You can picture the scene…
90’s sales reps in the slick clothes with their slick hair in their retro offices, cheesy grins, with a stack of phone numbers holding one of these bad boys
Call after call after call after call.
Charming their way past gatekeepers, luring prospects with rehearsed pitches, and giving information that they didn’t know.
This was a crazy age for sales. The internet was new, there was no social media, email was new, at the time the phone truly was king.
The problem is, some people are still living in this time zone.
Worse still, some sales teams are still SELLING LIKE IT’S 1999!
Why is this you ask?
It’s because a lot of sales managers and sales trainers that are out there now SOLD WHEN IT WAS 1999!
That’s what they know.
That’s what they’re comfortable with.
So that’s what they teach and make their sales teams do today. In 2020. They make them sell the way they sold over 20 years ago. Does that sound like a good way to do it? NO! Of course not.
Sales is different. Buying is different. The way we communicate is different.
Sales teams should be selling like it’s 2020. That involves using the phone, it involves using email, it involves using LinkedIn, using WhatsApp, using Zoom, using Skpe, using video messages, using audio messages, and a whole lot more.
Those things didn’t exist in 1999.
So a lot of sales managers and sales trainers don’t know how to use them. So they teach and lead with what they know.
It’s 2020, if you’re not selling like it’s 2020 you’re missing out on A LOT.
Here are my top tips for modern-day digital selling:
1) Get Comfortable With VIDEO
Video is a huge part of our world now and it’s becoming a hugely powerful sales tool. Just today I spoke to a decision-maker who booked a meeting with a sales rep because they sent them a personalized video message. The message was just over 1-minute, the rep was wearing a casual hoody, but the delivered a strong helpful message and won the meeting.
2) Look At What Social Media Networks Your PROSPECTS Use
Some may use LinkedIn, some may use Twitter, some may even use Facebook or Instagram. If they’re using it for work, you should be using it to sell! Build a presence on there, give value, show expertise, and use it to start conversations with potential prospects. It’s really not about spammy messaging anyone and everyone, but using it to build REAL relationships with real prospects.
3) Be Prepared To Use Memes, Emoji’s, and GIF’s!
If it hasn’t happened already, you’re likely to receive an email or LinkedIn message or text from a prospect or customer that includes a meme, emoji, or even a GIF. This is how we communicate now, and it’s a great way to have HUMAN conversations with prospects, not sales conversations where they feel like they’re being sold to. My rule is to only use them if I’m confident they’ll respond well to it, or if they use them first!
4) You Have A Personal Brand, Use It!
Sales reps have a personal brand now, the problem is so many of them aren’t using it. It’s one of the biggest assets you have and is a powerful way to create and close sales. Be present on social media, share content of value, engage with industry-relevant content, and do it consistently. You no longer need to only look professional physically, you need to look professional digitally.
5) Use All Of The Tools Your Customers Use
For most B2B salespeople, your customers are using phones, social media, email, text, post, watching videos, consuming content, attending events, and more. It’s important to learn, practice, and master as many of those as possible to be truly effective in sales. Your cadence should include utilizing all of those, and done right it should help you open more opportunities than ever before.
So whilst the ’90s was a great era…
Whilst some people still like to party like it’s 1999…
I wouldn’t recommend selling like it’s 1999
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Thank you again for taking the time to read this blog! If you enjoyed this post please click LIKE and click SHARE to share it with your network.
If you enjoyed it please do take time to read some of my other recent posts:
Just Pick Up The Phone and Call!
The ABC Of Social Selling
The Modern-Day Sales Prospecting Stack
The 10 Things That Will NEVER Change In Sales
About the author: Daniel Disney is one of the world’s leading Sales, Social Selling, and LinkedIn experts and is the author of the #1 Amazon Best Selling book, “The Million-Pound LinkedIn Message“.
Daniel is currently delivering LIVE LinkedIn Social Selling virtual training sessions for businesses and salespeople around the world. For more information please email contact@thedailysales.net
