Great sales people are not a mystery, they are just able to commit their time to the right selling activities and best practices that the rest of us do not.  They could be rain makers for a pharmaceutical firm or they could be a start up business owner that has to sell his own product or service.  Regardless, most sales people are only able to sell 20% of their time because of the non-selling activities that they get involved in.  What would your sales look like if the non-selling activities could be delegated and more time could be committed to selling activities?  How many sales have you lost because the non-selling activities took up too much time?

Let’s take a look at the three types of selling activities and the specific selling activities that you need to start or improve upon to get the results of a great sales person.

Funnel Filling Activities: These are the activities that are going to fill your sales funnel with a higher qualified volume of potential opportunities.  Notice how these are “in-person” selling activities or will lead to other “in-person” selling activities regarding conversations about new business.

1.  Attending networking events relevant to your potential clients and referral partners interests.
2. Sponsoring seminars and speaking engagements that attract potential clients and referral partners.
3. Setting appointments with potential clients that meet your ideal client profile regarding their needs.
4. Setting appointments with referral partners to help target opportunities to work together.
5. Meeting with current clients to further understand their business and where you can add value.
6. Always helping others grow their networks or improving their business when you have the ability and time to do so.

Funnel Accelerating Activities: These are the activities that are going to move your potential opportunities through your sales funnel to become a client and remain a client.  Notice how all of these are meant to move potential clients to a next step.

1. Understanding who your potential client really is, what they really want, and how they buy.
2. Presenting as a team with your technical expert to qualified potential clients.
3. Providing your potential client with two closing options.
4. Overcoming objections and put-offs that arise unexpectedly.
5. Giving your potential client all of the information they need regarding integration and delivery.
6. Making sure that everyone in the organization understands the potential client’s expectations and what their role will be in the integration and delivery phase.

Focusing Activities:  These are the activities that will improve yourself and help you keep your time and energy focused on the Funnel filling and funnel accelerating activities listed above.

1. Making sure you have a plan for what you are attending, who you are meeting with, and who you are talking to about new business for next week before you leave this week.
2. Making sure all of relevant customer information is updated in your CRM where others can find it when they need it.
3. Delegating non-selling activities to the proper support people so you can stay focused on the selling activities.
4. Taking time to grow your knowledge about business success and industry innovations.
5. Taking time to grow your skills, capabilities, and belief in yourself.
6. Unplug once in a while to focus on your personal life.

Notice how nothing has been said about Process and Systems.  That is because I am assuming that you have defined processes and systems in place for you,  your sales people, and your support functions to focus on the right activities for the duties assigned.  Considering that every minute you spend in the non-selling activities is a potential lost opportunity or even potential lost revenue, how much more do you have to lose before you start to integrate some of the right selling activities into your daily and weekly routine?

Please feel free to contact me if you need help on where and how to integrate any of these activities to help you become a great sales person.