Sales training ideas – How to get yourself to do what must be done in order to be successful selling.

Successful salespeople don’t like to do the same things that unsuccessful salespeople don’t like to do. The difference is that successful salespeople motivate themselves to do these things while unsuccessful salespeople do not. If you ask one hundred salespeople how many of them like to cold call, ninety-eight will say they don’t and the other two are either lying or crazy. While at times it helps to be crazy in the world of selling, we doubt that any salespeople truly love cold calling. So what can we do to a) get ourselves to do it, b) make it bearable, and c) get ourselves to do it effectively? 

How to get yourself to take action so you’ll succeed in sales 

To get yourself to do an unpleasant but necessary task it is helpful to use the carrot-and-stick approach (pleasure and pain). The more carrots and sticks you involve, the more effective you will be at altering your behavior in the long term.  Here are some examples of effective “stick” or painful questions you can focus on to help drive you to cold calling: 

• What will happen to my business if I don’t cold call?
• How will that affect my income and my lifestyle?
• What will that do to my self-esteem and my view of myself as a person?
• Can I reach my goals and dreams if I don’t cold call?
• What is my manager going to say to me when she realizes I’m not making the cold calls and, in effect, not doing my job?
• If I don’t do what I know I need to do in this area, what other obstacles will I face down the road that I will also let stop me?

Here are some examples of “carrot” or pleasure thoughts to change your behavior: 

• If I were to increase my cold calls by 20 percent, what would 20 percent more sales and referrals do to my business and my income?
• If I got good at this, it would have a very positive impact on my self-esteem and confidence, and that would flow into other areas of sales and my life.
• I will reward myself with (something that would really motivate you) if I increase my cold calls by 20 percent over the next thirty days.
• Imagine the mental edge I’ll have when cold calling is no longer a problem.
• Imagine how much more energy and time I’ll have when I stop fighting with myself and procrastinating over cold calling.

These are just a few examples. Take some time to come up with other motivators you can put in the form of statements or questions that will work most effectively for you.  One of the best ways to achieve behavior change is to “step into” the experience and imagine what you will lose and what you may gain. Take an area that you need to improve upon—let’s suppose, again, that you really need to do more cold calling. Picture your goals and dreams. Think of those around you who are positively or negatively affected by your success—or lack of success—at work. Now imagine the negative effect that not cold calling will have on your business. 

• Visualize your business shrinking.
• See yourself going from prosperity and happiness to debt, worry, and despair.
• Imagine your goals and dreams washing away.
• Think about how that will affect those you love.
• Think about what you will be depriving them of—the better lifestyle, better schools, happiness, and prosperity.

Allow yourself to see, feel, smell, taste, and hear exactly what this will be like. The more senses you involve and the more “real” you can make these thoughts, the more effective they will be.  Now do the opposite. Feel the positive effects of cold calling and doing it effectively. 

• How will your business improve?
• What will that do for your goals and dreams?
• What will that do for your self-esteem, self-confidence, your feelings about yourself, and your ability to tackle tasks effectively?

Again, “step into” these feelings as much as possible, involving as many of the senses as you can.  Once you’ve completed this exercise, realize that simply motivating yourself to cold call and to do it more effectively can help steer you away from the overwhelming pain of failure, and drive you toward the tremendous pleasure and rewards of success.  Next, focus on this area for at least the next four weeks until it becomes a habit. During this time, you will get yourself to do more cold calling, get better at doing it, and find ways to make it more enjoyable. In order to achieve this, you’ll want to take the following steps: 

• Set an achievable goal for the number of cold calls you would like to make daily and weekly.
• Study cold calling. Read books, listen to tapes, talk to other salespeople, and discover as much as you can about cold calling more effectively.
• Every morning, and at times during the day when you need some motivation, repeat the negative and positive “stepping into” process.
• Use affirmations such as, “I am making more cold calls and am getting better at them each day.” Say the affirmations with as much feeling and conviction as you can. Say them in the morning upon waking up and in the evening just before bed, and try to say them several times during the day.
• Keep track of how many cold calls you’re making daily and weekly.
• Record how many cold calls turn into appointments and how many appointments turn into sales.
• Figure out how much each cold call puts in your pocket. If one sale gives you five hundred dollars and it takes you five presentations to get a sale and ten cold calls to get a lead to present to, then each cold call, whether they say yes or no, is worth $10.00 to you. If you increase cold calls by 20 percent and sales by 20 percent, what will that do to your income?
• Report to someone. In sales, it’s good to report to someone with authority such as a sales manager. Let him know what you’re trying to accomplish, and tell that person you will be reporting your numbers to him. In most cases, this person will encourage you and give you more ideas on how you can improve.
• Turn cold calling into a game. How many different ways you can find to have fun with the process? Find another salesperson with whom you have a good relationship and have a contest to see who can make the most calls, get the most leads, etc. You can also partner up with another salesperson and go on cold calls together if you’re in face-to-face sales, or block out certain hours of the day when you both cold call.

Once you have worked on a particular area, pick another area and work on it for four weeks. After those four weeks, pick another area. By the end of a year, you will have significantly strengthened thirteen selling areas; moreover, you’ll see marked improvement in your business, your image, and your overall sales career. In addition to the steps above, here are three more ideas to ensure your overall success: 

• Stay as positive as you can by having positive conversations with yourself. Surround yourself with positive sayings, quotes, and other motivational items. At times when a quick inspirational quote won’t do, have a point–counterpoint discussion with yourself. If you find that small, negative voice rising up and it won’t be stilled, engage it in conversation. Let it know that you realize things may not be going well at the moment, yet you are committed, you have a plan, you believe in yourself, and you will succeed!

• Work on your self-image. We all have certain beliefs about ourselves that either limit or empower us. Those beliefs are not always correct, yet we act as though they are. The beliefs that limit you need to be challenged if you are going to make any progress.

For example, if you have a belief that you do not make good first impressions, cold calling will be a challenge for you, to say the least. Start by questioning that belief. Where did it come from? Obviously, there have been times when you have made a good first impression. What did you do at those times, and is it not possible for you to duplicate that behavior more often? After questioning the erroneous belief, decide what you can do to weaken it and replace it with the belief that you can and do make a good first impression. Join a speaking group, ask friends and family for help, and study the subject by reading and listening to information on it.  

• Give yourself small rewards for following through and achieving your goals. Whether it’s partaking in a favorite activity, or going out to a favorite restaurant, reward yourself for hitting your weekly goals. Also reward yourself with larger items, such as a vacation, for reaching quarterly and annual goals.

The bottom line: you need to do whatever you need to do to get yourself to follow through and do the things you need to do to succeed in sales.