Posts belonging to Category Solving Racial Preference



9 Prospecting Tips For The Black Sales Professional

Calendar February 10, 2011 | Posted by Admin9!
Man Prospecting

The Telephone is an Asset

For this post I could not have picked a more important topic. Unfortunately there are many of you out there who have a strong belief that there is nothing less desirable than a morning or afternoon of prospecting.

Prospecting – Can’t Do Without It!

There are many aspects of cold calling and prospecting that drive Black sales professionals nuts, especially if you are cold calling in person.  This is already a lonely task, especially if you are faced with any aspects of racial preference or racial discrimination.

In the long term, there is no substitute for prospecting.  Networking is productive, and we will  talk about the benefits of networking and its uses in a future post, yet prospecting is a necessity.

Prospecting is a numbers game.  You have heard it, and realize it is true.  Know your numbers.  Know how many calls you make and how many result in an appointment.  Fine tune your approaches for more success.

Note the following:

  • Prospecting, over time, is the only way you are going to succeed in sales.  Without this sourcing of new potential customers, you will not have a chance to show your talents
  • Whether you are a long-term sales professional or fledgling, your devotion to sourcing new prospects is important
  • Even if you closed two sales this morning, there is no better time to prospect because of the new energy you generated

There is no doubt that prospecting is a requirement of the majority of sales jobs.  I want to throw out some tips that might help with this truly necessary evil.

A Few Tips for Success

Here are a few tips that I would like to share regarding telephone and in-person prospecting:

  • Master the Telephone - The telephone is your ultimate tool as a Black sales professional.   You probably already know this.  Master its uses and advantages.
  • Practice, Practice - Work on your telephone introduction/presentation.  Use a ‘dead’ phone line to work on it over and over.  Try it with a friend or confidant.  If you have a mentor, express your desire to work on it with them.
  • Create Interest - You must create interest, anticipation, and curiosity.  You need to be able to draw someone into this meeting and dialog.
  • Make Realistic Claims - As you do your sales points, make realistic claims.  You may need to prove them one day.
  • Be Confident - Find your comfort.  Sound confident, informed, and race neutral. Be personable and not mechanical.
  • Be Concise - Know your sales points.  It is in essence your elevator speech.  Be able to say why someone should work with you and your organization in 15 seconds or less.
  • Know the End Game - The end game of all prospecting is to get in front of the buyer.  Always remember this.  You want an appointment!
  • Have Knowledge - Know what your organization can do for a particular industry even if you don’t know the client’s needs.  Be prepared to talk about it.
  • Name Dropping - Be prudent about dropping names, but do so when it makes sense.  Remember, some buyers do not want any information shared with their competitors.  Just know the landscape.

One point that I don’t need to tell you about is that as a Black sales professional in B2B you should avoid putting your picture on your business card.  It is not required, and most employers would give you a choice anyway.  Why create situations that can lead to preference or prejudice?

More Prospecting Discussion to Come

We will be covering some important prospecting activities later in February and in March.  Items such as:

  • Getting past the gatekeeper
  • Understanding Your Sales Metrics
  • Selling A Commodity? How to Build Value!
  • Networking Your Way to Prospects

Make sure you check them out.  Your comments would be appreciated.

Category Categories: African American Sales Professionals, Prospecting Tips for Black Sales Professionals, Racial Perceptions in Sales, Sales Strategies for Black Sales People, Solving Racial Preference, Success Tips for Black Sales Professionals  |  Tag Tags: , , , , ,

Your Appearance! Your Image!

Calendar February 7, 2011 | Posted by Admin9!

Your Image

The title of this would make you think I am going to write on what you should wear, but that is not the case, on second thought, maybe we will cover it in a future post.

I will, however, cover two points that many of you are already aware of.   I want to share a view that can help you increase your effectiveness.

As a Black sales professional, your image and the persona that you are working to build are very much subject to your last encounter with your client, especially a new one.  With that in mind, always look your best.

To Be or Not To Be … Casual?

As a sales professional, when the rest of the world dresses down for casual day, you have your opportunity to stand out as a sales professional.

Whether it is casual Fridays, or “casual dress” office environments, many operations began doing it In the 90s and it is widespread now.

As comfortable as it is, I would like to convince Black sales professionals not to do it.  Here is my reasoning:

  • As a sales professional, when the rest of the world dresses down for casual day, you set yourself apart as a sales professional.  Sales professionals look the part.
  • In the eyes of your clients you want to stand out as an individual who treasures their business relationship and has something to special to deliver.  Dressing down indicates that you need comfort more than you need to display professionalism.  Don’t be suckered into it, be the consummate professional.
  • When you are in casual mode on casual Friday, or in an office casual setting, it makes the rest of your day, casual.  Meeting with a client to solve an unforeseen problem, or responding to that potential “call-in” is not possible, unless you plan to take “casual” with you everywhere.
  • To your clients, if you are casual, what makes you different from the next sales professional?  This is when you show your best.  Strengthen your persona!

Be the best-looking sales professional out there.  Whether male or female if your business garb is your “uniform”, then do it in the way that makes you stand out.   This is especially the case when your own office is casual.  Don’t let yourself fall into that mode.  Everyone in your office is not in the same position as you, so they will dress position appropriate for their job, and you need to dress for customer contact.

I believe that any sales professional, who is responsible for being on client visits or potentially greeting clients when they come to your company’s, office should be dressed in attractive business clothing. For the type of work you do, you want the customer to recognize you as a professional who represents yourself and your company as a professions well emblazoned in their mind.

Always Look Your Best

During my tenure as a regional sales manager many years ago I was interviewing a sales candidate that was being considered for employment by one of my field sales managers.   The objective of having the Regional Sales Manager interview the Field Sales Manager’s prospective hires was to put another set of eyes and ears to it.  On this morning I met a candidate who had received high marks from the interviewing manager.

When I walked in the interview room, I met a candidate who we would pay a salary and bonus as well as a possibility of inheriting some significant customers.  Immediately upon introduction I noticed obvious grease stains on the candidates pants as well as frayed collar on his shirt.  It frankly looked bad.

The interview was better than average, and there were many solid points that the prospective sales representative offered up that made me think that I might be able to endorse the sales manager’s selection.  That is, if issues regarding appearance were not so lightly regarded by this candidate.

If the candidate was that neglectful when putting his best foot forward in an effort to get the job, how was he going to look when visiting one of our customers?  Although I probably don’t need to say it, he did not get the job.

Think About It

A testament to this will be when you exit an important customer’s office into the waiting room to say your farewells and see your competitors in some bad “Christmas” sweaters and deck shoes waiting to see your customer.  Even the janitor will be able to tell you who looks more professional.

Always look your best!  Be impeccable, it’s your image.

We would love your comments.

Category Categories: African American Sales Professionals, Interviewing Tips for Black Sales Professionals, Job Attainment Skills for Black Sales Professionals, Prospecting Tips for Black Sales Professionals, Racial Perceptions in Sales, Sales Strategies for Black Sales People, Solving Racial Preference, Success Tips for Black Sales Professionals, Uncategorized  |  Tag Tags: , , , , , ,