Key Messages
How to Become a Great Salesperson: The Secrets of Agile Learning
Winning sales isn’t easy – and it definitely isn’t getting any easier.
With markets and environments always changing, both veteran and new salespeople can be caught off guard by new strategies or products.
That’s why it is so important to become an agile learner – someone who knows how to learn quickly, and adeptly adjust to the ever-changing landscape of selling.
To be an agile learner means you must develop a deep understanding of the market, your product, your clients and yourself.
In the Agile Selling book, you’ll learn everything you need to know about becoming an agile learner so that you can consistently win more sales.
From knowing when sitting down with your company CEO is irrelevant in terms of closing a sale, to understanding why optimists sell more than pessimists – this book will give you all the tools that help you make adjustments in a volatile marketplace.
In addition, there are tips on using role playing games as part of your team building initiatives for success with each sale.
Become an Agile Learner to Stay on Top of Constant Change in the World of Sales
As a salesperson, it’s essential to be prepared for constant change.
Whether it’s a new product you’re selling, the strategies you have in place, or the people you’re selling to – everything is constantly changing in your job.
Salespeople need to stay up-to-date with ideas and technology, while they adapt to their ever-changing environment.
The customers of today aren’t interested in hearing about a long list of product features; they want an individualized experience that is tailored specifically for them.
Delivering this type of experience requires increased agility from salespeople – the ability to quickly learn and grasp what is relevant for an individual customer situation.
How to Become an Agile Learner and Salesperson: Letting Go of Negative Emotions and Setting Improvement Goals
If you’re a salesperson, it’s important to take steps to better manage the demands of selling.
One way to do this is by letting go of negative emotions and embracing a more positive mindset.
All too often we let feelings of uncertainty and doubt hold us back from achieving success, but if we can shift our attitude from negative to positive, then we stand a better chance of meeting our goals.
The author encountered her own career crisis and was able to turn it around by reevaluating her sales methods and having the right perspective when faced with failure.
She learned the invaluable lesson that even when things don’t go as planned, she could still use those experiences as learning opportunities.
When setting goals for yourself, don’t stop at performance-based objectives such as “I want to close 25 deals this month.” Instead, try setting “getting better” objectives—”I closed 15 deals last month.
This month I want to close 25 in order to show I’m improving.” By taking on a new approach in which improvement is your aim rather than specific outcomes, you give yourself more motivation and are more likely to reach your goals in the end.
This is just one way of managing the demands of sales – by being agile about it!
Learning continuously is essential for any salesperson’s success – so if you’re trying to reach bigger heights be sure not recite ‘Agile Selling Book Summary’!
How to Make the Most of Limited Time to Learn a New Job
Learning efficiently is more important than learning everything all at once.
This is especially true when you’re starting a new job, and you suddenly have to learn lots of new information like services, pricing structures, and market competition.
Fortunately, there are strategies that can help simplify the learning process.
One of them is to organize everything into mental folders – blocks of information on one subject that you can access quickly.
For example, it’s not helpful to think about target markets when you’re improving your selling skills, so file “target markets” into the “products” section of your brain instead.
These mental folders also ensure that you’re learning in the right order.
After all, it wouldn’t make any sense to work on your selling skills if you have no idea what products you’ll be selling!
How to Adapt Quickly to a New Situation: Set Small Goals and Prioritize What You Need to Know
Taking on a new job can be challenging, especially if you’re just starting out or don’t know much about the sales environment.
To gain confidence and set yourself up for success, it’s important to prioritize what you need to learn quickly.
Lee Salz, an expert in sales management, believes that even experienced sellers need at least eight months when starting a new endeavor before they can perform on the same level as people who are already accustomed to the sales environment.
With that in mind, concentrating on the details and absolute need-to-knows is key to gaining situational credibility.
To get up to speed quickly, focus on three must-knows: insider language, your buyers, and the status quo of what they are using instead of your offering.
By learning the jargon used by members of your field and understanding who is responsible for buying products or services as well as how buyers are doing without you, you will have a good foundation in selling skills and be able to adapt quickly to any situation.
How to Prepare for a Meeting to Seal the Deal: Refine Your Research and Plan Ahead for Any Challenges
Successful sellers know that the key to closing deals is thorough preparation.
Trying to charm potential customers into buying from you isn’t enough – they won’t commit unless you’ve done your research.
The author’s story of almost blowing a meeting with an important firm is a perfect example of how inadequate preparation can lead to disaster.
It’s true that no matter how experienced you are, nothing will compensate for making a proper plan for the meeting first.
To help with this, there are strategies and techniques top salespeople use prior to any interaction with a prospect.
Practicing role play conversations and even recording them on video can give you insights into what works and what doesn’t before diving into an actual meeting.
Learning from more seasoned experts is also beneficial, as they will be aware of common pitfalls in the sales process that can easily be avoided.
Creating plans with “recovery strategies” allows you to get back on track if anything goes wrong during the meeting.
Last but not least, successful sellers always take time to expect and prepare for anything that could potentially go wrong — think about all the worst-case scenarios and create contingency plans should things go awry so that no bad surprises occur during your interactions with prospects!
Refining Your Communication Skills for Successful Selling
Selling is not about scripts or product outlines – it’s about creating and tailoring a personalized experience for each individual customer.
And this is why having strong communication skills is so important when it comes to sales.
You need to be able to adapt quickly in conversations, stay engaged and focused, ask pertinent questions, and pick up on cues from your client that can help you tailor your sales pitch better.
For instance, instead of just touting the features of your product, try asking them questions like how they perceive the risks of switching to something new as well as what impact a change in product might have on their business.
Listening closely to their answers and responding accordingly shows them that you really care about their needs and concerns.
The same holds true for body language too – being aware of how others are responding to you is key if you really want to seal the deal with a client.
Whereas in New York, long time salesperson’s pushy ways had yielded great results- these same tactics didn’t quite fly in Minneapolis – his prospects were put off by his lack of sensitivity to their personal boundaries!
Ultimately, success in sales depends largely on your communication and negotiation skills—and how well you’re able customize and tailor each interaction based on the other person’s needs.
Ways to Stay Motivated and Inspired as a Salesperson
As a salesperson, it is essential to keep your skills sharp and up-to-date on a day-to-day basis.
To stay competitive and successful, you must practice your skills every day, striving for perfection.
In sales, attitude is just as important as experience, if not more so.
Optimistic sellers often outperform their pessimistic counterparts, so make sure you take the time to cultivate a positive outlook!
This means that instead of only focusing on making a sale or earning money, remember all of the great products or services you are providing which are helping people improve their lives or save them money in some way.
Moreover, instead of viewing obstacles as roadblocks, try approaching them as a game; always set goals for yourself which will make it easier to tackle challenges that come your way.
Establishing this type of attitude towards such problems is the first step in finding success in the realm of sales.
Wrap Up
The key takeaway from Agile Selling is that a salesperson needs to be flexible and adaptive in order to be successful.
The book emphasizes the importance of continually learning and refining one’s skills, in order to stay sharp when it comes to selling.
In addition, Agile Selling also gives readers actionable advice on how to boost their confidence before a big pitch.
It recommends striking a power pose or singing a song which will trigger the release of hormones that suppress stress and stimulate your confidence.
Overall, Agile Selling serves as an informative guide on how to adapt and pivot in effective ways, while providing tangible strategies for boosting one’s confidence prior to major pitches.
