Editor Choice : Sept 2006

Prostitute Yourself for Successful Sales - Successful Salesmanship

One of the most effective salespeople I have met was a Gigolo. Like all good sales professionals he mapped out his sales area, qualified his prospects and did the numbers. He would approach his prospect and proposition her. His first approach was seldom successful and he typically received responses like: Don't be disgusting or I'm married.

If his advances were rejected, he would politely back off, leaving his prospect with his business card. According to him, within six months to a year, he had slept with just under half of those who had rejected him on his initial approach. He claimed that the reason for this success was because the married couple had just had an argument. Needing consolation, revenge or whatever her motivation … the wife was soon in his arms.

He knew what all effective sales people know - in many instances when the prospect rejected his advances she was not saying no, she was saying not now. What she was in essence saying was that she was happy with her husband; leaving out the unspoken words for now or until he messes up. Or, as Jeffery Bezos of Amazon.com replied when asked if Amazon.com clients are loyal, “Absolutely, right up to the second that somebody else offers them a better service.”

Most sales people (if they are doing their job) are used to hearing the following objections: I'm happy with my current supplier. I don't need your product. I don't have the budget. I have a contract with my service provider, and many other “not nows”.

Like the gigolo's prospects, sales professionals' prospects are also saying, I'm happy with my product/service/supplier - FOR NOW.

The first or second time a product/service/supplier lets your prospect down, they will be in the market for something new and better. When this happens do you have top-of-mind awareness with your prospect? Has your persistence allowed you to position yourself and your company in the prospect's mind? Sadly, many sales professionals are forgotten when the prospect decides to try out another supplier. The reason for this is simple - only handfuls of sales people keep themselves visible to the prospect over a sustained period of time.

The average will try and secure business once, maybe twice. Unlike the gigolo, who has only one opportunity to connect, sales people have many opportunities for connecting with their prospect. In her book, How to Get New Business in 90 Days - And Keep it Forever, Wendy Evans says that sales professionals should be in contact with their clients and prospects at least every three months. She says that out of a qualified prospect base of 200, on your first call, you may secure one or two appointments, one percent or less. (The gigolo closed one deal a day on his first attempt). If you write or phone again on your second cycle (within three months), your percentage of appointments could rise to two or three percent - six appointments. Three months on, in your ninth month write and/or phone again. You're likely to see a seven percent increase in appointments - 14 or more. In the fourth cycle you're looking at a 30 percent appointment rate and on your fifth appointment a 60 percent appointment rate.

Successful sales professionals have two vital ingredients going for them.

First, they have the right attitude to prospecting - they know that to keep in business and succeed that prospecting is the life-blood of their livelihood.

Second, they never allow their prospects and customers to forget them. They know that persistence pays off and by keeping themselves top-of-mind, they are ensuring that the commissions keep rolling in.