Forecasting can be simple and accurate, and if one uses a consistent, creditable selling process it can be even more reliable. Here is a simple way of forecasting. Try it on some outstanding business. Try it also on some opportunities you closed and others you lost.

The simple system involves three components; (1) Will the sale for some vendor actually happen; (2) The match to your ideal customer profile, and; (3) the quality of the sales person.

Will There Be a Deal? This occurs when you are sure the potential customer will buy something from somebody. If a customer calls you (a lead) and asks for your help this is not a deal yet. When you prospect and the customer is interested enough to set-up a next appointment, this is not a deal, yet. Sending literature and "Sounds good." and "I'll talk to some others and get back to you" is not a deal yet. It's wishful thinking. Bottom line, is there going to be a deal or is this just testing the waters. Is there an approved budget that is authorized to be spent? Is there a deadline or else something traumatic will happen. Most forecast are inaccurate because of this deal or no deal - this is the question.

Match to Your Ideal Customer Profile is how well this opportunity and customer matches to the kinds of customers and sales you've been successful closing in the past. In order to determine this match you must have consciously thought about the demographic and psychographic characteristics that are in place when you make sales. The real power here is to focus on those sales you've made. Don't focus on the ideal customers you'd like to have. One is reality and the other is a wish. The closer the opportunity fits the better your chances of success.

Example of a Profile

I sell consulting services and training programs for all aspects of selling and sales management. My profile is (1) Have they had any exposure in the past to the programs I teach or me? (2). Will I have access to all the decision-makers from high to low? (3). Do they have money to spend or are they hurting financially? (4). Do they hire consultants and do they have a culture of training to improve their people? (5). Do they have 15 or more sales people?

These are characteristics I've noticed are in place when I make most of my sales and absent when I don't close. When I meet a prospect for the first time, I listen to hear or ask questions to get this information. I never want to leave a first meeting without being able to determine the fit. I also try to validate with at least one more person.

Quality of the Sales Person says a mouthful. Your best sales people have a conscious or unconscious ability to sort through the lookers, the buyers, the time consumers and the abusers. Once they sense a buyer, they have a process that works to close the deal. Additionally, they will not pursue deals that don't feel good. Price is not their issue nor is access to the ultimate decision-makers. Fitting solutions and developing coaches is easy for them. The rest of your sales force (moving from best to worst) will struggle with this to an increasing degree.

Determining the Probability of Success

• Suggestion of a fit ................ 0% or 30%; No or Yes
• Match to Profile .................. 0% - 30% Degree of the match. If you're guessing, the probability will be off.
• Quality of Sales Person ...... Top 10%=25%, Top 25%=10%, Top 50%=0%, Top 75%=-5%, Bottom 25%=-10%
• Add it Up!!

Refining the Probability

If you have a consistent, creditable, sales process you can tighten this up tremendously. You will be able to assess the following elements and assign values that indicate the deviation of the probability from above.

The Sales Elements:

• Knowledge of the opportunity - Specifics of the Client, What, How Much and When they want.
• Degree to which all the decision-makers are covered - The powerful, the functional, the administrators.
• The number of internal and external coaches helping you.
• Access to the ultimate decision-maker and the match to what s/he really wants and needs.
• Knowledge of competition's strength and weaknesses - as seen by the decision-makers.
• Match to the your ideal profile - (yes, again).
• An Action Plan that addresses the threats, uses the strengths, attains the needed information and improves position with the powerful and influential decision-makers.

The degree to which you can address these will really highlight the validity and accuracy range of your probability.

Now go forth and predict.

And now I invite you to learn more.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sam_Manfer

A business' life blood is of course its sales. More sales drive greater income which generates greater profit. Seems simple enough and therefore it should be logical for us all to rush out there metaphorically speaking and herd customers through our shop door. Job done?

Or is it? Unfortunately life doesn't quite work like that. Before the supercharged, adrenaline fuelled rush to get before the customer happens it is wise to take a step back and plan your sales campaign fully. This means you won't get bogged down a little way along the sales track by events or obstacles that you hadn't considered. Potential customers will expect you to be their guide and if you don't have the map on you then problems will soon arise and confidence will be lost. A good sales campaign starts in the planning stage and long before a customer is approached. You need to understand and know your product(s) inside out and be confident that you can express their value and purpose to any audience.

This knowledge should be documented and held by all of the people involved within the sales chain so that it can be readily used as required. You will have competitors; what are their strengths and particularly what are their weaknesses? Who are your potential customers? How will you approach them? What will they expect from you in terms of sales collateral? These are just some of the many questions that you need to have asked yourself and to have answered. It will give you confidence to know the answers before a customer asks a question.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_F_Ford

Salespeople are my favorite clients. Not only are they generally personable and empathetic, but the best ones are also constantly working to improve themselves. What other career gives you the ability to make an income directly commensurate to your skills and abilities?? As with any other aspect of business or life, what goes up will generally come down. So it is in the art of selling.

In order to train a sales pro or team there are several key psychological aspects to consider. The very personality traits that make a great sales person are the same ones that can bring them down and put them into a major slump.

It is vitally important for the sales professional to have a strong level of EQ or Emotional Intelligence. As Daniel Goleman points out in his book "Emotional Intelligence" the EQ is usually more important than IQ when determining how successful someone will be in life and business.

EQ training is helpful in 3 ways:

1. Becoming conscious of negative emotional states.
2. Getting control over unhelpful emotions and increasing emotional resilience.
3. Recognizing others' emotional states in order to improve communication and build relationships.

A positive mental attitude for the sales professional can make all the difference between average performance and someone who breaks all the records. The best and fastest way to change your emotional intelligence is by connecting to the subconscious. The subconscious mind is the seat of the emotions and that's where great selling comes from, but its' also where fear's reside. Fears of failure, rejection and the inability to present to a group are crippling to the sales person, The best sales people are the ones who are working on themselves through focused visualization, positive goal setting and finding ways to alleviate fears/emotional blocks and build unstoppable self confidence.

A sales training that only includes sales techniques falls well below the mark. By including EQ training and self improvement techniques you can build not only a dynamite sales team but a happy, well adjusted peak performing sales person as well.

Inga Chamberlain is a successful entrepreneur with over 15 years experience as a hypnotherapist, speaker and trainer. Her background includes over 10 years experience in the executive search industry, both as an executive recruiter and as owner/manager of her own firm.

As an expert in motivation and peak performance she combines these skills with her expertise in sales to assist companies and individuals in moving past obstacles in their path to success. Enhancing sales, sports and stage performance and working with individuals who want to alleviate bad habits or let go of addictive behaviors are all examples of the types of individuals that have transformed their lives utilizing Inga's techniques.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Inga_Chamberlain