Our job as sales professionals

- When I first became a salesperson, my manager gave me some very straightforward advice. He said that my job must be focused on solving the needs of the buyers that I work with, be tenacious in closing sales, and not to exceed my expense budget while doing it. He had greatly simplified all of the responsibilities of being in sales, yet keeping our customers satisfied, driving revenue, and maximizing profits really is the objective of every company. In order to achieve those goals, there are many steps that need to be taken first, and I believe they are essential in order to be successful.

You can't cut corners if you want to close sales. The following responsibilities must be accomplished. Planning and preparation, is in my mind, the most important building block and can't be taken for granted. It involves doing your research to know your customers, your competition, and your buyer before you meet them. It's recognizing that objections will be raised, so you must anticipate them, and have a clear and honest response to them. Planning and preparation is the foundation that should eventually lead to closing a sale.

Know your product or service means always staying on top of new features and benefits, but also being fully aware of your strengths and weaknesses. Your buyer will no doubt have questions about your offering and you shouldn't be surprised hearing them. It will be a major barrier to cross if your product knowledge is in question. Next, the sales process moves strategically along the sales pipeline, with the end result being closing the sale. You can speed things along if you feel things are falling in place, but skipping steps, and attempting to close too soon can result in a lost opportunity.

Following a well-designed sales process is the best course of action. Delivering on your promise after you've closed the sale is essential. This ties back to the trust you want to earn from your buyer and the credibility you want to establish so you can work with this buyer again. This is the requirement of you and your company of honoring the commitment you've given. Communicate and report back to others is more than just checking off the box and entering some quick updates into your CRM.

Tasks like prospecting, overcoming objections, and closing sales are skills that when you learn an improved technique, it must be shared with others. These five responsibilities are essential to becoming a successful sales professional, and we must continually improve them throughout the course of our careers. They are also critical ingredients to establishing trust with our buyers. The objective we all have is to provide a solution for our customers and to hit the sales targets assigned to us.

By mastering these skills, it will put you in a position to achieve those goals and close more sales.