A Must-Read Top 10 List All about… Sales?

Who doesn’t love a good Top 10 list? We know we do, and it can’t be just us (and David Letterman). It is usually entertaining to read, and delivers the goods in a way you hadn’t quite thought of them before… so what’s not to like?

Renowned author Geoffrey James has created a winner of a list on BNET called “Top 10 Reasons New Sales Reps Fail.” There are some terrific insights in this one. We highly recommend you read the entire article, but to whet your appetite, here are our favorite reasons that Geoffrey lists:

• They base their self-worth on what other people think.
• They lack the right attitude.
• They don’t perceive the subtleties.
• They’d rather be doing something else.
• They lack true honesty and candor.

After we read this article, we decided that Geoffrey could have also titled his post: Top 10 Ways to Ruin a Conversation. Not only do all the reasons he lists mangle the sales process, they also are real conversation killers. And that is what effective sales is all about, right? It is a conversation where real communication must occur and when both parties receive value from that communication.

During our sales coaching and training efforts, we’ve found time and time again that some new sales reps simply don’t realize this. Either too focused on winning the sale that they aren’t really listening (and therefore not offering the prospect valuable problem-solving information in return) OR they simply would rather be somewhere else and do not invest the time and effort to understanding their prospect’s needs. Both scenarios are a fast track to a hollow pipeline.

If you are a new sales rep or if you are managing one, check out the article to see if any of these reasons sound familiar. Recognizing a problem is the first step to fixing it.