Early Sales Intervention

Watch this week's Short Attention Span Sales Tip here.

Good morning!

This is my grandson, Mason. He is turning three years old in a few weeks. Every Friday morning, we play guitar, we ride the lawn tractor, we swim, and we throw the same Slinky his mother and I played with 34 years ago down the stairs over and over.

Mason is beautiful. Mason is also Autistic.

Prior to his diagnosis, I knew nothing about Autism. We were all understandably shocked when we first heard the news. Fortunately, the state of Massachusetts has extraordinary services available for early intervention. It has now been a little over a year that various specialists have been working with him and the change has been incredible. There are still challenges ahead, but Mason is rocketing toward a bright future, thanks to that early intervention.

One of the reasons why new sales reps fail is the lack of attention they receive in the first few weeks of their sales career. Because it takes so much time and energy to find and hire a new sales rep, owners frequently have to catch up with their other duties and they don't catch early indicators of problems. Or they believe, as I read in a newsletter this week, “Of course, the trainee sales rep needs help and should get it, but at the end of the day, the ball is in their court.“ Red flags are missed. The greener the rep, the more of an issue this is.

Imagine being that new rep. You are in a new job and probably in a new field. Given everything you need to learn, you’re drinking from the firehose, overwhelmed with information and fearful on a number of levels. If someone asks how you’re doing, you say, “Fine,” but you’re lying. You’re scared and feeling alone, believing everyone else is succeeding but you.

When I talk with new reps, one of the first things I tell them is, it’s OK to be terrified. It’s normal. Those words are met with relief, and while I am glad to have the chance to speak them, they need to come from the person who made the hire. Let’s set correct expectations.

Tell that new rep it’s okay to feel overwhelmed. Tell them sales is hard. Tell them they are going to struggle to contact people. Tell them they won’t have anything to show for their efforts but tell them to do it anyway, that success will come.

By intervening early in the process, corrections can be made. Similar to having a child, the hard work comes after they show up!

The best way to help your new sales rep is found at SalesVault.pro. They’ll learn how to secure appointments, where to look for leads, and hear from other newbies facing the same challenges. You can find Bill Farquharson at 781-934-7036 or bill@salesvault.pro.