How to become a better salesperson

So you want to become a better salesperson, but where do you start? Sales is a rigorous but exciting career field, and it takes a mix of the right attitude, personality, and tools to achieve success. Personality and personal connection especially are what sets a salesperson apart from the pack.

It’s great for salespeople to have sociable personalities, so long as they can build a rapport with a prospect. At the end of the day, people do business with people they like, which is not exclusive to extroverted personalities. There are so many ways to improve your sales game!

In this blog, we cover the helpful ideas, common characteristics, and popular hobbies, that can make you a better salesperson.

10 of Our Best Tips for Sales Success

Sales is a difficult business even in the best of times. How well you perform your job as a salesperson is highly dependent on the decisions of prospective customers who you have no direct control over. Sales has become an overwhelmingly digital process, and sales teams need to adjust accordingly. As such, sales teams need new tips and tricks to achieve success. Your old sales playbook may not work as well in today’s world. Fortunately, there are digital sales experts who can lead the way. Here at Covideo, we already have years of experience with digital sales.

Read on to learn our 10 tips for growing your skills to become a better salesperson.

1. Add personalization to your sales efforts

Most consumers want more personalization in their buyer experiences. Personalization can be defined as individualized experiences that appeal to a consumer’s specific habits, interests, and demographics. Overall, approximately 68% of customers are willing to pay more for a personalized experience. Basically, your customers want to know that your business knows them and cares about them specifically.

So how do you implement personalization in sales? Generally, you should make sure you understand what your customer wants. Use their name in all of your communication. If they are part of a business you’re hoping to sell to, then do your research about that business. And if you really want to go above and beyond, add personalized video messaging to your sales toolbox to really stick out to your prospects.

2. Immediately state your reason for contact

When you’re cold calling or emailing a sales prospect, don’t beat around the bush. After you greet your prospect, get right to the point and state why you’re contacting them. Consumers don’t want to sit through a long-winded introduction; they’ll lose interest. Let them know right away what your product is and what it can do for them. If they’re not interested, then you’ve saved the time you would have wasted on a longer conversation and can move on to the next prospect.

3. Pique curiosity

Here’s the deal: you’re probably not going to close a sale on first contact. As such, your first contact with a prospect should be focused on grabbing their interest and piquing their curiosity about your product. After first contact, your prospect should be eager to learn more and schedule a follow-up conversation.

So, you don’t need to tell your prospect everything on first contact. Instead, focus on the highlights and what specific problems your product can solve for them. Make it clear that your product is useful and exciting, but leave your customer wanting more information. Then, in a follow-up meeting you can answer the questions your prospect has about your product.

4. Use specific information and data

You can insist your product or service is great all day long, but unless you have the data to back you up, your prospects aren’t going to be impressed. You need to include specific data in your communication to demonstrate why your product is a good product and a good fit for your customers. For example, you can give statistics for how your product has improved the lives of current customers, such as “it decreased time spent doing repetitive tasks by 25%”. The more specific you can get, the better!

5. Communicate with your teammates

If you’re part of a sales team, then you need to be communicating with your teammates. Even if you handle most of your cold calls and meetings on your own, you need to be in contact with your team about updates and new ideas. Sales teams that communicate better can more quickly figure out what works and what doesn’t and support team members that might be struggling to get a sale.

The best way to communicate with your team is to invest in a communication platform like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Discord. You can also use email to relay information on new sales or schedule meetings. It is best to use multiple channels of communication as certain platforms are better suited for certain information. If your team is remote, then make sure that you’re still meeting face-to-face at least once a week over video.

6. Set reminders

So, you’ve scheduled a meeting with a new client. You better be sure to make that meeting! Regardless of how good your memory is, you should set reminders for important events, meetings, or goal deadlines. These reminders should be set in multiple places – your phone, digital and manual calendar, sticky notes, etc. Make sure that the reminder is set long enough before the meeting that you have ample time to prepare!

7. Send reminders

Even if you don’t forget an important meeting, the other party still might! This is why it’s important to not only set reminders, but send reminders to the other party. You should send a reminder at least the night before the meeting and follow up the next day if you have not heard back, regardless if the meeting is online or off. Don’t worry about being obnoxious – sometimes people forget meetings and a reminder can save the day. Your client will most likely appreciate the reminder as it reassures them that you have not forgotten either.

8. Confirm contact information right away

Even worse than forgetting a meeting is going to attend and then realizing you have the wrong contact information! To avoid this, make sure that you confirm contact information right when you get it. If your contact is relaying information over the phone, repeat it back to them. If it’s over email, then email back asking for confirmation that the information is correct.

You should also be sure to ask for contact information as soon as possible. The platform through which you initiated first contact may not be your prospect’s communication channel of choice. To ensure that the conversation keeps going, ask for the best way to reach them by second contact at the very latest. You can also offer multiple ways for your prospect to get into contact with you at first contact so that right away they can choose the method of communication that they are most comfortable with.

9. Stay organized

This tip may seem obvious, but that doesn’t take away from its importance. If you’re going to excel as a sales team or person, then you need to be organized. Make sure you know exactly where client contact information is stored. Keep all of your sales material and data together in the same physical or digital location, and make copies of important material. Make sure your team is likewise organized so you know how to find team-wide information as soon as you need it.

It’s generally a good idea to invest in a CRM platform like Salesforce or Pipedrive that can help you organize all of your contact information and sales materials in one place. Other types of apps like cloud storage platforms and note-taking software can also help you stay organized. Make sure that you talk with your entire team before investing in new software so that everyone is on the same page.

10. Be persistent but respectful of boundaries

Persistence is key. If you want to make a sale, then you need to be willing to send follow-ups, reminders, and reach out on multiple platforms. You may need to send several messages to the same prospect before you catch their interest. Don’t be afraid to come across as persistent as you try to convince your prospect that your product is what they need. However, you still need to be respectful of boundaries. You don’t want to get a reputation as someone who ignores boundaries and crosses the line from persistence to harassment. If a client requests that you don’t contact them on a specific platform, then don’t use that platform. If someone asks you to stop contacting them or that they’re not interested, then respect that and move on to someone else. And if a prospect seems unsure about your product, then you can keep pushing, but once they’ve given you a firm “no,” you need to back off. Who knows – maybe in the future they’ll need a product like yours and they’ll remember that you were respectful!

6 Top Traits of a Great Salesperson

What types of personalities do successful sales professionals possess? You might imagine someone that’s outgoing, ya know, the type of person that enjoys talking to anyone and everyone. We agree, this quality is common in a sales position, but you don’t need to be a social butterfly to be successful in sales.

Listed below are character traits that may make you a better salesperson.

1. Confident

It doesn’t matter if you’re loud and proud or quietly confident. Believing in yourself is one of the best qualities to have in sales. In most sales situations, it’s going to be you and the prospect–no one else. Having confidence that you can deliver what’s expected is the first hurdle. Don’t mistake arrogance with confidence though! Unlike arrogance, confidence stems from a healthy self-esteem, but it also comes from knowledge of your company’s product or service. Even if you’re not the most confident person, you can develop a thorough understanding of your product/service to rely on when prospecting.

2. Collaborative

Were you the type of student that loved group projects? In sales, your goal is to work with current or potential customers to find the right solution for them, while driving sales success for your team. People that are more collaborative tend to be great listeners because they are interested in the other person’s point of view. Understanding your prospect’s pain points will make it easier to guide them to the solution that fits their needs.

3. Insighful

After providing a quick comprehensive pitch of your product, are you able to go off script and think on your feet? This quality is helpful when a potential buyer throws you off with a new question or pushback. Even if you don’t know the answer, insightful questions will lead to a meaningful conversation.

4. Bold

According to Harvard Business Review, “Less than five percent of top performers had high levels of self-consciousness”. Why? Sales can be an uncomfortable process, and if you’re easily embarrassed than you may have a hard time asserting yourself in a sales situation.

5. Adaptable

Change is constant in a sales environment. If you’re able to react appropriately to an unplanned phone call or meeting, then the fast-paced world of sales is a good fit.

6. Trustworthy

Successful sales professionals don’t need to lie in order to close a sale. Credibility is extremely important, and even the tiniest lie can hurt your company’s reputation. Great sales professionals don’t exaggerate their product or service, they want to make sure the product is a good match for their potential buyers.

10 Hobbies That Make You a Better Salesperson

Sales can be an all-encompassing job. For some top salespeople, they would even call it a lifestyle instead of a career. However, even the best salespeople need downtime away from the job. Yet, even when away from the job, you can continue to become a better salesperson by cultivating hobbies that develop the same skills you need to succeed in sales. Yes, the hobbies of a salesperson do matter for their performance! But what are some good hobbies for salespeople? Below, we will go over 10 of the best hobbies that will help you become a better salesperson while still decompressing from your job. So, if you’re a salesperson and looking for some new hobbies to try, consider this list and pick out the one that you’re most interested in!

1. Team sports

Even as you work towards your own personal selling goals, sales is never a solo activity. You have to coordinate with other members of your team, product developers, and clients in order to sell your product. Basically, you have to be good at communicating with other people and knowing when to focus on supporting another member for the good of the team. Team sports can teach you how to be a great team member. While the best athletes are skilled on their own, they know when to take a step back from the limelight to support another member of their team to win the game. If you play a team sport, you will develop better communication and group work skills that will translate into being a better member of your sales team. So go ahead and pick the team sport that you’re most interested in!

2. Traveling

Traveling is among the most varied hobbies, as you can visit any place you desire while cultivating this hobby. It doesn’t matter whether you’re traveling to visit friends, historical sites, famous restaurants, or natural wonders: traveling involves learning how to navigate places and cultures different from your own. Traveling automatically takes you out of your comfort zone. This, of course, is especially useful for traveling salespeople, but it can be beneficial for sales teams that stay at home too. When you work in sales, you come across a variety of people with different values, concerns, and histories. You have to know how to connect personally with these people, despite your differences. Traveling in your free time will help you learn how to better communicate with other people and come to value different experiences.

3. Role-Playing Games

Role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons are entering a renaissance. As a salesperson, you can join in on this trend while becoming better at your job! Tabletop role-playing games are a collaborative storytelling process, wherein the person who runs the game (often called a game master or dungeon master) and the players work together to create a narrative that everyone enjoys. Players also have to know how to inhabit a character and act as another person. These skills are vital for salespeople, who must both put on an effective selling persona and understand the background and desires of the person that they are selling to. Role-playing games develop empathy as they let players explore what it’s like to be another person, another important skill for salespeople who must understand their prospects in order to perfect their sales pitch.

4. Reading

The benefits of reading as a hobby are widely known, as reading helps you improve your knowledge, general vocabulary, memory, and focus skills. These, of course, are all important skills for a salesperson to cultivate. In fact, David Ogilvy, the Father of Advertising, was a voracious reader. Speaking on his hobby in relation to his job, Ogilvy stated that “the worst fault a salesperson can commit is to be a bore”. Reading can help you become a more interesting and intelligent person as you learn more about both the world around you and other people. Reading also improves empathy skills. For what you should read, go with whatever particularly interests you, whether that’s non-fiction, the classics, or even fantasy!

5. Volunteering

Like traveling, volunteering forces you to interact with a variety of people who may be quite different from you, whether they’re your fellow volunteers or people that you’re helping. Even more than traveling, volunteering requires you to act with empathy and understanding and learn how to step outside of yourself. When volunteering, you have to know how to set aside your own issues to support a greater cause. The same is true of sales. Whatever struggles you may be facing in your personal life, sales makes you put that aside to focus on supporting your team and company. Additionally, sales requires that you demonstrate care to the person that you’re selling to and convince them that your product will make a positive impact on their life. You can better perform these skills as a salesperson if you have cultivated them while volunteering for a cause that you believe in.

6. Exercise

Exercise is a good hobby for anyone as it has been shown to improve health and reduce stress. A good salesperson is one who is energetic and ready to face the day, and regular exercise will boost your energy levels and help you sleep better. Famous salespeople agree with this assessment: John H. Patterson, the founder of the National Cash Register Company, was a known fitness nut and workout fanatic. If you don’t yet have a regular exercise routine, then pick an activity that you can enjoy and don’t worry about seeing gains right away. What’s important is to form a pattern and begin sweating away that stress and fatigue.

7. Writing

Like reading, writing helps you develop a better vocabulary, memory skills, and the ability to focus, all important traits for a great salesperson. Writing is also a skill that you will undoubtedly use during your sales job, as you write out emails, sales pitches, and persona scripts. If you write during your free time as well, then you will have better writing skills when it comes time to write for your job. It doesn’t matter what you’re writing as a hobby, either. Any type of writing, from journaling to poetry to novel creation, improves your overall writing skills and makes you better at professional writing as well.

8. Collecting

Ron Popeil, the inventor and pitchman who has far exceeded $1 billion in sales, is also the holder of the world’s largest olive oil collection. This isn’t a coincidence, as both sales and collecting require patience, persistence, and great organization skills. Collecting requires you to approach many other people and negotiate with them to get a good deal on a new part of your collection. Sales requires the same skills, but from the opposite standpoint, as you are trying to sell a product instead of buying it. It is no surprise, then, the best salespeople would also be the best collectors. It doesn’t matter what you’re collecting – stamps, baseball cards, rare coins – as any type of collection will help you become a better salesperson as well as better understand the buyers on the other side of the selling process.

9. Bird Watching

Bird watching is a much quieter hobby than many others on this list. It requires patience, fortitude, and good observational skills. While sales is much more fast-paced than bird watching, it requires these same skills. Selling is as much a people-watching activity as anything else, as you must observe your sales target in order to personalize your pitch (whether this is in-person or over email). You must also be patient and resilient as you wait for the right person to come along. Bird watching can help you become better at the more analytical, internal skills necessary to become a good salesperson.

10. Karaoke

Good salespeople need to be brave enough to step outside their comfort zone. They also need to know how to work a crowd. What hobby does this sound like? Karaoke! Karaoke involves performing in front of a group of people, which can include anyone from close friends to strangers. To be good at karaoke, you don’t necessarily have to be a good singer – you need to be passionate and know how to energize a crowd. The same is true for sales – even if you’re not an experienced salesperson or an expert in your product, you can be an effective salesperson if you are passionate, eager, and able to respond to the wishes of your client. Karaoke helps you learn how to read a crowd while performing and leaving your comfort zone, all important skills to develop as a salesperson.

Become a Better Salesperson with Video Messaging

Regardless of your approach to sales, video messaging is a great tool to make you a more approachable and effective salesperson. There is no better way to communicate digitally while still allowing your personality to shine. If you want to see how this approach would work at your business, request a demo of Covideo!