The first 30 minutes of the workday will set the tone for
the entire day. For most people, the first half hour of the day
consists of settling into the office routine by grabbing a cup
of coffee, checking the internet, and, of course, chatting with
others. Now, I will never be one to say we have to avoid coffee
and/or socializing, but I will be the first to say it is
advantageous to put these activities aside until later.
One of the ways that top-performing salespeople separate
themselves from others is by effectively using the first 30
minutes of the day. It is highly beneficial to your productivity
to know exactly what you are going to accomplish during this
period. Therefore, you must determine the day before what you
intend to do when you first arrive in the morning. For anyone in
sales, this means one thing: start the day by making a minimum
of three sales calls before you do anything else.
To begin using this strategy, your objective today (and everyday
in the future) should be to identify three people you want to
call first thing tomorrow morning. There is no better way to
start the day than by calling customers. If you are the type of
person who arrives in the office early, your phone calls will
wind up going straight to voicemail. Great! In fact, using
voicemail is an effective way to demonstrate to others that you
are a hard working individual and you take your relationships
seriously. For those of you who have a large number of clients,
this is also a perfect way to personally reach out to them,
while not having to wind up in a long, drawn-out telephone
conversation.
In addition to beginning the workday more productively, you will
also find yourself warmed up to make additional phone calls
throughout the day. This will help you overcome a very common
problem among anyone in sales: the initial reluctance to make
the first call of the day. Many studies have shown that people
waste on average 15 minutes each day just getting ready to make
that first call. It is ironic to think that you will have made
three phone calls in the time it takes the average salesperson
to even start making theirs.
An additional benefit of this plan will come when you begin
applying this same principle to the first 15 minutes after
returning from lunch. Use that time to make three prospecting
calls. Again, you will find yourself becoming productive faster
and you will be less likely to find yourself at the end of the
day looking back to realize that you did not make the phone
calls you needed to.
By establishing these habits, you will increase the number of
phone calls you make every day from utilizing time that, in the
past, was unproductive. Make it part of your routine at the end
of each day to identify both the three people you intend to
contact the next morning and the three you’ll contact after
lunch. Do not fall into the trap of thinking you’ll come up with
the names the next day because the chances of you actually
contacting those people will fall dramatically.
Mark Hunter, “The
Sales Hunter”, is a motivational sales speaker and industry
expert who addresses thousands each year on how to increase
their sales profitability.
For more information on his sales training or to receive
a free weekly sales tip via email, contact “The Sales Hunter” at
www.TheSalesHunter.com.
Reprinting of this
article is welcomed as long as the following is included:
Mark Hunter, "The Sales Hunter",
www.TheSalesHunter.com,
© 2007
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