Sales is hard. Period. Selling through a pandemic is even harder. Anytime I write for Butler Street, my number one goal is to write from personal experiences rather than teach theory. In my last few blogs, I shared which activities and processes brought me success through the early days of COVID. For this blog, I want to dive in a little deeper on the intangible side and share how I continuously work to have a growth mindset. Last week, Mary Ann shared the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. Below are a few questions that challenge me to stay in the right frame of mind.
1. “What problem am I solving for my clients/prospects?”
“The last thing I have for you right now is time to listen to what you would LOVE to tell me about."
Last week, this exact quote was posted on LinkedIn from a CEO sharing his frustration about sales reps that have outreached him recently. Thankfully, I was not one of the reps, but it was a tough-love reminder that when reaching out to executives, I had better not waste their time and better add value. So before I pick up the phone, I ask myself:
Am I saving them time?
Saving them money?
Increasing their revenue?
Every point of communication needs to be specific around what problem I can solve and the benefits my prospects would gain by connecting with me. I challenge myself to stay up to date with current events and change/update my targeted message.
2. “Where can I get better?"
COVID-19 pushed me to strengthen my value propositions and templates because of the continually changing news we hear almost daily. At one point, I felt confident drafting up an email or voicemail script within minutes and getting to work. But then I had a client ask me about LinkedIn best practices, and I stumbled around what was working for me. I realized that I was in such a rhythm creating different emails and voicemail scripts, I was not staying current enough with my messaging on LinkedIn. From that point on, I have worked to identify the weakest point of my sales skills and strengthen that. Challenge yourself to always get better in today's environment.
Are you great on the phone? Practice virtual selling
Are you great at prospecting? Practice asking for referrals
Are you great at cross-selling? Practice prospecting
3. “Keep going – Did you come this far to only come this far?”
As I mentioned before, sales is hard. And selling through a pandemic is even harder. In the last 90 days, I feel the highs and lows of sales have been multiplied by 10. Some days I have felt defeated; other days, I found myself daydreaming of my future commissions. To maintain a growth mindset during this roller coaster, I always remind myself, "Did I come this far to only come this far?" Below are actual conversations I have held with myself:
On the Hard Days: Did I come this far to only come this far and throw in the towel? Today / this week was brutal. I was hit with rejection everywhere…my prospects ghosted me…no one is buying right now. Did I come this far to quit?
On the Good Days: Did I come this far to only come this far? I just closed multiple deals in a pandemic! Now what? Call it a day and celebrate with a drink? Did I put in all that work to just do that?
The answer to both conversations is a simple "No." When times have been tough, I let myself feel my emotions, but then I push myself to learn from my mistakes and figure out what I could have done differently to achieve the outcome I wanted. When times are good, I celebrate the wins and make sure I do not get too comfortable. I remind myself that I did not work this hard only to achieve this level of success because I know there is a "better normal" ahead for me.
Maintaining a growth mindset is how to win in sales today. There will be good days and bad days, but the questions above remind me of the importance of attitude and having a growth mindset, and I hope they can help you. Contact us to learn how to do more than just accept the current situation - excel in it.