Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code
Excerpted with permission from "Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code," by George Ludwig. Copyright 2004. Published by Dearborn Trade Publishing, a Kaplan Professional Company. ISBN 0793185718. For more information about this book and other titles, please visit Kaplan Financial.
Chapter 5: The Power of Resource Management: Utilize Your Primary Tools to Score More Sales
Your Game Plan -- The Key to Winning
Imagine an NFL coach gathering his team for a pregame meeting
and giving instructions like, "Don't forget to wear your helmet! Make
sure to pass the ball only to the blue-and-orange jerseys. And remember,
only 11 of you guys out there on the field at one time!" What would that
team's chances for success be with that kind of game plan? Zero!
NFL coaches and their staff develop a strategic game plan for every
single game, whether it's the preseason opener or the Super Bowl. They
watch miles of game film of the opposing team, and they analyze their
own players' assets and liabilities. They pore over statistics and then pull
all their analysis together into a strategic game plan. This plan includes
player choices, play selections, offensive and defensive formations, and
even contingency options if the original plan doesn't pan out. The specific
initiatives and tactical maneuvers spring from the strategic game
plan.
Fortune 100 CEOs never run onto the business playing field without
a thoroughly thought-out business plan, and neither do the selling elite.
The concept of strategy (strategos) originated in ancient Greece and
meant preparing and setting up forces before the battle commences; the
tactics (tacktikos) used during the battle came from this plan. Likewise, to
be successful in sales, strategic planning must precede tactical maneuvering.
Sales masters know that a great strategic business plan, which
comes before the actual selling, will position them in front of the right
buyers at the right time with the right business solution.
Research confirms that fewer than 10 percent of salespeople have a
business plan to follow and an established sales process as their daily
guide. What do you think happens when you have no business plan and
no proven process to implement that plan? With no clear sense of direction,
you may end up heading off in all directions at once, which will
definitely not get you closer to success.
Life Plan
Just as specific tactics come from a strategic plan, a strong business
plan flows from an overall life plan. Sales success happens when your life
is consistently directed by your purpose and core values. The well-defined
sense of purpose we discuss in Chapter 2 does more than build a strong
psychological foundation; it also directs every business decision you
make. To be productive in selling, you also need to be productive when
you're not selling. Problems in your personal life will eventually sabotage
your sales results, too. As Zig Ziglar always said, "If you're hurting anywhere,
you're hurting everywhere!"
Entire books have been written about how to develop a life plan,
and it's beyond the scope of this book to tackle the specifics. I do want
to stress the importance, though, of having something written down that
defines your purpose. (See my example in Appendix A.) Commit to following
some kind of life-planning, time-management system, such as
FranklinCovey, Microsoft Outlook, or Anthony Robbins's Rapid Planning
Method. You can also study several systems and create your own
customized program. This kind of life planning, as described by Covey,
helps you focus more consistently on what's truly important, as opposed
to just what's urgent. Life planning and life balance lead to long-term
sales success and happiness.
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