Business Owners, Presidents and CEOs Did you know that on average only 9% of sales meetings end in a

sale?

Or that only one out of 250 salespeople exceed their goals?

What does this cost you, the Business Owner if ignored or left unaddressed?

Recent research studies have observed approx 800 sales professionals in live sales meetings to understand this drastic gap between investment and performance.

Various studies have shown that Behavior (How people Act and React while buying or selling) has a significant bearing on success or failure.

A recent study identified seven behaviors, of which only four were actually shown to relate to sales success.

By analyzing how salespeople acted or behaved in sales scenarios, the study uncovered eight different types of salespeople. The most interesting factor is that only three of the eight were consistently effective. They only made up only 37% of the sample!

The remaining five types of sales people — or 63% — fell short.

How many of your people fall within this “short” group, and at what cost?

The study categorized three effective types of salespeople and their Identified skill sets

Experts, Closers, and Consultants.

Keep in mind that all three vary with respect to their own effectiveness despite the categorization.

Experts (9% of salespeople) are good at all seven skills;

Consultants (15%) have good listening skills and are good problem solvers; Very Effective with respect to technical sales

Closers (13%) can pull off big product sales, (Automobiles and one-time close Equipment sales) but their smooth-talking style doesn't work as well for selling services that required that they develop an ongoing relationship.

Ineffective Salesperson #1: The Socializer

Despite the reputation most salespeople have as being “Born Sales People” or socially gifted, they are actually the worst-performing when it comes to closing the sale.

They tend to talk, not listen. When listening they often “listen” to themselves waiting to talk, while failing to listen. They often refrain from asking the difficult and uncomfortable but necessary qualifying questions.

The Socializer effectively “sells” you in the interview, however, they do nothing more than create a “Pipeline” full of hopefuls.

Ineffective Salesperson #2: The Storyteller

Storytellers also talk a lot, and rarely use effectIve listening skills to identify the actual buying motive. Their stories tend to focus on how other clients were successful or happy

At Peak Performance we teach what is known as a Visual Usage Scenario. This is where an effective sales person actually gets the buyer to visualize using and clearly benefiting from a product or service. Much like how an informercial works. The informercial sets out to get you to first feel the pain, fear or joy of visualizing a scenario, followed then by actually seeing the product in use.

Most sales people fail to make this critical connection as they are so focused on who they are, what they do and how effective they are.

Ineffective Salesperson #3: The Narrator

Narrators are generally analytical and too often rely on a rigid script and prepared sales or marketing materials. They are generally very rehearsed in their delivery. Think about a Doctor who greets you with a Pre-Written Prescription. That is known as Mal-Practice in the medical field.

They don’t do well in competitive situations where buyers have multiple questions or throw curveballs. Should you be selling a commodity that is cheaper than that of your competition, then they may do well. If not, you have a walking brochure.

Ineffective Salesperson #4: The Focuser

Focusers, like Narrators, are highly analytical and often gravitate toward technical or financial sales, where technical and analytical skills are needed to a certain degree.

The Focuser is a master at their product, however fails to focus on what is important to the buyer. They fail to identify the buying motive of the customer, as their focus is on detailing every product feature, often specific features that they like, not necessarily what the buyer likes. They often disconnect with the fast acting impulsive buyer and tend to have long sales cycles.

Ineffective Salesperson #5: The Aggressor

Aggressors can be very productive in the right setting. They subconsciously approach sales meetings with a focus on winning every point. They will disconnect with the slower, calculating buyer. Sales that include an ongoing relationship and some level of diplomatic negotiation are not well suited for the Aggressor.

The Aggressor can on occasion bring home the big win. However, if you are in an environment where careful negotiation and occasional price concessions are needed to develop a long term buying relationship, then expect to lose this business to more calculating competition.

Fixing the Problem and your Process

As many others have found, this report finds that within most sales organizations there is a disproportionate amount of training allocated to:

Presentation Skills: Traditional Training is mainly focused on Features and Benefits. What is critical

in today’s competitive environment is that your sales people fully understand the process of discovery. Uncovering the buyers personal motives for buying often has nothing to do with Features and Benefits.

Rapport Skills: Most rapport training has a focus on “being liked”. When in fact, this has little to do

with long term success. Being “like” or being similar to the prospect is what development of true rapport is all about.

The true meaning of Rapport, a French word, is to “Give back”. Unless you work with these “One Gear Communicators” through teaching them how to sell differently to different people, then you are accepting the constant disconnect that occurs between the sales person and the prospect, and the constant capital loss you incurr each month simply based on not addressing it..

Targeted Training that focuses in on Attitude is essential. Attitudinal Training, unlike Motivational Training focuses in on building Self Confidence and Self Esteem. Where is that Sales Candidate that walked into the interview with the mindset of “I’m going to Move a Mountain”? Well he is not the same guy that now has the attitude of “I hope to just meet qouta!”

Have you seen this attitudinal shift occur with your sales people?

Step One: Acknowledgement

It is critical that you, the Business Owner, CEO or President first acknowledge the difference between where you are, versus where you deserve to be.

You must acknowledge the untapped value within yourself and your sales people. The root cause (not the symptoms) must be identified followed by a corrective course of action individually and as a group.

Step Two: Take Actionable steps towards looking at viable options.

If you feel like you are banging nails in the wall with your forehead; and you become aware of a garage loaded with Power Tools that will help you to build a better, more profitable deck…. is that at least worth looking at?

Call Peak Performance Today at 866-816-0991 to discuss viable options

www.peakperformancesalestraining.com