Often when I put on a Leading Home Care Sales
Academy, I get this type of question....
"Michael, what do I say when someone tells me (fill in
the blank) so that they will refer to me?"
To that I say..........I have no idea.
There are
some number of sales reps that come to these events
looking for a magic bullet. They want a phrase, a
speech, a "pitch" that will magically turn them into
homecare sales leaders. I promise, by the end of this
article, I'll give you the magic.....
I'm prompted to write this as I was emailed a link to a
new homecare sales website last week. The site is
pretty impressive. Someone spent a lot of time,
thought and effort to create something so slick. It
seems comprehensive, although I'll admit I'm not sure
I would understand how to use it, or what it costs to
register.
There were several testimonials on the site, and one
that was representative of a few others caught my eye.
It said something like "(this guy) has some fresh new
ideas for marketing."
My first thought
was......really?
Goods and services have been sold for thousands of
years. If there is a way to sell something, I'm willing to
bet it has been used thousands of times over. I'll freely
admit that nothing that I train people on is "new"
or "fresh". The reason? There isn't anything "new"
or "fresh"
That testimonial seemed to hold the promise of "do
something new and your results will be better than the
guy who is doing something old."
Sales just
doesn't work that way.
I get frustrated at times when I hear an otherwise
talented sales rep or manager ask me "Michael, what
do I say when........?"
The secret to sales success is here....and I'm ready to
reveal it.
- Go out and meet as many people as possible
- Determine which of these people can give you the
most referrals
- Build a relationship with them based on the
concept of "mutual value"
- Continue to treat them professionally
- ALWAYS do what you say you'll do
- Repeat.....repeat....repeat....
That, my friends, is the "secret" to homecare sales
success.
I'll admit, it's not sexy. It doesn't look slick or "fresh",
but it works. If you do these things each day and you
represent a company that provides a great level of
service to your clients, you will sell circles around the
salespeople that are out looking for the "fresh" new
idea. No trinket, sales "pitch", brochure or "fresh"
marketing technique will EVER beat a consistent
professional sales effort.
Do you know whey no one in Major League Baseball
swings a bat with their feet? Because it's been proven
that holding it in your hands and swinging with your
arms is the most effective way to get a hit. The best
players swing the bat EXACTLY the same way as the
worst players......you want to know what the difference
is? The BEST players spend countless hours
practicing....hitting ball after ball....studying
pitchers...so that when the game is on, they have the
best chance of getting a hit. They don't do
anything "fresh" or "new" to hit the ball....they simply
work harder and do it better than most everyone else.
That's how you get great at sales too. Stick to the
proven basics listed above....apply yourself and
become the consummate professional...and you too
will be a sales "all star".
You still want to do something that your competitors
aren't? Do this.......get up tomorrow, plan 8 quality
sales calls and don't quit until you have made them.
Do that every day and focus your activities on the best
return accounts....now that's fresh! Why? Because
your competitors aren't doing it. They are scouring
books, magazines, the web and their own minds for
the next "fresh" idea that will take the place of
professional selling and make them successful.
You should just hope they don't read this article. Now
get out there and sell something!
