9 Habits of Successful Sales Reps. What Makes a Great Salesperson?

Think Positive

It is easy to be discouraged by failure, but great sales representatives will have the resiliency and perseverance to continue calling.

And the best sales representatives?

Their voices remain confident and upbeat.

They won’t dwell on the negativity and let it influence their work. After all, every call represents a new opportunity to close a deal.

Understand The Product

Even the fanciest of sales pitches would be useless if the sales representative is unable to explain the product’s features, pricing and benefits.

Customers purchase a product to solve a specific problem, and the best sales representatives understand that.

They must recognize the issue, realize how their product offers a solution and then pitch it accordingly.

Understand The Customer

While the product might suit the customer’s needs, many other factors can influence their decision and prevent them from purchasing.

What is the customer’s target budget?

Is the customer purchasing for themselves or for others?

By looking at the problem from the customer’s perspective, the best sales representatives can tailor their pitch to win clients over.

Look At The Bigger Picture

Making the immediate business transaction is important, but for any successful business, customer retention should not be overlooked.

Instead of taking a direct approach and trying to close a deal as quickly as possible, the best sales representatives take time to obtain long-term information about the customer.

This builds rapport and trust between the two parties, making it easier for customer retention.

Another reason why this is important: the power of word of mouth marketing.

Find Qualified Leads

This point comes back to the old adage: quality over quantity.

A thousand phone calls per day may land a sales representative several prospective clients, but the best sales representatives understand the importance of efficiency.

Instead of spending time cold calling, they invest in researching customer backgrounds and targeting exact clients for better results.

Be Responsive

Sales is driven by speed.

Barring a huge difference in quality, customers tend to satisfice and choose the most convenient option.

That is why the best sales representatives are timely in their responses to email and social media messages.

Quick responses build trust and builds value for the customer.

Nothing tells the customer that they are valued more than a prompt and personalized answer.

Reputation Matters

With the power of social media readily available at our fingertips, this point is as important as ever.

Potential customers will often look up the sales representative online to get a better gauge of his or her character.

Remember, the behavior of the employee reflects on the company as a whole. The best sales representatives often keep their images professional and interact with appropriate conduct.

Set SMART Goals

Overly ambitious goals can often be demoralizing, while easily achieved benchmarks can breed a lazy culture and promote slacking.

To stay on track and be successful on a monthly basis, the best sales representatives set SMART goals for themselves.

These goals must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. Having reasonably challenging goals will motivate sales representatives to push themselves and maximize performance.

Have Backup Plans

As most sales representatives can attest to, the most common answer to their sales pitch, in one form or another, is “no”.

Customers will find an excuse, an explanation or a reason why they cannot make the purchase. To prepare for these inevitable situations, the best sales representatives formulate backup plans prior to their calls.

By approaching each call with different tactics available, the sales representatives will be able to handle any obstacle with ease and without panic.