Mar
2

By CommenceCRM

Sales Best Practice #15 – Quantity of Presentations

A best practice for sales people from Dave Kahle

Best Practice #15: Regularly makes a sufficient quantity of presentations for the products, services and programs that we sell.

By Dave Kahle

“You’ve got to show it in order to sell it.”

That simple advice given to me decades ago by a wise sales manager seems so simple and common sense. Yet, we tend to become so involved in the ceaseless onslaught of tasks, emails, phone calls, etc. that we lose sight of some of the fundamental truths of what it takes to become an effective sales person. When it’s all said and done, if you haven’t presented your product or service a sufficient quantity of times, you are not going to be successful.

In the world of effective salesmanship, there is a necessary element that has to do with the quantity of your efforts. Here’s a phrase to think about: the quantity of sales presentations.

You make a sales presentation whenever you lay a piece of literature down in front of a customer and talk to him/her about it. You make a sales presentation whenever you present or demonstrate a product; when you deliver a proposal; or when you submit a bid.

In each of these, you are, in effect, saying to the customer: “Here’s this, how about buying it?”

Making a sufficient quantity of sales presentations is one of the best practices of the best sales people.

A few years ago, I was working with one of my clients on revising their sales compensation plan. One of the practices that they wanted to promote through compensation was the quantity of sales presentations. I asked them how many sales presentations they thought the average sales person was making per week. They replied that “week” was probably not the right measurement. I asked, “How many per month?”

Their answer? “We think we’d be lucky if they averaged one per month.”

I was astonished. If they are sales people and they aren’t making sales presentations, what are they doing? In this case, as in many others, they were filling their days with administrative busy work and routine purposeless sales calls. They are more like mobile customer service reps than sales people.

The best sales people make sure that they continually deliver a sufficient quantity of sales presentations.

Here’s a way for you to step up to this level. For the next month, keep track of the quantity of sales presentations you make. Create a spreadsheet for each day of the month, and simply create a hash mark under that date for every sales presentation you make.
questionnaire-by patpitchaya-100218774 Image courtesy of patpitchaya/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
At the end of the month, count up the number of sales presentations you made. Now, give yourself this goal: Double the quantity of sales presentations you make in the next month. Once you have committed to that goal, ask yourself this question: “How can I double the number of sales presentations I make?”

You’ll come up with a plan. Then, test your plan by continuing to keep track of the quantity of sales presentations the same way you did the previous month.

As you begin to present more frequently, you’ll find yourself focusing on this fundamental and extremely important activity. You’ll generate more opportunities, and create more business. It is just that simple.

That’s why this is one of the best practices of the best sales people.

To learn more about this best practice:

* read chapter 19 of How to Excel at Distributor Sales.

* read chapter 8 of How to Sell Anything to Anyone Anytime

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About the author:

Dave Kahle is one of the world’s leading sales authorities. He’s written twelve books, presented in 47 states and ten countries, and has helped enrich tens of thousands of sales people and transform hundreds of sales organizations. Sign up for his free weekly Ezine. His most recent book, How to Sell Anything to Anyone Anytime, has been named one of the “five best business books,” by three international entities.

Copyright MMXV by Dave Kahle

All rights reserved

Image courtesy of patpitchaya/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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