are not shining, you have to ask the question: ‘Who am I being that my players’ eyes aren’t shining?’ That’s a totally different world.” 

Successful leadership is not about wealth or fame or power. It’s about shining eyes. Share your passion with colleagues and employees, and as that enthusiasm and sincere drive shines through, they will catch the vision and help your dream become reality. 

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Managing Expectations

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” – George Bernard Shaw 

Communicating effectively is one of the most important skills to develop in business. While there are several reasons why, one of the most important from a leadership perspective is to be able to adequately manage expectations – in other words, you must be able to help those you manage understand what to expect from any given scenario, from timelines to structure and protocol. By managing expectations, you are then able to stave off conflicts before they spring up.  

How can you communicate more effectively to help manage expectations?

• Define expectations: Conflicts and frustration often arise from a lack of information. When initiating a project, be sure to help team members understand why the project is needed, what the plan is for addressing that need, and how you intend to execute that plan. As you set out to make the project happen, look for ways to build camaraderie and trust. A little goes a long way in creating connections among those who will rely upon one another’s skills and abilities to make a project become reality. Also, don’t overlook establishing expectations among your customers. Communicating with them that a much-requested product or service is in the works, along with periodic updates on progress, will do wonders for building buzz and assuring customers that their requests aren’t falling on deaf ears.
• Explain the problem: It’s rare that a project – or anything in life, for that matter – will go according to plan. Consequently, you’ll have to redefine expectations and give updates on progress throughout the life of a project. While it can be intimidating to report that a project will be delayed, it’s better to communicate that up front than to let the initial timeline expectations linger unchanged. Of course, that said, reporting a delay should come only after your team has exhausted all options to make up lost time and get the project back on track.
• Offer a solution: While it’s important to explain why a project is facing a setback, it’s even more important to follow up immediately with a solution of how you plan to amend the disruption. It shows thoroughness, proactivity, and accountability – all traits that merit respect. Be sure to answer the question “What’s in it for me?” as you present the solution to a specific audience, whether it be internal team members or customers. Addressing the needs of a specific audience will resonate better than general information to which they cannot easily connect.

 
Clear and continued communication is vital to keeping all of your shareholders informed on a project’s progress. By managing their expectations, you’ll be able to reduce or eliminate frustration and confusion – which, in turn, will reduce how much emotional energy they bring into their interactions with you on the subject. This serves to reduce the risk of potential conflicts, creating an environment of collaboration and understanding.