I have run into many business owners in the Reno/Sparks area that are responsible for most or all of their sales. Wearing two hats can be difficult at best. When I hear a business owner tell me that they do most of the sales for their company I tell them they need to become an expert in time management along with learning what they need to know to increase sales.
There are a few key things these business owners need to do in order to do two of the most important jobs at their company.
- Become masters of their calendar. Effective Productivity is a must. There are so many things that take precedence when you are a business owner. Employee issues, product development, accounting. These are all important and can keep you from making time for sales. Some business owners tell me a whole week will go by where they intended to make sales calls and they never go to them. Using your calendar to block time for selling is the key. Making that appointment with yourself to have time to sell is just like an appointment you would make with a client or a doctor. You do everything you can so that you don’t miss it. Add several blocks of time to your calendar that are specifically for selling work – making prospecting calls, following up, scheduling appointments to visit clients. This will insure you have time to sell each week.
- Learn to Sell. This sound ridicules doesn’t it? Of course you know how to sell, you do it all the time. That’s how your company got where it is today. Many business owners tell me they never sold anything before going into business for themselves or if they have they never had any formal sales training. They may be good with people and have a great product – which put them where they are today. Just imagine if they now added some great sales skills to that. Learning how to prospect more effectively and close more deals could benefit any business owner. There are many ways to improve your sales skills. You can read some great books on sales, take a webinar, find someone like me to coach you or take some live sales training like the Effective Selling Series I teach with Valerie Cardenas.
There is nothing easy about being a business owner, especially when you wear multiple hats. I know, I do it. Make it easier on yourself to wear the sales hat.
Please post your success stories or questions on being a business owner who also wears the selling hat.
Learn more at MakeTheSaleReno.com
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