Are there certain characteristics that make someone (or a salesperson) assertive?  We believe so.

And if you are a prospect, you want to have honest, direct and assertive conversations with a salesperson so that they can make better, more critical decisions.

There are many contributing factors as to why someone may not be very assertive such as:

1. Learned helplessness
2. Having low self-esteem
3. Not having a "Go-giver" mindset 
4. False bravado
5. Living life out of balance causing a sense of desperation and a crisis management approach to work rather than a self-management approach to work.

Assertive people have certain characteristics.

• First of all, they have minimum acceptable standards for themselves and those people around them. They don’t associate with toxic people – they work with nourishing people.
• They have a goal philosophy; they have lots of goals and then they continue to pursue those goals and achieve those goals.
• They get outside the box. If you’ve seen the 9-dot exercise, you’ll know what I’m talking about. They get outside the dots- they expand their comfort zone.
• Next, they take risks and they understand that taking risks can result in failure. But, failure becomes defined as just another step towards success. They’re persistent. They find other ways to close.
• They make decisions themselves which makes it hard for them to understand why someone would want to "think it over".
• They know what they stand for and they won’t fall for anything that falls under the category of an objection or a stall.  
• They control the sales process. You can ask them about next steps and assertive people can give you specific details about what happens next.

To overcome the hurdles that might trip you up as you attempt to be more assertive, you might consider the following:

1. As they said in The Godfather, “It’s not personal; it’s business.” Don’t take it personally.
2. Take ownership of how you feel. Nobody can make you feel the way you feel in terms of being uncomfortable. You choose to feel a certain way.
3. Consider Emerson’s quote, “Do the thing and you’ll have the power.” There will be times during a sales process or sales step where you will feel the need to be assertive but you will be afraid. DO the thing… do the thing that you’re feeling and you’ll have the power.

As always, thank you and have a perfect day.

In this blog post, we discuss the idea of using older (yet effective) techniques to find success in the chaos of today's selling landscape.  Let's face it; with the influx of social media, apps, and online distractions, it is actually harder to reach a prospect than ever before. 

However, we are here to help you stand out in the market and avoid sounding like every other salesperson.  It is important to strike a balance between both new and old school sales techniques when selling in today's world.

I’ve heard it said before, 

“Never throw out your clothes, just wait 10 years and they will be back in style”. 

In some ways, the same thing can be said about how people should think about selling. 

Like many things, technology can be used for good or bad.  The good, specifically on the topic of sales; is that it's a great way to increase your opportunity to reach potential clients.  With a few clicks or keystrokes, my message can be transported along the information super highway to its intended recipient via e-mail. 

Using Twitter, I can, in 280 characters or less, tweet or retweet, something I read, attach an article, share my own content, send it to my followers, and more.  Through the use of blogging, I can assimilate my thoughts, write (and edit) them online, and make them available to whoever has access to the Internet.  

All of these methods are fabulous and can be a great way to get your message out to a target audience or to the general public. 

However, technology can be used as a crutch, or, even worse, it can lump you in with everyone else.

One of the keys to being a successful sales professional is your ability to differentiate yourself from the competition.  One of the ways to be different is to actually be different.  What do I mean by this? 

In this age of new technology, there is an older (sometimes forgotten or ignored) device that can help you stand out in the market: the good old-fashioned telephone. It’s not pretty, it’s not cutting edge, but it is still available and can be useful when used properly. Let’s face it, nine times out of ten when you call someone, you will get their voicemail. 

Here is another way to set yourself apart—try not to sound like a typical salesperson. 

Avoid saying,

“Hi, my name is Jack Kasel and I represent my company calling about my product . . . blah, blah, blah."  

No one wants to hear it.

Stop!  Be different!  Leave a compelling message that doesn’t sound like everyone else and then follow up and when I say follow up, I mean follow up until you get a response.  Statistics prove it will take between 13-15 calls before you get a response.  It was never supposed to be easy.  Don't give up!

Don’t discard the new, but don’t forget the old.  Try using an old sales tool, in a new way to be, act, and sound different than your competition. 

Additional Resources

Finally, if you haven’t read this post from Dave Kurlan, I suggest you take seven minutes to do so.  It's a great read on the next game changer for salespeople.

http://www.omghub.com/salesdevelopmentblog/the-next-cant-miss-game-changer-for-salespeople

I doubt that you, in public, have a group of producers that you call ‘old farts’ or some other term of endearment.  But what I really wonder is this; Do you have a group that you consider ‘Sales Legends’.  My guess is that the answer is no.  There are reasons for this.

Before I provide suggestions for a solution, let me explain the title:  I recently played in a member guest golf tournament at Triple Crown Country Club with my good friend Jerry Barron.  I’ve known for a long time that since his retirement Jerry plays a lot of golf with his buddies on a regular schedule throughout the golf season. What I didn’t know is that for many years this group was known as the “Old Farts’ gang.  Apparently some people thought that this was a bit insensitive so the pro decided that the group would become known as “The Legends”.

This got me thinking about many of the sales teams we work with and the problems associated with growing revenue when a segment of the sales population isn’t motivated to or can’t grow their book.

The problem associated with the ‘old fart’ team really isn’t about age but rather about three very distinct phases in a sales person’s career.  These phases include but are not limited to those that have been with you a long time and are survivors. Those that do manage a large book of revenue and spend a great deal of time ‘managing the book’ and either cannot or will not grow the book.  And finally you have some people that really are ready to retire but haven’t told anyone yet. Let me clarify these 3:

• The Survivor: Those who have been with your organization for a long time and who have survived the ups and downs of economic swings and changes in your (re-engineered / right sized) company. These people have stayed just off the radar and when ever talent discussions come up they survive the discussion:  “What do we do with…?”
• Large Account Managers: The next challenge is with those in the sales population who handle a couple of key accounts or control a large book of revenue that you really don’t want to lose. These people hold you “hostage”.  Your rationalization is that you are afraid that the business will go with them if they leave or you justify keeping them while saying ‘They cover their compensation so they really aren’t costing me anything.”
• Retired On The Job: Finally you have people who are in fact in the later years of their careers and don’t have the same ‘fire in the belly’ that they did when they first started.  They are empty nesters, have a solid retirement plan, generate a comfortable income from the incentive comp plan and also conveniently may hold the opinion that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.

Case Study:  Why Retiring on the job is a problem for sales companies.  An insurance agency had a group of mature producers who controlled a revenue block of 5,000,000 dollars in revenue.  The holding company of this agency set a growth goal for this market as well as it’s other markets around the country at 20% gross growth per year  (The company made assumptions of 5% unknown losses in revenue and 10% known loses – non-recurring revenue streams.)  This group of mature producers had stopped producing new business and had no motivation to do so.  That meant that the 1,000,000 dollars of growth on the 5,000,000 dollars had to be produced by the rest of the group who struggled to grow their own book!).

Let’s look at some outside-the-box ideas to build a plan to have a team of legends who leaves a legacy of desire and commitment to excellence and a team of rookies who has the right stuff to grow your sales.

Do This 1 Thing: Eliminate sales goals for them and in exchange, change their comp model to one that is appropriate for managing accounts plus an incentive. 

Do These 2 Things:

• Take the top 1/3 of their book and make it clear that in order to qualify for the maximize incentive comp as an account manager they will be responsible for maintaining their newly assigned book of business at 100%. (1/3 of their book, 33% will equal approximately 90% of their revenue.). 
• To maintain the book at 100% they will have to engage organizational partners, look for opportunities to discuss other product offerings AND ask these BEST of the BEST for introductions.

This is something that institutions and agencies have attempted to do for years but have failed.  (See data and resources below.)

Do These 3 Things: 

• Hire a ‘junior’ producer, officer, or advisor and assign the remaining two thirds of the original book to them. The balance of their compensation comes from an incentive formula associated with new sales and cross selling. This person has the responsibility for growing the remaining book and supporting the “Legend”.

• Establish metrics and ‘high’ standards of performance that will be used to determine success for both parties (entire organization).

• Implement a performance management culture where mediocrity is not accepted, excuses for lack of effort will not be tolerated and data will be used to gain business insights so your sales manager can conduct 1-on-1 intentional coaching sessions.

I recognize the potential fatal flaw in these steps:  Your high producer might be tempted to take an offer from a competitor that is poaching top talent by offering attractive financial packages to lure them.  The questions you have to ask are:

• How well has that strategy worked for you in the past?
• What problems do you inherit when you’ve hired a high priced producer?
• Does the book of business and list of clients they promise ever show up?
• How well have you treated your top people all along?
• When people have left you for greener pastures have you ever heard stories that the promises made to them didn’t come true?

Extra Help – From HBR – Giving Top Performers Feedback – A Key to Keeping That Talent With YOU!