As you walk into a prospect’s office, your pre-call planning and preparation should give you the confidence needed to ‘visualize’ the final outcome of the meeting. As professional advertising salespeople, we call this visualization “Assuming the Sale.” In order to accomplish this, it’s imperative that we accurately qualify leads to ensure that our product or service will solve a problem, answer a need, or provide a benefit to our prospect. If you have any doubt about your ability to accomplish at least one of these business objectives before your first face-to-face interaction with a prospect, it will be nearly impossible for you to visualize the outcome of the meeting.
Let’s be honest…time truly is money. Every minute counts. To maximize your prospecting efficiency, your priority needs to be allocating your personal resources to those businesses who you’re confident you can build a mutually beneficial relationship with. If you cannot identify their needs and implement a solution to fulfill their needs, they have no reason to do business with you. In my opinion, you’re only wasting their time…and yours.
By planning each step of your meeting and preparing to take your prospect through The Sales Cycle, you can visualize taking the sales call through to completion and focus on making the sale. Picture yourself walking out that customer’s door with a total ‘win-win’ situation in hand. The best example of this are Olympic athletes. Not only do they train their bodies to be the strongest and fastest, but they also train their minds. They understand that to be successful they must believe in themselves and be capable of visualizing success. When they are standing on the start line, they are “Assuming the Victory.”
When you are prepared and have a positive mental attitude, you can assume the sale because you are confident this is a worthwhile prospect and your product and services will provide a benefit to them. You’ll be able to sit down and demonstrate why your prospect needs to do business with you…why they need to say yes. If you can begin a meeting by visualizing the outcome and assuming the sale, it means that you’ve done everything in your power to achieve the desired result you’re seeking. If you honestly cannot visualize the sale happening, then there is more preparation and planning needed on your part.
One of my all time favorite motivational poems is The Victor by C. W. Longenecker. I think it sums up my thoughts quite well. Consider this the next time you walk out of the office on the way to a sales call – my hope is that it will help you to confidently assume the sale.
If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don’t.
If you like to win, but you think you can’t,
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost,
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will.
It’s all in the state of mind.
If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man.
But soon or late the man who wins,
Is the man who thinks he can.
Have a terrific week,
Dan
If there are specific topics you’d like to see discussed in a future issue of The Sales Cycle, please contact me at 612-278-0223 or dan@mna.org