Increasing sales is sometimes just common sense

I was very lucky to be trained by Guardian Media sales (the best media organisation) back in the early 90s and those lessons still ring true. I bumped into one my old Guardian trainers in Manchester last week and we had a good chat about the old days. We both had the same conclusions about sales: things that seem normal to us still seem like bolts from the blue for others. What do I mean by this? The simplest way of describing it is we have been taught so well that we can problem solve virtually any situation for increasing sales – we see the whole picture.

It’s something I’ve simplified into four common-sense areas for my workshops:

WHAT– It’s really important to understand what you are selling. If you can’t sell your own products, then how will you get past stage one of any meeting or call?

WHO – Who are you selling to? Where is your audience now and in the future?

HOW – How are you connecting and engaging your future sales contacts? Who is taking on the responsibility? What do you send and what do you leave for a face-to-face meeting?

FAME – You must use every tool you can to increase your network and deliver fame to your business. It can be social media, it could be plenty of written content on and offline, or it could even just be attending more events. It all increases word of mouth, making you famous. And who creates that fame is critical – you can’t leave it to the mystery department!

Obviously, it’s not always so simple as these four steps. But they give you a strong start, from which you can draw out the extra steps required to create a sales cycle.

I love sales. It’s an exciting and rewarding process, and when it’s delivered well it creates the bedrock for your business – a foundation for everything else you do.

For an informal chat around your sales strategy get in touch tony@momentumspk.co.uk