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would like to improve your skills. Ask them why they didn’t buy from you, or why they did. Determine what you could have done differently. In a short period of time, this


will give you a clear picture of your strengths and weaknesses, plus the strengths and weaknesses of your products.


7Recognize that ‘no’ is


backwards People tend to say no, before they say yes. Just watch how shoppers in a re- tail outlet react when someone offers help. Usually, their first words are, “No, thank you, I’m just looking.” What they’re really saying is, “I don’t want you to try and sell me.” What about when someone walks


into your business? Is the person’s guard up? Unfortunately, salespeople have earned a less-than-stellar repu- tation, and people often feel the need to protect themselves when they go shopping. But people don’t get their backs up


speaking with a concierge, do they? Remember, a great salesperson finds what a customer wants and needs, just like a personal concierge. So when a potential client says “no,”


recognize that he is likely saying, “Give me more information to turn me on to your product.”


ing in your car—you won’t get far if it is ineffective.


8Follow up


“As a sales professional, you will fight against others who will say anything to get the sale. Just remember that being a great salesperson means you must stand by what you say and ensure what you say stands.”


18 Fitness Business Canada January/February 2014 actually ‘on’ spelled


Rosten once wrote, “I never cease be- ing dumbfounded by the unbelievable things people believe.” As a sales professional, you will


9Be ethical


fight against others who will say any- thing to get the sale. Just remember that being a great salesperson means you must stand by what you say and ensure what you say stands.


Sales Answers, sales presenter Jeffrey Gitomer offers 7.5 ways in which to ful- fill your goals:


10Meet your goals 1. Identify it: Write your goals down


clearly. 2. Date it: Assign dates to what you


are going to do. 3. List the obstacles you will have


to overcome. 4. List the groups and people to


Follow-up is as crucial as the steer-


contact who will work with you to help achieve your goal. 5. List the skills and knowledge you


Author, teacher and humorist Leo Think about how often you have


bought a product from the last sales- person you spoke to because she had a product that met your needs and she was right there in front of you? Then the salesperson you spoke with a few months earlier followed up a few weeks later than he was supposed to and felt frustrated to miss out on your business. Timely follow-up with customers is


crucial.


need to achieve your goals. 6. Write an action plan for each


goal. 7. List the benefits of goal


achievement. 7.5. Take action every day.


11Work hard and smart


Know the difference between


hard work and smart work. To be great at sales, you must know that time is valuable, and wasting it can prove costly. Learn how to prospect for new cus-


tomers, plus have the training and ability to recognize who your potential client is. Take time to prepare for each sales


call or presentation, then once it’s fin- ished, play it over again and again in your mind, looking for ways to im- prove it. Great salespeople understand that


they create their pay cheque. Wasting time is wasting money.


In his book Little Red Book of


author of The Tipping Point and Blink, we all have the information we need to make a decision in the blink of an eye. So what holds a customer back? Is


12Ask for the sale


it fear? Did he not get enough infor- mation? Maybe she didn’t like the salesperson? Whatever it is, getting people to buy


your products before they are ready is like trying to shove soft green beans down the throat of a toddler. All that happens is a messy situation. If you have done your job well,


wrapping up a sale should be as simple as saying, “John, I’m thrilled that we have the right programs for you. What day would you like to come in for your first workout?” When the customer gives you a


date, he has agreed to move forward. FBC


Colin Milner is the founder and chief execu- tive officer of the International Council on Active Aging® and a 31-year-veteran of the fit- ness industry. For the past five years, the World Economic Forum has invited him to serve on its Network of Global Agenda Councils, recog- nizing him as “one of the most innovative and influential minds" in the world on aging-relat- ed topics.


According to Malcolm Gladwell,


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