If you’re looking to fuel your sales success but have lost your mojo it can be hard to get back in the sales rhythm. Sometimes, raw skills application and diligent following of tried and tested approaches is not enough. Enjoying your work is key to satisfaction. If you are satisfied and happy you will relax and perform better. So don’t lose sight of the fact that within Professional Selling there is room to Have Fun! Variety is the Spice of Life!
In posts on The Humble Sale, we have repeatedly said to our subscribers that we don’t believe in gimmicks that dilute the professional sales approach. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t deploy some creativity to give a different feel to proceedings or introduce some novelty. If done well yourself, your team, your prospects and customers may enjoy the whole process more and you’ll stand out vs your competition.
With fun in mind, here are five quick ideas to encourage variety and enjoyment and help you re-discover your sales mojo!
Fun Tip 1: Incorporate Food!
Human beings tend to relax more and open up when “breaking bread” together. Introducing food into a professional setting tends to make everyone feel good and relax the room. My customers know me for taking biscuits and cakes to meetings (often putting in requests) or sometimes bringing food that brings out the child in everyone (jelly babies or jammie dodgers being particular favourites for getting buyers to go crazy with excitement). It doesn’t have to be extravagant or expensive for you but is a great barrier breaker.
Of course, as you build relationships you can dial this up a little. Why have a meeting in a stuffy office when you could have a more meaningful conversation over lunch somewhere? The meeting may last longer and you’ll learn more. I’m not recommending corporate hospitality level schmoozing here, just a nip to the cafe or a light bite somewhere to change the dynamic and make the meeting enjoyable.
Fun Tip 2: Change the Setting
What could be more memorable than changing the location of the meeting? If your aim is to talk and listen without distraction, why not a walk in the park with them or a chat at a nice cafe table somewhere (back to food already…)? Do you always meet at their premises? See if they’ll visit you – you can introduce your wider team that way, show them around, give them a sense for how your company ticks. Oppositely, a great way to build your knowledge of larger customers is to meet them at a different one of their sites each time. They may enjoy visiting their colleagues elsewhere and you’ll build up relationships with other contacts across their business.
If you are remote selling maybe vary the room you work from or the backgrounds that frame your image? Remote selling from home (something we’ve all had to become used to) can introduce a fun dynamic. Don’t hold back from introducing your family into your professional life; introduce your flat-mates or kids to your prospects, it’ll help them see the authentic you which is a great thing. Also, don’t stress about someone walking in loudly, introduce them on screen and have fun with it!
Fun Tip 3: Use Creativity to Stand Out
This tip takes practice but as you build confidence it can be really fun and make you memorable. For example, we all talk about multi-channel prospecting. Varying your approaches with social media, email, phone calls etc. This can be repetitive and your voice can get lost in the countless other approaches to prospects. However, if you sent a handwritten letter, rolled up and sealed with wax maybe? Would that get a prospect’s attention? Yes. Would you have fun? Yes. Bet you get the meeting too! (Editor’s note: The letter would still need to contain insight and relevance to the prospect with a compelling message inside!)
Instead of using standard proposal structures or documents to explain your ideas could you help the customer’s understanding by changing the method? Could you for example storyboard the experience that your solution would deliver? Alternatively, could you create A Day in The Life summary for one of the customer’s employees, showing how your solution would change their world for the better? If presenting online or in powerpoint, could you replace all words with images? I like this approach, the room has to focus on the presenter to get the story rather than glancing at words on the screen which means they take everything in. You can always follow up with a written summary if needed.
Think creatively and it is amazing what corners of your brain open up and what ideas come through. Fun too!
Fun Tip 4: Remember Sales is a Team Game
Depending on your organisation culture, being a salesperson can be quite isolating. Often managers put all the pressure for success on the individual, which can be counter-productive. Collaboration is definitely the best approach – shared ideas, shared perspectives – and if you can work on deals in a team it is much more fun and rewarding.
Customers also like to see a team approach. They want to know how you will dovetail with their business and what the depth of your team is (too many customers only ever meet the salesperson right up until the point of transaction). This gives them comfort and confidence in their buying decision. If you display an openly collaborative spirit that will definitely improve your chances of success. Also, it is less isolating and more fun to work on deals with your colleagues, deciding which strengths people should play to or bouncing ideas around.
Fun Tip 5: Celebrate Every Success, No Matter How Small
Winning at sales takes time and energy (and positivity which I hope this post has helped encourage). So when a win comes along, no matter how small, celebrate it.
A win could be as simple as finally securing a meeting with a key contact that you’ve wanted to meet for ages. Also, it could be achieving a milestone on the way to a deal. Of course, it could also be signing the deal itself. Celebrate them all.
Celebrate by talking with your colleagues, doing a dance, jumping for joy, sharing the success with your network, chinking glasses with someone, whatever way you choose. Just take time to note the moment and feel really good about yourself.
Hopefully you’ve enjoyed these ideas. For further advice on how to really bolster your sales success why not read 10 Sales Tips to Help Your Results Flourish ?
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Photo by Antonio Gabola on Unsplash
