Sales people are born.

No sales people are made. 

Being able to sell a fur coat to a polar bear is a natural talent.  Right? 

Not so fast.  Sales talent can be acquired. 

So you have taken all of the courses and your sales are still flat.  What are you doing wrong?

Target Your Audience

The missing link, according to Jeff Bowe, principle of the ACTUM Group, is that the training you have received was not targeted enough. 

Having been the owner of various businesses since 1985, Bowe decided to write a book “written by a small business owner for selling to a small business owner.”  The recently released publication entitled Get In FOCUS, Get Cash has been years in the making. 

Dawn to Midnight 

Bowe, who usually works from dawn to midnight and is a self admitted perfectionist, relays the fact that it has taken over two years to complete the book.  Vying for his time is his training business, teaching at Anderson University, raising his children, Rainmakers, and boating among other interests. 

Noting that his two largest stumbling blocks to writing were email and finding balance with personal time to spend with his children, he has sent the publication off to press and actually has already presented the first copy to a person who was influential in targeting those obstacles, Lorraine Ball.

Changing Your Life

But I digress here.  This isn’t just about a publication; Bowe is changing people’s lives.  He has learned to take note of what is holding people back and also showing these same folks what action they need to take to move forward.  Bowe states, “Some people need a hug; some a cattle prod.  The sales process and sales people are always a work in process…the process and the people are constantly changing just as the sales and networking environment are always changing.” 

Networking and Sales

Networking and sales are not all that different.  Bowe devotes the second longest chapter in the book to the fine art of networking and how to get the most out of it.  Building value and urgency as well as narrowing your focus are paramount in each arena….that is, sales and networking. 

The publication is interactive in nature.  One particular point that Bowe made when we spoke was that the questions in the book are aimed at “making your brain hurt as well as making you feel a bit uncomfortable.”

Here is an example of one of those really uncomfortable questions.  “When you attend a networking event, are you there for the purpose of furthering and nurturing your business or is this a purely social / pleasure outing?”  Wow!  That really hits you right between the eyes. 

You don’t necessarily have to obtain all of your primary business from networking groups to make networking worthwhile.  Even if just a portion of your business comes from the contacts you make at these events, it is worth it.

With regard to networking skills, Bowe advises that there is always room for improvement.  Most of us learn something new about us or our process each and every day.

Connections = Relationships

As you attend networking events, you need to make connections with like-minded business owners to grow your business.  If you can’t connect, you can’t build relationships. 

One of the primary ways to make those all important connections into relationships is to learn to read and understand what you are your connection are looking for.  Ever heard of DISC, Nonverbal Communication, and Neuro Linguistics?  All of these programs are designed to show those who take them who you are and how you react to situations in order for you to learn an all important lesson.  What is the lesson?  You ultimately learn how you should change yourself (even ever so slightly) to be like your buyer. 

“You have to be like your buyer to make that connection,” Bowe advises.

Whether your business is training, marketing, car sales or the latest widget software, in all of these industries success boils down to this single equation…

Connection = Sale Now + Future Sales + Referrals

Bowe is showing us the light.  You buy from people you connect with.

A Continuing Journey

Once you understand this simple concept, you have only started on your journey.  Bowe notes, “This is just the beginning; you can’t stop.  Whether your focus is sharpening your networking skills or improving your closing ratio, the journey of getting better never ends.  As your skills get better, you expect more from yourself and you have to step up your expectations of everyone with whom you have contact.”

Well?  What are you waiting for?  You have a lot of ground to cover.  Better get busy.