There’s no perfect personality for sales, but there are a number of traits that can make a salesperson more successful. Hustle and the desire to build relationships keep them at the top of their game, while their comfort level with social media helps them perform research and improve their funnel. They’re also resilient, persistent, and ready to embrace the latest technology.
These traits help salespeople form solid relationships with their prospects and customers. Because they’re willing to ask questions and work hard to know their contacts, they know what they can offer to help their customers reach their goals. Outstanding salespeople take responsibility for their actions and are passionate about what they do—and earn customers’ trust in the process.
Salespeople are fueled by their habits. For example, 70 per cent work out every day; they also eat breakfast, and start their workdays early. They focus on building their relationships with prospects and customers through multiple forms of communication, but also focus on their coworkers and have lunch with them. Coaching fellow salespeople is another priority. The infographic below goes into more detail and shows what a typical day in the life of a successful salesperson may look like.
The Top Daily Habits Outstanding Salespeople Have in Common
Common Personality Traits
- Know Your Audience
- Important to know their:
- Demographics
- Psychographics
- Geographics
- Pain points
- Challenges
- Problem you are solving
- Needs and expectations of prospects and customers are always changing
- Important to know their:
- Know product’s value
- The more you know about the product you are selling, the greater your chances of closing a deal
- Have in-depth knowledge about your product’s:
- Features
- How it functions in any given situation
- Future product updates
- Know competition
- Be able to clearly explain:
- How your product differs
- Why yours should be a priority
- Be able to clearly explain:
- Know the industry
- Stay current on hot topics, industry trends, and forecasts
- Follow industry publications, social media, and thought leaders
- This knowledge will reinforce a sales rep’s trustworthiness and credibility with the prospect
- Seek out coaching
- Don’t be afraid of constructive criticism
- Be open to ongoing coaching related to:
- Market
- Buyer personas
- Products
- Navigating the sales cycle.
- Information changes over time, which is why ongoing coaching and training is important
- Leverage Sales Tools
- To streamline sales process, use technologies such as:
- Auto-dialers
- Sales intelligence
- Lead management
- Web conferencing / collaboration
- They help identify and eliminate unnecessary tasks
- To streamline sales process, use technologies such as:
- They hustle
- When situations are difficult, successful salespeople take risks and hustle
- They have a sense of urgency and know how to step up the pace to achieve success
- They seek out new relationships
- They constantly create, build, and maintain relationships
- Do daily tasks to grow strong relationships
- They scope out prospects on social media
- They use social media as a tool for research
- LinkedIn: Salespeople can learn the basics of a person (like school, work, and award history)
- Facebook: Salespeople can see what people like and don't like as well as their interests outside of the office
- Twitter: Salespeople can get a good idea of people’s connections and social circles. Check:
- Tweets
- Re-tweets
- Who people follow
- Who follows them
- They’re resilient
- They understand that not every attempt is a success
- They learn from mistakes and get back up again
- They do or do not. There is no try
- They are persistent and don’t settle for "I tried"
- They embrace technology to help people
- They recognize that technology is essential to doing business and keep up with relevant technology tools and programs
- They aren’t afraid to ask questions
- They ask plenty of questions to help figure out their clients’ buying needs
- They give 100% everyday
- Effective salespeople work very hard
- Instead of going home an hour before closing-time, they work a little longer
- They know their products or services well
- They have an in-depth knowledge of the product’s
- Features
- Strengths
- Drawbacks
- They have an in-depth knowledge of the product’s
- They are responsible for their actions
- They understand that their actions alone decide their success
- If they aren’t able to meet their quotas, they never pin the consequence on:
- Internal issues
- Overall economy
- Tough rivals
- They retain their passion
- Energy and commitment come through on every call
- A blend of passion, enthusiasm and confidence drives them to hunt for new prospects
- They care about others
- They genuinely care about customers and understand their needs
- They find possibilities where others quit
- Being told “no” by a client isn’t the end for enthusiastic salespeople
- They persuade the client to change their mind by:
- Applying creativity
- Discovering new techniques
- 5:30 am
- Wake up
- Workout
- 70% of successful business individuals exercise each day
- Eat breakfast
- 7:00 am
- Get to work early
- Employees who get in early are perceived as more conscientious and receive higher performance ratings
- Plan the day
- Review appointments for the day and create a plan for each
- Get to work early
- 8:00 am
- Make first call of the day
- Ask questions
- Listen actively
- Talk less
- Listen more
- Schedule next steps and a follow-up call
- Make first call of the day
- 9:00 am
- Write a follow-up email to the prospect you just spoke with
- Summarize main takeaways
- Confirm business pains
- Summarize next steps
- Include a calendar invite confirming upcoming meeting
- Prepare for next call
- Research the new prospect
- Review what you need to accomplish
- Write a follow-up email to the prospect you just spoke with
- 10:00 am
- Make a product demo call
- 11:00 am
- Write a follow-up email to the product demo prospect
- 11:30 am
- Review personal sales forecasts for the month
- Look at which opportunities should have stages adjusted
- Will they close sooner, later, or not at all
- This helps you know your business
- Notify manager of changes
- Review personal sales forecasts for the month
- 12:00 pm
- Take a 30-minute lunch with coworkers
- Catch up with people from marketing and product to see what’s happening across the company
- Take a walk
- Take a 30-minute lunch with coworkers
- 1:00 pm
- Focus on strategic prospecting activities
- Call existing customers
- Check on them
- Ask for referrals
- Reach out to closed/lost opportunities to try and revive them
- Focus on strategic prospecting activities
- 2:00 pm
- Make a late stage opportunity call
- Discuss the prospect’s buying process and a final negotiation
- Finish the call with next steps to ensure the deal is closed before the end of the following day
- Make a late stage opportunity call
- 3:00 pm
- Meet with manager for one-on-one sales coaching
- Session is focused on improving product demo skills
- Coaching sessions make you more effective in your job
- Meet with manager for one-on-one sales coaching
- 4:00 pm
- Answer questions new sales reps have
- Improves team culture and chemistry
- Answer questions new sales reps have
- 5:00 pm
- Group training with sales team
- 6:00 pm
- Analyze the day’s events
- Review your sales metrics
- Leave work
- 8:00 pm
- Eat dinner
- Read a sales related book to improve your game
The Day of a Highly Effective Sales Rep
- The 7 habits of Highly Effective People
- By: Steven R. Covey
- The 25 Sales Habits of Highly Succesfull Salespeople
- By: Steven Schiffman
- Little Red Book of Selling
- By Jeffery Gitomer
Further Reading
Conclusion
There are many traits successful salespeople share. By adopting some of these habits and characteristics into your daily schedule you’ll be on track to the top.
