Hitting your sales target is no easy achievement, in fact there are some suggestions that less than 50% of sales people actually do it.
Now there will certainly be some companies that have set unrealistic targets, and whilst they may not want to admit it I would highly recommend making sure your targets reflect a fair and realistic expectation (not just a number someone hit 10 years ago!).
That being said there are plenty of hard working sales professionals doing their best but falling short of hitting target. Here are my top 25 tips to hit your sales target, tips that have worked for me and my teams time and time again:
1 – Create Real Urgency – Whilst the consultative approach to selling is very much the way forward there will always be a need for urgency. Remember you are a sales professional and your goal is to achieve the sale so make sure you create
2 – Give Before You Take – To help increase your chances of getting the sale give first before you ask for it. That could include giving them a free e-Book, webinar, event ticket etc. Something that isn’t directly related to the product, but offers them a big enough value that they appreciate it.
3 – Don’t Give Up – In the sales process there may be 5 hurdles, there may be 15. Most of the time you will fall down on any one of those hurdles and lose the opportunity. To increase your chance of hitting target don’t give up as easily and push to get over a few more hurdles. It could just be one more hurdle overcome equals them actually buying.
4 – Try Different Times – Don’t limit yourself to approaching your prospects between 9-5, try them at different times. I’ve contacted people at 07:00 am and also 19:00 pm if I’ve struggled to get hold of them and it’s proved to be massively effective. People are genuinely busy in the day but more likely to be contactable early or late.
5 – Do a Pipeline Audit – Your time is hugely valuable so wasting time on opportunities that won’t convert will cost you a lot. Do regular full pipeline audits and make sure your focus and time is spent on opportunities that are more likely to convert.
6 – Look For Blockages – I was working with a sales team this month and spent time with each exec looking at what was stopping them getting sales. Each person had a different blockage, but once we identified it, it became a lot easier to clear and solve.
7 – Study Success – There is a high chance there is a person or group of people in your team, company or industry who are hitting target. Find them and study them, see what they do that works and learn. If they can hit target so can you.
8 – Ask More Questions – If you’re struggling to get a deal over the line, ask more questions. What’s holding them back? What do they need? Find the blockages and then dig deeper to understand them. The more you ask, the more you’ll find out and the easier it will be to overcome.
9 – Plan Your Days – As they say failing to plan is the same as planning to fail. Plan your days to help ensure you keep focus. Plan key contact times, key chasing time, key email times etc.
10 – Avoid Distractions – Distractions are all around you and it can be easier to get distracted if you’re struggling to hit target. Make sure your team, even your management know when you’re focusing and avoid any distractions. It doesn’t mean you need to be a hermit crab and hide away, but make sure the majority of your time goes into activities that are likely to yield a result for you.
11 – Cut Out Negativity – It is rare for negativity, moaning, whining and complaining to ever deliver sales results! Make a conscious effort to cut out (or down) on negativity and be more positive. It will help motivate you more and will rub off on your customers as well.
12 – Eat/Drink Healthy – It may sound silly and irrelevant, but if you’re not eating or drinking well your energy levels will be low and you will struggle to achieve a lot. Just by eating healthier foods and drinking more water you will naturally have more energy which you can use to sell!
13 – Make Sure Your Rest – There will be some sales people who take the pressure of hitting target and think they need to work 24/7 to show they’re trying. The problem is if you don’t take regular breaks and make sure you get enough sleep you will struggle. 8-9 hours of working with full energy is far greater than 12-14 hours working with no energy.
14 – Try Different Approaches – They say that if you do the same thing but expect a different result it’s madness. If you’ve been struggling to hit target but keep doing the same things, saying the sames things and following the same processes something is wrong. Try a different approach, try saying different things or doing things differently.
15 – Leverage Your Network – Some of the common challenges sales people have are struggling to get hold of the decision maker. This is where it can be hugely helpful to be connected to different people at your target company. Leverage those connections to either get through to the decision maker or find a different decision maker.
16 – Think Outside The Box – Take 5 minutes and just think of creative, even crazy things you could try to help get a sale across the line. I’ve heard of a courier company sending an egg to a prospect to show they can delivery even the most fragile item safely!
17 – Sell Value Over Price – People buy when they see that the value outweighs the price so make sure you sell that more. Don’t get caught pushing discounts and savings but push the value it offers them and show them that it far outweighs the price they pay.
18 – Find & Use Referrals – Another great way to hit target is to leverage past and existing customers to gain referral opportunities. These opportunities tend to have a far higher conversion rate compared to cold created ones.
19 – Use Social Media – If you’re not utilising social media in your sales process, where have you been?! Social can help you give before taking by sharing content, engaging content, it can help you identify more decision makers and build far great relationships with customers.
20 – Use Visual Reminders – You might do a training session or get some coaching, but that will soon be forgotten. Keep visual reminders on your desk, they could remind you of your target, what you want to buy with your commission, sales tips, motivation, anything that will help you sell.
21 – Jump In The Deep End – Fear can consume a lot of sales people, fear of cold calling and fear for asking for the close often being the biggest ones. My best advice, just jump in the deep end. Just dive right in, don’t over think it, don’t assume anything, just jump in and get on with it.
22 – Create Excitement – One of the best ways to help drive your customers to buy is to create excitement. Get them excited about your product, get them excited about your offer, get them excited by the opportunity to buy.
23 – Create Fans, Not Buyers – People don’t want to be sold to so don’t sell to them but show them something you believe they’ll like. Think of it in the same way you would talk to your friends about your favourite band, song, film, TV series etc. If you create fans you’ll not only get people happy to buy but happy to refer as well.
24 – Work Harder – A simple tip, and perhaps not one you’ll want to hear, but if you’re not hitting target then it’s worth working harder. That may include making more calls, sending more emails, going to more meetings, sending more information, working longer hours. Sometimes quantity over quality helps build experience and confidence and increases your chance of hitting targets early on.
25 – Work Smarter – Once you’ve got experience you can then focus on working smarter and focusing on qualifying your opportunities better and refining your process. Look at how you can sell more efficiently and effectively but leveraging different tools, different people and different resources.
I hope this list helps, even if it’s just one of those tips that you can apply it could be the one thing you do differently that helps you bring in those few more sales that help you achieve your sales target!
About The Author:
Daniel Disney is one of the world's leading Sales, Social Selling and LinkedIn experts. With over 15 years sales experience, Daniel has mastered how to use social media to generate exceptional results, both in social engagement and in revenue generated. His brand new Online Social Selling Masterclass Course is helping salespeople all over the world generate MORE sales with LinkedIn and Social Selling.
Daniel is also a highly in-demand international keynote sales speaker, is the UK's leading sales blogger and is also the Founder and Owner of LinkedIn's most popular sales publication, The Daily Sales. With an audience of over 450,000+ followers and growing by thousands each week, his content reaches millions of salespeople far and wide.
To inquire about Daniel keynoting or speaking at your company or event, or to find out more about his 1-day and online LinkedIn/Social Selling Masterclass please email contact@thedailysales.net.
