Traditionally, a salesperson sells things in a shop or directly to customers at their doorstep. But today, with the internet becoming the largest marketplace, many salespeople work from their desks and sell products or services to people online.
Salespersons are the backbone of marketing. And a good sales rep bridges the gap between a product and the potential customer. Whether through a screen or at your door, sales reps are persuasive, empathetic, and possess an in-depth knowledge of their customer. No matter how good a product or offering, any successful business owes a great deal to its salespeople – they are the rainmakers. They inspire action among customers to buy and recommend a product and become lifelong champions of a business. Their job is not as simple as it may sound. It takes more than just selling a product. It’s their job to empathize with the customer’s needs and convince them how a particular product can provide a solution to their problem. A good sales rep not only sells what is required. Their charm lies in making customers realize a potential problem and offering them a product that can help them shortly. A person might not have been looking to make a specific purchase but convincing them to accept that they need the product is a job a strong salesperson can perform.
A salesperson’s profession is exciting and sometimes deeply rewarding, but it can come with its own set of challenges. Regardless of skills and expertise, it is not always possible to make an excellent sale.
For one, every salesperson deals with their fair share of rejection, which can often entail an emotional rollercoaster.
Today on World Salesperson Day, we bring you some tried and tested methods for salespeople to survive and thrive in their profession:
1. Sleep
Sleep is a trivial yet the most aspect of a healthy lifestyle. The role of sleep might seem insignificant, but for a productive professional performance, it is crucial to have ample rest. Studies show that humans need 7-8 hours of sleep daily to function constructively. This makes it even more critical for professionals like salespeople.
Best practices mandate a sound mind. And a sound mind is a product of calmness. A good night’s sleep can work wonders for your mental well-being. And for sales professionals, it is crucial to their sales goals. A successful sales job requires striking delicate business deals daily. Which demands they must maintain a sharp mind and calm their nerves. Furthermore, lack of sleep can lead to irritability, decreased motivation, fatigue, and poor decision-making. So if you want to achieve your personal goals and be the best on sales calls and sell like a pro, make sure to clock in those hours of sleep.
2. Flex your Empathy Muscle
The foundation of good salesmanship is understanding the human condition and how human psychology works. No matter how many books you read and movies you watch, there is nothing like personally experiencing and mastering human emotions.
And for a consistent and successful customer relationship, you must develop empathy. Empathy doesn’t only entail listening to the person on the other end passively, but putting yourself in their shoes and being curious about their desires, fears, and motivations.
It would be best if you researched your consumers to understand them better. You can implement different thinking tools to get a clear picture. Creating a buyer persona can be an excellent way to comprehend their necessities. You can even recognize the factors that influence their buying habits. A persona map lets you study the different aspects that impact a person’s characteristics, behavior, and motivation. Meanwhile, an empathy map is a similar tool, which targets four areas of a consumer. It consists how what they say, think, feel and do.
Although tools are a great way to understand a client better, empathy is a learned skill that can help you become a top performer in your field. When you know your customer, it is easier for you to get follow-ups to build a better relationship.
3. Diet
The saying, ‘you are what you eat,’ is entirely accurate. A healthy diet reflects your moods and overall well-being. So, you must pay attention to what you eat. Food is the fuel that powers your creativity and productivity. And for a strenuous job, where you regularly interact with people, you must take extra care of your diet. Although chugging down multiple cups of coffee can energize you, it shouldn’t be a replacement for your meals.
As a sales rep, you need to have a balanced diet. No matter how hectic your work is, never skip your breakfast. You must prioritize the first meal of the day. Sustenance is essential for you to carry on your tasks throughout the day. Therefore, you must incorporate nutrition-rich food into your daily diet. It is possible to mindlessly indulge in fast food when you rush to close business deals and make numerous phone calls. But you might consider changing this habit. Keep an eye on your carb intake, get those greens in your salad, toss in those walnuts and almonds, and stock up on foods rich in antioxidants. Keep mixed nuts and seeds handy for a quick snack. Go for fresh-pressed juice instead of caffeine-rich energy drinks. Energy drinks can create a sudden spike in blood-sugar levels and crash immediately, making you feel exhausted. Make sure to have your meals timely, and eat mindfully.
4. Incidental Exercise
Reading up on marketing and behavioral economics and applying them to real-life situations to sell can be exciting and highly addictive. Salespeople also tend to be goal-oriented. To sell more, you need to talk to more people, send more emails and make more calls. In an offline setting, this is a lot of legwork. Compared to all this, spending 15 hours a day leaning over a screen seems easier. But, it is most definitely not. It is a good idea to divide your entire day to maintain a work-life balance. Avoid spending too much time sitting in the same position. Take a break now and then from your desk, and make sure you keep the blood moving in your legs. Continuous hours of staring at the screen can strain your eyes and mentally drain you. So make sure to exercise. If you have a tightly packed schedule, take 15-minute breaks every two hours. Do some desk yoga to relax between monotonous work. If you have some time on your hand, try some simple exercises. Do a round of sit-ups, push-ups, or breathing exercises next to your desk.
5. Make friends with Stress
If you’re in the business of selling, you will continuously experience stress, and it is hardly a secret. A good salesperson is always one step ahead. It is common to keep predicting the next moves and constantly worry about any eventual problem.
Will the client agree to the deal? Would they choose your competitor’s products over yours? What will a negotiation cost you? Will your goods end up as deadstock at the end of the year? These are just a few examples.
It goes without saying that if you are to power through the uncertainties of the marketplace, you will sooner or later have to develop a healthy relationship with stress. You can not get stuck over how a particular scenario might turn out. Instead, you have to prepare yourself for every possible outcome mentally. It is a part of professional development. You must learn effective ways to condition your productivity in a stressful environment. It is crucial to recognize your potential and weaknesses, to reach higher levels of sales activity.
It would be helpful if you changed your perspective toward your situation. Don’t see stress as an enemy; instead, see it for what it is – an opportunity for growth and vitality. Seek opportunities in your setbacks and take advantage of them. Stress can allow you to harness your critical thinking skills. Sometimes it is possible to come up with ideas and solutions under stress that you couldn’t ordinarily have thought of.
But one must be careful not to get trapped in prolonged periods of stress either. If you’re experiencing stress daily, take a break, pause, and re-evaluate. While stress might ignite a creative spark, consider speaking to a professional if you feel like your daily tasks are affected.
To sum it up:
On World Salesperson Day, here’s a pat on the back of every salesperson out there. Thrill, excitement, rejection, uncertainty, and reward – you’re probably used to all this now. However, if you feel stuck in a rut or are overwhelmed by the year, feel free to consult one of our stellar therapists on Docvita to give you a shove in the right direction!