5 Sales Tips to Maximize Oceans of Opportunities and Leave the Sales Seas of Doom and Gloom

Many metaphors exist to help individuals understand aspects of life and selling is no exception. Examples from sports to hobbies to nature have all been used to explain how to increase sales, build customer loyalty and motivate sales professionals.

With the economy is the doldrums, some sales people are huddled in the corner of their sales ships suffering from the sea sickness aliment of "Ain't It Awful" as my colleague Doug Brown has described. The pitch and rolling of the ship has shaken the sea legs of these sales professionals and they cannot bring themselves to see all the oceans of opportunities because they are sailing the Seas of Doom and Gloom.

One of the best understandings of how failure and your ability to see the true reality is through the often reported response of Thomas Edison. When asked about all his failed attempts to construct a light bulb, his response was that he learned 5,000 (number varies) ways not to invent a light bulb. Edison always saw the oceans of opportunities, not the Seas of Doom and Gloom.

Of course, human beings are for the most part  negatively conditioned animals because of their earliest life experiences. What are the first three words many babies speak?  Mom, Dad and No.  From the Nos of life, young child then face the Do Nots and this transitions into an internal  "Can Not."  Maybe this helps to explain as Alan Deutschman revealed in his research that only one in 10 people will actually change regardless of the facts, fear or force.

So to help overcome this malady of the "Ain't It Awful" illness, here are 5 quick sales tips that may help your sales skills:

Sales Tip #1: Search business news for announcements about promotions, awards, meeting, etc. Send congratulation notes to relevant articles.  Attend those meetings where your target market is most likely to attend.

Sales Tip #2: Be judicious as to where you invest your limited resources of time, energy and dollars.  This does not mean stop marketing yourself or your business.  Look to get the most bang for your buck.

Sales Tip #3: Embrace education based marketing.  Learn why you should switch from the traditional sales based marketing approach to this 21st century sales skill approach.

Sales Tip #4: Continue your own sales professional development. Keep learning so that you can help your potential customers (a.k.a. prospects) and existing customers.

Sales Tip #5: Start thinking differently.  Listen to the words that you are using. Are they positive or do they set you up to travel the same sales course giving you the same sales results.  For example, do you say and think prospects? Why not think of these individuals as potential customers or potential qualified customers?  Does this not change the picture in your mind?

Sales in today's world is literally found in the Oceans of Opportunities. Maybe this is why there is a belief that more wealth is created in a down economy because a few brave sales folk believe that this is the best time to increase sales.

Take this free sales skills assessment to help you increase sales.

Corporate Sales Coach Leanne Hoagland Smith helps you to separate the sales symptoms (poor sales) from the real sales problems (poor behaviors) allowing you to implement effective sales solutions and achieve a positive return on your sales training dollars.

If you could be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, what would that mean to you? Leanne's first sales book shows you just how to unlock more sales results. Read what others are saying about this dynamic and relevant sales coaching book. http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm

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Marketing in Strategic Locations: Leave Your Literature Where Your Competitors Aren't

Think about the people you help in your business. Where do they congregate, where can you find them? For instance, I work with small business owners who want to get more clients. A place this group frequently visits is bank offices to take care of financial transactions and to discuss specific issues with banking officers.

Every time I visit a bank I sit in the waiting area and read one of my brochures. When an officer is ready for me, I place my brochure on the table with all the other reading material. I figure I'm providing a service for the bank by providing materials for their customers for free. Sometimes I visit other banks and read my literature. If a banking officer approaches me, I simply tell him I'm waiting on a friend. Then I leave my literature on the table.

So, think about where your prospects gather. Can you leave a card or brochure or sales sheet?

By the way, it is very easy to track your leads with this system. When you leave a brochure or card, always write a code or department number on them, and record that information. When you are contacted by someone, you can ask about the code and determine which location it came from. Obviously this assists you in determining which locations are producing results and which are not.

This method of marketing certainly shouldn't be your only method of generating prospects. Clearly it will not produce large numbers of prospects. But it will produce results far beyond the small cost. I have gotten several calls over the years from this activity.

Consider out-of-the-ordinary places for your literature, anywhere your prospects might be. I guarantee you won't find your competitors there.

Larry Baltz runs a company called More Sales – More Profits. He works with small business owners who want to get more clients and sell more products and services. Larry is a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach and small business marketing expert. For his free report, “Knock-Their-Socks-Off” Promotion and Marketing, go to [http://www.moresales-moreprofits.com] for your copy.

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