What does it take to be a masterful and successful sales person?
Objective Management Group, Inc., a pioneer and leader in the Sales Assessment Industry, uses the following criteria for Sales Mastery:
- Strong Desire for Success
- Positive Attitude
- Commitment to Do Whatever It Takes to Succeed
- Takes Responsibility
- Doesn’t Need Approval and Isn’t Devastated by Rejection
- Has Supportive Buy Cycle
- Has Supportive Attitudes and Beliefs
- Is Able to Control Emotions
- Enjoys Selling
- Is Money Motivated
I agree 100% with Objective Management’s criteria, and from my perspective of more than 20 years as a sales trainer and coach, I think there are a few important additions to the list:
- The Ability to Be Self Aware
- Personal Openness to Using Resources
- Being Part of a Team
- Emotional Intelligence
To me, the ability to be self-aware is critical to sales success. Without the capacity to be self-reflective, sales reps rely on their past approaches, which may or may not still serve them best.
I feel personal openness to using resources, such as your sales manager, your sales coach, and your teammates, is a key as well. Sometimes, the best strategy comes from resources who care enough to be straightforward and honest with you, who will question your approach. It is also beneficial to have people around to help you pick yourself up when the inevitable losses happen. Another, related factor I see as crucial to sales mastery is being part of the team and not 100% self-serving. This attitude makes it possible for your prospects to be upfront with you and for your teammates to go the extra mile for you when needed because you support them as well. Effective use of resources simply makes sense and increases closing ratios.
The best of the best salespeople are comfortable in emotional territory – their own and their prospects’.
While it is vital that salespeople be able to control their emotions in a selling situation, I think superior sales success also requires something more – Emotional Intelligence, the ability accurately to recognize emotions and tailor sales approaches accordingly. Each and every sale has an emotional component. The best of the best salespeople are comfortable in emotional territory – their own and their prospects’. This allows them to truly understand their prospects’ motivation(s) and effectively match them to the services/products being sold.
It takes courage to be open to self-awareness, feedback and support – just like it takes courage to be vulnerable and gutsy enough to be truly successful. When you keep learning and developing your skills and treat sales as the profession it is, everyone wins. Cheers to winning!
What else do you think it takes to be a Master of Sales? We’d love to hear your answers, so go to our Facebook page to add to the conversation
