There are a handful of critical skills every successful sales hunter possesses. With lead generation and prospecting in high demand, how do your skills – or your team’s skills – stack up?
1. Self-starters. By nature, natural sales hunters possess an inherent desire to hit the phones, pavement, social networks and email to drum up new business. You’re always looking for the next opportunity no matter where you are. (My personal favorites are airplanes and ski lifts.)
2. Get Visible. Great hunters want to meet new people, ask for referrals, call a prospect on their cell phone, and send email calendar invites. These activities are arrows in your quiver and you’re not afraid to use them even when your peers pull back.
3. Social and web savvy. In today’s world, social selling and the internet are critical to identifying and researching potential prospects. Great sales hunters understand this. You use these tools uncover and engage with qualified prospects.
4. Prospect. The best sales hunters have their own plan for executing the activities that will generate the leads they need. If your company has a lead generation strategy, that’s even better — but as a great hunter, you don’t hesitate to supplement them to blow away your quota.
5. Disciplined. Excellent hunters set their own quotas, self-monitor key metrics and hold themselves accountable to uncovering and working qualified prospects. When you do these things, you know precisely where to focus your energy.
6. Don’t take no for an answer the first time. When great sales hunters reach a prospect, their goal is to extend the conversation long enough to establish a relationship through good discussion. You know that the longer you engage prospects, the better your chances are of scheduling an appointment.
7. Great listeners. Contrary to the previous point, most sales reps talk too much. Top sales hunters, on the other hand, know when to be quiet and listen because it will allow them to learn enough about the prospect to get in the door and make the appropriate recommendation.
8. Inquisitive and insightful. Skilled hunters have a keen ability to ask smart, insightful questions. Your queries make prospects think about their situation, needs, and criteria, which almost always leaves a lasting impression. If they aren’t ready to meet with you now, they probably will be in the future.
9. Progressive qualifier. The best hunters progressively qualify sales prospects throughout the sales process. You space your qualification questions throughout the sales process, continually learning more while also re-qualifying that the opportunity has not changed. Your closing ratio reflects your finesse.
10. Comfortable with uncertainty. In sales hunting, you never know how deep a prospect may want to take a conversation. You thrive on the unknown and are capable of carrying a conversation long enough to schedule an appointment or get the right person on the phone.
So how do you stack up?
When you perfect these 10 skills, your ability to achieve your personal sales goals skyrockets. What did you discover? What other skills would you add to my list? Share your thoughts with me in the comments section below and let’s chat!
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