(By Loyd Ford) Life is full of opportunities if we learn to recognize them. My dad used to say, “Luck is where preparation and practice meet opportunity.” Our biggest sales opportunities of 2024 will start with us and where we lay our focus regularly.
Everyone in sales knows the old saying: “The more you see, the more you sell.” And that’s true. Programmers know time spent listening. I am doing everything I can to draw sellers’ attention to the term “time spent selling.” The more active you are presenting to potential clients, the more you will sell. Period. But selling is more than signing clients.
Here is my version of your 5 biggest opportunities coming every single day in 2024.
- “Let’s just have a conversation.” Openers are step one in selling. You have to be able to open conversation with prospects, and then develop it. The better we become at this, the more opportunities we will develop ourselves. Develop your skills in getting others talking.
- “Make sure to ask lots of questions.” You are not the star of a sales call. However, when you develop the ability to ask questions and keep potential clients talking, you will be the star seller because you will know more about your customers, their problems and challenges and what they need than any other seller in your market.
- “Bring value to every interaction and focus on customer experience.” This step is often taken for granted. Don’t. When you learn to bring value to every interaction with a potential client, you build credibility and slowly (or rapidly) become a part of their inner circle. Who do you think they will call when they want more customers or need to solve a problem?
- “Do everything you can to sharpen your active listening skills.” Most people on Earth talk too much. Sorry. Americans are worse and people in radio are maybe the worst of all. To be most successful in sales, consider the value of talking less than you listen. Practice your detective skills. In a business that brings listeners to advertisers, we want to be the best listeners. Two ears and one mouth is not an accident (especially for sellers).
- “Read, watch, learn everything you can about recognizing closing opportunities, listening for buying signs and guiding the star of your sales call (the client) to the close.” Everyone knows that closing is a critical skill in sales. You can have all the conversations in the world, bring value to potential clients, and listen well, but if you can’t close… you don’t excel at selling. Spend extra time on YouTube learning about closing signs. Reach out to sellers who you admire for conversations about how they recognize closing opportunities and seize them. Read everything you can about sharpening closing skills. Self-education is the most powerful tool to help you grow your abilities in sales.
There may be a million sellers, but the best sellers learn to model the behaviors of those who are superstars. Each superstar has a strong combination of the five items in this article and you can join them in 2024 or grow your superstar sales team even more.
Loyd Ford is president and chief strategic officer at Rainmaker Pathway Consulting Works (RPC). They help local radio with ratings and revenue. Reach him anytime at 864.448.4169 or [email protected]. Read Loyd’s Radio Ink archives here.
