Becoming the #1 salesman at my slowlane job

[Disciple96]

One day this will become a process thread and eventually, a mild success story.

For now, I seek advice:

I've decided to work as many hours (80+) as I can at my new slowlane commission only job just to apply all I learn while studying sales. If you have any input here it would be tremendously appreciated.

With a little luck - i.e. probability - 12 hour days 6 days a week will start to pay off on my paycheck as well. Although I'm not counting on it paying very well at 15% commission on profits. And I'll make just barely enough to survive on the draw alone.

No, for now, my goal is to learn, sell, learn, sell, learn, sell and sell some more.

I'm nearly starving. I need to be hungry.

Hopefully this job presents an opportunity to lift myself from the brink of homelessness and starvation, a drowing crevasse I am only barely climbing out of.

Eventually when #1 success finds me in this slowlane job, I will have already siphoned what funds I can out of my meager paycheck into a small savings.

For now... I'm flat broke, without a phone, without a working car, with barely any food, with ONLY THIS JOB.... until 3 days before christmas.

This savings will be my seed. I must nurture it, let it grow into a powerful tree. If I don't water it, it can never grow.

About that... Bruce Lee said it best:

"You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash. Become like water my friend."

Until soon,

- The Disciple

 

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[ZF Lee]

I'll give you credit on learning sales.
Lots of people fear selling, so they run away to big schools and corporate ladders to hide their fear with degrees and big titles, but their fear will find them eventually.
As you plod on, look for needs or deficiencies people need. Ask yourself, do they need help in selling, a system they don't have to worry about to sell their products? Amazon and ebay do well in solving this need, but recently there has been lots of unfavourable feedback on them. Look for gaps, and go in!
Look up on writing copy too. It is also a vital sales tool.

People underestimate the power of sales. It is the bloodline of any business. And then too many assume that politics or bribery will do the job just fine....

 

[Disciple96]

Well, I said this was going to be a process thread: so without further ado....

Here is my 3 tiered plan of attack for this week:

1) Start compiling my lifelong reading list for note taking and studying

2) learn the ins and outs of the benefits/features of the products I currently sell (better than my clients)

3) apply new KNAWLEDGE of the products and sales theory to my sales job

Here is my current reading list (provided by none other than the fine members of this forum)

• Influence - Robert Cialdini
• Spin Selling - Nielsen Rackham
• How I Raised Myself From Failure to Success in Selling - Frank Bettger
• The Secret of Selling Anything- Harry Browne
• Greatest Salesman in the World - Og Mandino
• The Ultimate Sales Machine - Chet Holmes
• How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie
• You Can Negotiate Anything - Herb Cohen
• The Unfair Advantage Sell - NLP (?)
• Pitch Anything - Oren (?)
• Psychology of Selling - Brian Tracy

...Not necessarily in that order.

Eventually I would love to get my hands on Jordan Belfort's "Straight Line System" but I definitely can't invest in it for a while. I will chalk it up on the wishlist for now.

I'll report back with some of my personal notes when I get a chance on Monday. Until then, it's time to study up!

"Day by day, nothing changes... but when we look back, everything is different" - J.R.R. Tolkien

Cheers to process,

-The Disciple

 

[ZF Lee]

Try to cut down your reading list.....it's a lot!
I might suggest that you tailor-make your sales pitch according to the customer's needs and background.
Ask these questions....

What does the client need?
How will the product help them?
How can you place them in a context where the product you are selling looks like the ultimate solution to them?
Does the customer have a history of being disappointed by sales agents?
If so, can you provide an EXCEPTIONAL sales pitch that will make him smile and come back as a referral?

People think that sales is mostly based on domination, but I feel it is about CAPTURING.
Some aggressive sales techniques based on domination might be too aggressive, such as cold-calling, and can outright irritate the sales prospect.

 

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[Thiago Machado]

Despite how engaged you might be to a certain book (or video), within about a week removed, and certainly a month, you will only remember 10% of what you read.

That 10% will usually consist of -

• The general lesson in the book (9%)
• Less than a handful of particular lines or themes that you could relate to or were particularly stimulating (1%)

If you don't apply what you learned, 10% slowly drops to 1 or 2% within 6 month to a year.

That is why I suggest (if you like reading and find it an efficient way to learn, I usually DO NOT), you should only read ONE (or MAX two) books a year.

Read the book once for general meaning.

Re-read it for detail.

APPLY EVERY CONCEPT IN THE BOOK before you read ANYTHING ELSE.

Otherwise, the vast majority is simply entertainment and eventually lost.

Source - http://www.gll-getalife.com/get-success/the-best-self-improvement-books-youve-never-heard-of

 

[Ricardo's]

I'm a huge student of sales and have thousands of hours of experience in field.

If you're selling face to face, I can help.

 

[458]

Dial bro, just dial and dial and dial. I hire and train young talent, the average time for me to turn someone that is an amateur into a professional is generally 7-9 months. Most people can't handle 7-9 months of soul crushing rejection. If you can, there's money on the other side.

 

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[Thiago Machado]

Dial bro, just dial and dial and dial. I hire and train young talent, the average time for me to turn someone that is an amateur into a professional is generally 7-9 months. Most people can't handle 7-9 months of soul crushing rejection. If you can, there's money on the other side.

If he's saying it @Disciple96, do it! haha

 

[458]

If he's saying it @Disciple96, do it! haha

High demand, low supply. Phone sales is a dying art that is still extremely profitable. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 on indeed because there just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle..

 

[Azure]

I have an e book pdf of straight line persuasion.

 

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[Disciple96]

High demand, low supply. Phone sales is a dying art that is still extremely profitable. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 on indeed because there just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle..

I have been kicking around cold calling in my mind now. I'm not sure how applicable it would be in my situation (yet). But I'm starting to see some opportunities.

I'm a retail sales associate competing for inbound leads on the floor. I see a couple ways to increase my output:

• Staying on the floor longer
• Trying to create new business via outbound sales i.e. cold calling (tricky)
• Creating a personalized email marketing campaign for my MVP clients

Cold calling in my local area is tricky because some potential clients would be already working with competing sales associates.

Cold calling outside of my local area is tricky because much of the value I provide for MVPs is face to face, and I am only an employee of a franchise.

Maybe you can see an opportunity that I've missed in this arena.

Edit: after some thought, perhaps I will cold call local prospects and qualify them as a new customer before trying to build a relationship. Then again, if its been awhile, I can try to get them to come in for an appointment and make the presentation. Learning much from Belfort's course already!

 

[steelandchrome]

If a brick and mortar environment which it sounds like I would tell you ultimately all that matters is to engage with as many people as possible and then get to know what your customers want/need by talking to them vs selling to them. (Imagine your conversation where you interact with what would be described as a natural curiosity in your questions vs a structured line of questions) Then use the features and benefits of your products to recommend them the best solution for their needs.

Features "Tell" and Benefits "Sell"

Ie: This washing machine has a capacity of 5.2cuft, 950rpm, 14 wash cycles, etc.... These are all features and don't really tell me why any of them matter to me as the end consumer and if you didn't ask any questions how could you even know what to recommend anyways?

Saying something more like "You said you have a family of 4 and you wash your king comforter so you'll want to get a machine with at least 5cuft to handle the comforters and cut down on the amounts of loads you have to do and this one is 5.2cuft so will do that for sure. On top of that it has 14 different wash cycles that make it easy to set without having to know what temperature and speed to set it at (even the kids can operate this easily), and with 950rpm it will spin out so much of the water by the end of the cycle that the dry time is cut in half compared to an older machine."

Another point would be don't be afraid to ask for the sale. People struggle all the time to actually ask for the money at the end of the conversation and if you did it right and sold them what they truly wanted then they are more likely to say yes to the purchase vs thinking about it. Make the decision easy on them and it will go a lot easier.

 

[ZF Lee]

High demand, low supply. Phone sales is a dying art that is still extremely profitable. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 on indeed because there just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle..

Or should I HIRE people for peanuts to do that???

 

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[Thiago Machado]

High demand, low supply. Phone sales is a dying art that is still extremely profitable. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 on indeed because there just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle..

Man... I'd love to hear you talk more about sales.

I really appreciate your cold call realities thread. So much gold in there.

I figured that what you wrote may help the o.p. get some direction.
We'd just have to dig a little bit deeper for him to "get it."
So I crafted some questions that may be of use to him and to others on this forum as well.
I think the answers to these questions will help them get their foot in the door in sales AND at the same time, know what it takes to be the #1 salesman at their slowlane job.

Do you mind answering them?

If not, no worries.

Questions

1. High demand, low supply. - So even though it's a dying art, employers are still looking for people who are skilled at it?
2. There just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle. - What are the traits you look for when hiring a new sales guy?
3. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 - After investing that much into finding the right person, do you put them through sales training as well? If so, what do you do? (I'm positive that it's not reading as many books as the o.p. is planning on doing.)

I'd love to hear your feedback!

 

[458]

Or should I HIRE people for peanuts to do that???

Those peanuts add up and at the end of it you have no sales.

 

[458]

Man... I'd love to hear you talk more about sales.

I really appreciate your cold call realities thread. So much gold in there.

I figured that what you wrote may help the o.p. get some direction.
We'd just have to dig a little bit deeper for him to "get it."
So I crafted some questions that may be of use to him and to others on this forum as well.
I think the answers to these questions will help them get their foot in the door in sales AND at the same time, know what it takes to be the #1 salesman at their slowlane job.

Do you mind answering them?

If not, no worries.

Questions

1. High demand, low supply. - So even though it's a dying art, employers are still looking for people who are skilled at it?
2. There just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle. - What are the traits you look for when hiring a new sales guy?
3. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 - After investing that much into finding the right person, do you put them through sales training as well? If so, what do you do? (I'm positive that it's not reading as many books as the o.p. is planning on doing.)

I'd love to hear your feedback!

My answers in red:

Questions

1. High demand, low supply. - So even though it's a dying art, employers are still looking for people who are skilled at it?

Sales is the driver of every business and it cannot be delegated to robots or computers, persuasion will always be around. The low supply comes from college degrees offered in everything else persuasion. It is not a craft many young people are going into, most start in it because they couldn't get a job doing something else.

2. There just isn't a lot of people out there that really want to hustle. - What are the traits you look for when hiring a new sales guy?

A lot of little things.

First, does his resume make sense? Is he lying on it?
He should have zero criminal background, no exceptions. Make sure you always check.
Does he have 3-5 references? What do they say about him? ALWAYS call them
Does he show up on time?
Does he have a heavy accent? Accents are hard to train
What clothing did he wear?
Body language when you ask him "So are you ok with cold calling?"
Ect Ect

3. My cost per acquisition for a new sales hire is $700 - $900 - After investing that much into finding the right person, do you put them through sales training as well? If so, what do you do? (I'm positive that it's not reading as many books as the o.p. is planning on doing.)

Yes, we have a very extensive 100 page training manual that takes someone from A to Z in less than a week. They read this and listen to our senior guys on the phone all of the first week. They get on the phone the second week and then revisit the manual on the third week. We also use Grant Cardone sales training for ongoing training on a daily basis, i personally use it along side them every day it is truly worth every dollar.

 

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[Thiago Machado]

Awesome response @458!

Thanks.

Whoever's reading this can benefit immensely.

Took notes @Disciple96 ?

• Dress well
• Show up on time
• Get your hands on Grant Cardone's material
• Smile and dial

Reading all those books you mentioned = mental masturbation.

 

[Disciple96]

Awesome response @458!

Thanks.

Whoever's reading this can benefit immensely.

Took notes @Disciple96 ?

• Dress well
• Show up on time
• Get your hands on Grant Cardone's material
• Smile and dial

Reading all those books you mentioned = mental masturbation.

Now, bear with me here, but I don't think this reading list is too long. For a lifetime of opportunity ahead of me, there's always time to read.

Let me ask you a question... reading two books a year will guarantee you aren't drawing any new information, so what is the benefit?

I get what you're saying, don't learn and forget to apply the knowledge.

You probably wouldn't purchase a product based on two reviews, and if you did you wouldn't be getting the bigger picture anyways.

You can't "get" something by only hearing two opinions either.

Let's say I sleep 8 hours a night... that leaves me with 112 hours a week.

After applying knowledge for 80 hours that week, I should be left with an avg of 4.5 hours a day for cooking, cleaning, reading, studying, and preparation.

Granted, work days will suck, but I'll have practically all day Sunday for these activities. I can always sleep less, too.

I do agree, reading books and not applying what I've learned would be a waste of time and mental masturbation.

But that's not what I'm talking about

P.S. The straight line is the best I could have hoped for, and I will certainly take your advice about absorbing everything I can before moving on. I find that, for me, taking notes is the best way. Practically the entire system is now rewritten in a pocketbook I will take to work with me every day. The action plans are helping a lot with planning out the week to stay on track.

Edit: I'll be posting an update next Sunday on exactly which goals I set for myself and how I reached them, along with any shortcomings for goals I didn't meet. Until then, kudos Fastlane forum!

 

[ZF Lee]

Those peanuts add up and at the end of it you have no sales.

Come on, their pay can increase in tandem to the amount of sales they gather!
I'm not some ringmaster in a circus!
If I did such a thing I would be in hot soup.

 

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[Thiago Machado]

Now, bear with me here, but I don't think this reading list is too long. For a lifetime of opportunity ahead of me, there's always time to read.

Let me ask you a question... reading two books a year will guarantee you aren't drawing any new information, so what is the benefit?

I get what you're saying, don't learn and forget to apply the knowledge.

You probably wouldn't purchase a product based on two reviews, and if you did you wouldn't be getting the bigger picture anyways.

You can't "get" something by only hearing two opinions either.

Let's say I sleep 8 hours a night... that leaves me with 112 hours a week.

After applying knowledge for 80 hours that week, I should be left with an avg of 4.5 hours a day for cooking, cleaning, reading, studying, and preparation.

Granted, work days will suck, but I'll have practically all day Sunday for these activities. I can always sleep less, too.

I do agree, reading books and not applying what I've learned would be a waste of time and mental masturbation.

But that's not what I'm talking about

P.S. The straight line is the best I could have hoped for, and I will certainly take your advice about absorbing everything I can before moving on. I find that, for me, taking notes is the best way. Practically the entire system is now rewritten in a pocketbook I will take to work with me every day. The action plans are helping a lot with planning out the week to stay on track.

Edit: I'll be posting an update next Sunday on exactly which goals I set for myself and how I reached them, along with any shortcomings for goals I didn't meet. Until then, kudos Fastlane forum!

I understand what you're saying, but a guy doing millions of dollars in sales just told you exactly what it takes to be a #1 salesman.

You can either take the easy way, by applying the principles of someone who makes millions of dollars at it and trains people to become sales superstars.

Or you can take the hard way, and do what YOU think will work best (read all those books.)

I've been in your shoes before.

Follow a proven system. It's much easier.

 

[PoGOOD]

I'll give you credit on learning sales.
Lots of people fear selling, so they run away to big schools and corporate ladders to hide their fear with degrees and big titles, but their fear will find them eventually.
...
People underestimate the power of sales. It is the bloodline of any business.

I fully agree on that. I am in sales and sales training for over 20 years now and have seen a lot of "capable people with no balls" in sales. They usually don't have much success...
On the other hand - people with much less education/titles/CV content but do present proper attitude and high self esteem can easily become sales professionals and do great.
One think that comes to my mind reading about your current situation - do not overvalue the knowledge from professional writers / professional speakers / gurus - it is the trap MJ writes about in TFL. Focus only on content created by guys living from 1-2-1 sales - not "big stage performers".

Fingers crossed for your success!

 

[PoGOOD]

I'm a retail sales associate competing for inbound leads on the floor. I see a couple ways to increase my output:

• Staying on the floor longer
• Trying to create new business via outbound sales i.e. cold calling (tricky)
• Creating a personalized email marketing campaign for my MVP clients

...

Edit: after some thought, perhaps I will cold call local prospects and qualify them as a new customer before trying to build a relationship. Then again, if its been awhile, I can try to get them to come in for an appointment and make the presentation. Learning much from Belfort's course already!

You didn't mention one tactic: using your previous clients as a gateway. Ask them for referrals, ask who in their range "could afford" your product or service - not who needs it. Stay on the phone as much as possible but call people that qualified already as recent customers - not total strangers.
If you do "the asking" for referrals right and in high enough number - you won't waste time on the floor. You will have your calendar booked with appointments.
It really works. I started in automotive business that way...

 

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[PoGOOD]

...a guy doing millions of dollars in sales just told you exactly what it takes to be a #1 salesman.

You can either take the easy way, by applying the principles of someone who makes millions of dollars at it and trains people to become sales superstars.

Or you can take the hard way, and do what YOU think will work best (read all those books.)

I've been in your shoes before.

Follow a proven system. It's much easier.

Case closed for me

"Mental masturbation" (what a lovely name for information overload + lack of action) is, in my humble opinion, exactly THE ONE thing you @Disciple96 can not afford right now.
If you insist on reading - only read "10x" by Cardone and... start applying it every bloody day.

Doing it for 21-30 days IN A ROW religiously - in absolutely the best way you possibly can - will make more for your success than reading the entire library of self improvement and sales-guru books in the galaxy.

Sorry - success is simple when do you have a system. Simple but not easy.

 

[Disciple96]

Alright everybody, time for an update.

I took your advice to heart.

In many ways my environment keeps from advancing at a faster rate.

Thinking exponentially is the way forward for me these days. How can I reach massive success?

While TMF taught me the raw dynamics of the ideal business and commandments to live by, Grant Cordone has some great advice on setting goals and the art of the sale.

I am looking for something better. The business just isn't here yet and I don't have time to wait. The company isn't challenging me.

For me, the most important aspects of a J.O.B. is that it leads, teaches, and COMPENSATES you.

Although I work on base + compensation, I only make 24k gross. Meaning I will have made $19,000 to rub between my fingers.

Is this a joke...? I have to sell 25k a month at retail in a highly competitive market. (Read: racing to the bottom) Upward momentum is nill at this company. There's no foot traffic.

This is all MY responsibility. Unfortunately, my leadership does not see it as such and assumes everything will work out if we keep perpetual sales.

They are great guys, great salesmen, but this environment is holding me back.

Its time to hit the phones, ladies and gentlemen!

The company I have an interview with tomorrow starts at 30k a year gross, 100 calls per day in a B2B lead gen company.

The company is newer, I only hope they can truly lead and teach me the art of the cold call so I am able to reach massive SCALE both at my job and my own pursuits.

I have a lot of plans but no foundation. I need the maternal corporate structure to teach and lead me to the answer. I know there is a better fit for me in this city of 600k people than the local retail shop of 3 in the area.

I also plan to start freelancing (starting with copywriting again because I'm a newbie). Eventually I will move into some broad niches.

I want to learn what I need to get my foot in the door after applying my newfound B2B sales skills. So, basically many different skills in different vertical niches.

I.e. copywriting > email campaigns > social media > etc

WordPress development > marketing campaigns > redesigning

Writing on a personal blog > writing a book/trilogy > building my brand (simeltaneously)

Basically, building my skills from basic copywriting to advanced web development. But only enough to outsource the work - providing the rookie guy I trust with their next challenge.

That way, I can start to develop an actual marketing and sales firm (might not have a great industry multiplier but whatever its a learning experience and a faint vision at this moment.)

P.S. my momma is sick of hearing my plans for success. I guess sometimes I start and don't stop.

TLDR:

Job doesn't lead or teach me as much as I want (and pays minimally due to poor company direction.)

Might've found a great job, interview tomorrow. I know I'll find something.

Plan to start freelancing copywriting. Building a broad sales and marketing skill set and outsourcing the work to scale up outside of my own abilities and time.

Work on a personal/artistic blog with my skills/to help develop my skills.

Take massive action, HIGH ENERGY.

P.s.s. Also move out of my buddies living room and remove the negativity from my life.