I talk about “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call,” yet there are several junctures during a sales call or meeting that can be considered “the golden 120 seconds.” And none of those junctures is more important than the first 120 seconds of the sales call.

We all know how important first impressions are in a new relationship or situation. They can truly make a difference in how the relationship proceeds and the situation unfolds. But there is probably no instance in which making a first impression is more important than a sales call. A poor first impression will have you trying to dig your way out of a hole, and you probably won’t sell anything — no matter what you’re selling.

I know this fact may be intimidating! The good news is you have complete control of the situation and through preparation, practice and confidence building, you can be sure you are putting only your best foot forward and making an impression that will get you off to a positive start with the prospect.

Preparation involves a number of steps — the most important of which is creating a framework of what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it during those first 120 seconds. Preparation involves both mental and tactical preparation and should include the following elements:
• Researching the prospect beforehand;
• Determining objectives for the meeting;
• Knowing who will be at the meeting;
• Developing the meeting collaterals; and
• Setting the agenda and forwarding it to your prospect before the meeting.

With these elements in place — as well as the elements of body language discussed in my December 30th blog post — you can produce a flawlessly-executed opening during the all-important first 120 seconds of your sales meeting. Those two minutes will be the springboard for the rest of your meeting, so make sure you have water in the pool before you jump in. Because how you present yourself will not only set the tone for the meeting, but will make or break your selling opportunity.

One important aspect of sales that I touch on in the sales approach I developed and outline in “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call” is preparation. Often addressed inadequately and sometimes overlooked entirely, sales preparation entails so many things and much more than I can cover in one blog post. Therefore, this will be the first of a series of posts on sales preparedness that I will write over the next several weeks.

Few things factor more importantly in your sales preparation than your appearance, because, of course, it’s the first impression you make with the prospect. It goes without saying that your appearance needs to be highly professional, but what characterizes a truly “professional” appearance?

While your clothes may be clean and pressed, what you wear and how you wear it and present yourself physically is another matter. I’m talking about body language — how you use your hands, your handshake, your sitting and standing position, your eye contact, etc. Then there are the items you bring to the meeting and are part of how you present yourself — your pens, note pad, business cards, etc. All of these things communicate your level of professionalism, confidence and attention to detail.

Altogether, there are 18 critical elements of nonverbal communication that each salesperson should check before every sales call, no matter how casual the encounter. In addition to the above, salespeople need to consider their fingernails (keep them trimmed, clean and away from your face), breath (think about what you ate and drank before the meeting), make-up (women, don’t overdo it; keep it natural), and shoes (keep them polished and well-soled). Salespeople also need to keep their hair out of their eyes and their hands away from their groin (no scratching!).

These nonverbal communication opportunities can become powerful tools in your selling arsenal. You want your prospects to focus on your selling messages, especially during those “Golden 120 Seconds.” If they are distracted by your mannerisms or turned off by your appearance, even your best efforts to present your product or service will be wasted.

Today is an exciting day, as it’s the official release date of my book (my first), “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call.”  The press release announcing my book can be found online.

The motivation for writing this book came from what I’ve seen and learned in my 25 years of working “in the trenches” in sales.  Sales people — and particularly those who are experiencing the challenges of selling products and services in this economy — are often finding themselves “stuck” and unable to make things happen with prospective customers.  They want to improve their sales performance and better manage the sales process.  As a result, they desperately seek out new approaches, techniques and ideas that will help them close more deals. 

What I touch on in “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call” is a sales approach I developed using the knowledge I’ve acquired and the techniques I’ve honed, as well as what I’ve learned from my own sales call mistakes.  This approach focuses on common sense tactics that sales people actually already understand but for some reason fail to execute.  The good news is they can start applying these tactics immediately.

Most importantly, my approach looks at those critical junctures during a sales call or meeting — the 120 seconds — in which the sales person’s behavior with the prospect can most impact the outcome.  Until now, these junctures — and developing strategies for navigating them — have been virtually ignored. 

My book is loaded with examples of both sales successes and sales blunders.  I’ve used this approach to grow my company and shared it with my clients to help them increase their sales and revenue.  If you are looking for a way to turnaround declining sales or end a pattern of lost sales opportunities, my book provides a solution.  Check it out at the Barnes & Noble website or Amazon.com.

The Golden 120 seconds of Every Sales Call is all about the proactive approach to selling!

 A down economy is fertile ground for proactive selling.  And, proactive selling requires that sales professionals are sensitive to the foundations of selling that in strong markets are so easy to ignore.   The days of opting for the next prospect if you spoil the selling interaction with the current prospect are over.  The next prospect may never come.  So the message to sales forces today is: “go out and make something happen”:  generate relationships, find more prospects, and increase the number of selling opportunities.  

 The key to being able to leverage these opportunities comes from the flawless execution of the basic foundational selling skills so necessary to successful selling.  Just as the $20-million a year baseball player goes to spring training every year for seven weeks of practicing the fundamentals, the sales professional needs to ensure they are training, and preparing for the next selling season by re-learning the fundamentals.  The Golden 120 seconds of Every Sales Call is about applying these key fundamentals to every call, every selling interaction and every opportunity to “make something happen.”   

 Author Peter Dennis has over twenty-five years of ‘in-the-trenches’ selling experience.  In this twenty-two chapter book he provides tips, warning areas and common-sense (yet easily forgotten) elements of strong sales call preparation and execution.

Today’s economic environment is ripe for a sales book with a unique focus.  After-all, anyone who has sold anything will recognize that the ultimate success or failure in any selling opportunity comes down to a critical 120-second juncture.

Pre order your copy today by visiting www.norlightspress.com and viewing the “In The Spotlight” section.

In the frenetic pace of seeking and converting new prospects into customers it’s easy to forget about a very rich source of leads:   our current and former customers!    

It’s easy to neglect this or put it off; but there are a multitude of benefits to reconnecting  with the people who’ve already made the decision to buy from you.  We all know organizations that are very good at this. Unfortunately we can also name a few that seem to forget about you “after the sale is made.”  Make sure your selling organization doesn’t fall into the latter group! 

And, while you’re at it, does your sales process include a formal approach to asking your customers who else could benefit from your product or service?   Does your “sales tool kit” include two or three references from satisfied customers who are delighted with your service?  Have those customers agreed to be references for you?  Is the information readily available for new prospects – and in a presentable form?

Now is a good time to re-visit your current and former customers, re-cultivate the relationships your organization has already spent thousands of dollars developing and leverage those relationships into new opportunities and new business.

In a recent sales training session I conducted dealing with the critical opening minutes of a selling interaction with a prospect, I was asked by the customers’ President & CEO, “Peter, what are your thoughts about shaking hands?” 

It’s a topic that’s easily forgotten in preparing for the sales presentation, sales meeting or networking interaction.  Almost everything we do in sales is about listening-and-talking and for example, providing needs analysis, making recommendations and then negotiating a price that’s fair for everyone.   (And if price is the first thing you’re talking about, you best forget about making the deal – but that’s a topic for a future blog.)

Quite simply I think the quality of a handshake is never a deal-maker, but I do think it can contribute to being a deal-breaker.   As a large portion of the buying decision invariable defaults to the buyer liking the seller (meaning that the buyer trusts the seller and feels confident about the potential transaction), not only our talking points and listening skills, but our mannerisms and physical presence, have a lot of influence on the buyer’s subconscious assessment of whether or not we are the person they want to do business with. 

The vice-grip handshake, the clammy handshake, the perspiration-soaked handshake and the limp handshake can distract the buyer just enough from the other elements of messaging you are conveying in your selling interaction.   Why take that chance?  So, I think the best approach to use when it comes to handshakes comes down to: firm (no vice-grip), confident, relaxed and deliberate.   And, if you’re prone to clammy hands, carry a cloth with you or wash your hands with warm water right before a meeting.

Shaking hands – as a sales professional it’s the only physical interaction you’re going to have with your prospect; you best get it right!

Recently I was speaking with a President & CEO of an organization who offered me the analogy  that she felt her sales team was like a group of fish in a fish bowl.   She said that they waited for the fish food to be sprinkled on the surface of the water and reacted well when they finally saw the food hitting the water…but when there was no food, they didn’t really do anything but swim around.  This reactive approach to selling was expensive to the organization in lost opportunity cost, tepid sales results and overall inefficiency.

Today’s economic climate and challenging sales environment stagnates the reactive sales professional waiting for something to happen.   The phones ring less, the flow of customers into the place of business is slower and a “just-hang-in-there” mentality pervades the reactive sales team.

However, this very same economic climate and challenging sales environment creates wonderful opportunities for the sales hunter, whose skills at proactive selling strategies, networking techniques and the ability to position his or her product or service apart from the competition creates more buying and selling opportunities.   Generating top line revenue and bottom line profit in today’s market often simply hinges upon having a greater number of successful business conversations with more prospects.  That won’t happen if you’re waiting for people to come to you.

Doing the things today that out-hustle, out-smart and out-flank your competition means that tomorrow you’re looking at your competition in the rear-view mirror.

Embrace the proactive selling techniques that make you stand out.  Let the other guys wait for the customers to come to them. 

Don’t wait for the fish food – go and get it!

Do your sales training programs prepare your sales teams to take advantage of the opportunities in today’s market?