Sales is the life’s blood of any business, no matter the size. Whether you’re a one-person business, doing everything alone, or a multinational corporation with sales teams spread across the globe, you need effective sales to survive.
By Lyndy van den Barselaar, MD of ManpowerGroup South Africa
Sales as a career has always been highly sought after. In fact, year after year, sales positions rank as one of the most difficult to fill as listed in the annual ManpowerGroup Talent Shortage Survey reports. It’s the one job that often pays commission, and allows you to really pursue wealth through hard work. It takes a certain kind of talent, and innate understanding of people, which many find challenging.
The mistake is to think that salespeople are naturally born that way. It is possible to learn to be a good salesperson, whether you’re pursuing that high-flying career, or want to market your own small business. There are several skills you can develop to become a great salesperson.
Technical skills
Not every sales job is going to look the same. Specific industries may require specific levels of education or experience, or provide relevant technical training. This can make it challenging for the aspiring salesperson to choose a field of study. Unless you are very clear on what industry you’d like to work in, you could waste time studying something irrelevant. If, however, you do have a particular field of interest, then having a solid basis in that industry can be beneficial – you’re the one “who knows what they’re talking about”.
That said, there are many short courses you can take during the course of your career to expand your industry-related and other technical knowledge. When it comes to being a great salesperson, technical skills are, while first on this list, actually not quite as important as developing good soft skills, like …
Empathy
No, this doesn’t mean you need to let every potential customer cry on your shoulder. What it means is, learning to listen to people in a way that helps you understand their context better. Too many sales opportunities are lost when a salesperson pushes a potential customer too hard, or misses the point of what they’re saying. By focusing too hard on how to manipulate the sale, you could lose it. Instead, try to understand what your customer’s concerns are and why.
This is a skill you can develop through practice. When you are talking with friends or family, make the effort to ask questions that help you understand how people think and behave. Try to imagine how you would feel, react, or respond, if you were in their shoes.
Communication
Communication comes on many different levels in our lives, from brief interactions to life-long partnerships. Good communication skills mean that, no matter the situation, you are able to have a meaningful interaction with another person. For example, someone with average communication skills might say “hello” and “thank you” to a cashier, and not much else. Someone with good communication skills might, however, ask how the cashier is doing, and have a brief conversation.
People value the effort others put into communicating with them effectively. This is why it is so critical for salespeople to develop good skills in this area. Learn everything from effective business writing, to engaging public speaking, to active listening. That way, you make sure you not only understand your customer, but that they value your input.
Confidence
Sales is an incredibly competitive realm. You are competing against every other company that does anything similar to yours. You are competing against colleagues to make the top of the leader board. You are competing against complex socio-economic factors that can impact procurement. You face myriad challenges every day as a salesperson, and a lack of confidence – in yourself and in your product – can be lethal to your sales.
Fortunately, there’s no shortage of online courses, self-help books and other sources that can help you learn to be a confident person. The most important thing is to always remember to value yourself as a person, and continue to develop that sense of self-worth.
Positive outlook
If you tend to view situations with doom and gloom, sales may not be the area for you. It is a challenging and competitive environment, and without optimism and a positive attitude, you will struggle to succeed. Fake positivity and pretending things are easy, however, is not the way. Cultivate a positive attitude by learning to seek out the upside in any situation. Use any failure or setback as an opportunity to learn, instead of complaining about it.
Sales as a career, or as a necessary part of entrepreneurship, is both challenging and rewarding if you are able to do it well. You don’t need to be a natural-born sales slayer, though; you just need to work on developing the right skills.
Whatever career path you follow, keeping your skills up to date is vital. Visit ManpowerGroup PowerYou to explore our courses.