If your salespeople are not meeting budget (or worse—you’re not even sure what they’re doing every day), here is why.
Here are the 5 reasons why most salespeople fail, and what to do about it.
Reason for Failure #1 They have limiting sales beliefs.
What are the first 3 words that come into your head when you hear the word “salesperson”? If words like sleazy, dishonest and greedy came up for you, those beliefs are holding you back as a salesperson. When they create positive sales beliefs, it’s like taking the handbrake off, and their performance lifts immediately.
Reason for Failure #2 They don’t know the most effective professional selling techniques.
There are simple professional selling techniques that practically ensure success. They are practical and easy to learn. 97% of salespeople don’t know them, so they struggle to get through to decision makers, book appointments, and fail to overcome the objections. When salespeople learn the fundamentals of professional selling they are able to handle all of the 6 selling challenges with confidence
Reason for Failure #3 They don’t have a structured approach that makes the sale.
Selling isn’t just an art—there’s also a science to closing the deal. Without the structure, your salespeople either make it up each time, or just do “what we’ve always done”. When they learn the simple steps to selling and get the tools (scripts and sales aids for example), their conversion rate will go through the roof.
Reason for Failure #4 They’re spending hours doing ‘busy work’ and not spending enough time actively selling to prospects.
Selling is a high-value activity, but the average salesperson spends…
- 60% of their time prospecting (looking for someone to sell to).
- 30% of their time face-to-face with qualified prospects (actually selling).
- And 10% of their time servicing existing accounts (looking after people to whom she has already sold). When you implement the systems that allow your salespeople to spend 50-70% of their time actually selling, you’ll watch your numbers soar.
Reason for Failure #5 There is no Culture of Accountability.
Without clear goals, consistent reporting and strong sales management, your people are left to their own devices and performance suffers. When you have well defined KPI’s, regular reporting and a system for managing your salespeople, you’ll get the control and results you’ve been looking for.
