This month, I’m sharing 10 ways to improve your selling skills in just 30 days.

1. Discipline

You have to be disciplined in how you use your time and what you spend your effort on. You cannot allow yourself to be caught up in the shiny objects. You have to be disciplined to know exactly what you are going to achieve, and then be actively achieving it.

Do not waste your effort; if salespeople would simply be more disciplined in how to use their time, it is amazing how much more successful they would be.

2. Consistency

This means consistency with your prospects. You cannot sit there and call some prospects once, then not call them back for six months or even a year. You have to have a consistent sales process.

More than anything, I hear people say, “Well, I don’t have a good plan.”

Me: “Well, what’s your plan?”

Them: “I don’t have a plan.”

Well, that’s your problem! I almost say this:

It does not matter what your plan is, just be consistent with it.

Just be consistent. When you are consistent with your prospecting, it is astonishing how much more disciplined you are — you see how these two things really fit together?

3. Learn From Your Existing Customers

I want you to learn from your existing customers. You see, your existing customers are full of knowledge.

I want you to learn from them and be reaching out to them, even if your sales process is one where — after you sell a customer — you don’t have any more engagement. I want you to reach back out because you are going to learn from them. They are going to help tell you, show you, and guide you.

4. Less Is More

It’s not about having 10,000 prospects.

It’s not about having 1,000 prospects.

It’s really about having fewer prospects that I can spend more time on. Less is more in everything I do. I don’t need 10,000 scripts. I don’t need 10,000 emails sent out. I need four or five because less becomes more. What happens when you adopt this mindset is you become more efficient and more effective in how you use your time.

5. Tight Customer List

Here’s the thing: You do not have time to chase every opportunity out there.

If the opportunity, lead or prospect that you see does not line up with what you believe is going to be potentially profitable to you, then do not go after it.

Stay tight. I see too many salespeople just start flashing lights when they get into trouble, turning to whatever they can to try to get attention or try to fight. No, stay tight. I would much rather you have 20 prospects you are reaching out to though a consistent process with a very tight message than to be sitting there trying to chase 100, 200, 300 prospects you only reach every couple of months.

Nope, that does not work. Keep a tight customer list.

6. Be Accountable

Be accountable and show up. You have to be accountable to yourself and I want you to be accountable to somebody else. This means, very simply, you need an accountability partner who is going to help hold you accountable for your goals. This means you are sharing with them what your goals are and vice versa.

You know what’s interesting about this? As you coach them, it’s going to help you.

A rising tide lifts all boats.

I want you to be accountable now, both to yourself and to your customers. When they say something, you have got to follow up with them. You have to remain engaged with them. Again, I see too many times where salespeople have an opportunity, and never call them back. They never re-engage. I see more salespeople losing business because they failed to follow up on a lead fast enough.

7. Simplify

Do not make it overly complicated. What I want you to do is simplify your message; simplify what it is that you sell because — if it isn’t simple in your mind, how is it going to be simple to your prospects? It’s not.

Too many salespeople get desperate and want to go out and sell every tool in the toolbox. You can’t. I am going to lead with one specific tool, and I am going to zero in on it.

When you simplify, it’s surprising how much faster you’re able to move. Speed comes into play here. Now, of the 10 things I’m discussing with you, your speed is not one of them. But what I have found is when you make it a point to do the 10 things I am walking through, you will find yourself operating much more efficiently.

8. Grow Your Mind

You can never allow yourself to stop growing. This means you have to be saying, “How and what am I learning about my industry?”

“How and what am I learning about my customers?”

What are you doing? You have to be continuously growing. You have to take 15 minutes a day — it might be digging into a book or maybe an article pertaining to your industry. No matter what, you have to be continuously and intentionally growing your mind.

What happens? Not only do you gain more knowledge, but you also gain a tremendous amount of confidence. And, when you’re more confident, it’s amazing how much better you listen.

9. Attitude

Nothing fuels your energy more than your attitude.

If you have a bad attitude, you won’t have the energy. If you have a bad attitude, it’s noticeable how it comes across in your phone calls, your emails, on and on. When you have a bad attitude, you don’t listen as much. Your attitude drives you a lot more than you think.

10. Don’t Stop

Do not stop. I see too many salespeople get a little bit into the process and think, “Well, we’re not getting the traction,” and they step away.

Everyone has heard the stories of salespeople giving up too early, and that is exactly what happens. If you want to be successful, don’t stop.

If you go through and do the previous nine things that I have been talking about, and lastly, do not stop, I guarantee you will be more successful with your selling in 30 days or less.

MANA welcomes your comments on this article. Write to us at [email protected].