The Five Biggest Mistakes Salespeople Make

No matter how you bring your prospects through the door, you will have to contact them. There is no getting around this fact. And whether you are a cold-call specialist or an Internet marketer generating your own leads, you still will need to follow up with prospects. But, here's the problem. Most people end up losing their sale. Without realizing it, they make important mistakes that lose them money. The bottom line I’ve observed over the years is that people make five common mistakes in sales:

1. Wasting Time. People waste time. Obviously, watching TV and gossiping on the phone are obvious time wasters. But, some time-wasters are less obvious, but still as dangerous. At the end of the day, there is no greater use of your time than talking with prospects. That's it. Any time that you spend doing other activities is taking away from this critical process. Of course, you need to spend time on other activities, like marketing and managing your team. But, never forget that 80 percent of your work day should be spent on talking with new prospects.

2. Living with Poor Discipline. Poor discipline is different than wasting time. Top performers organize their week, set goals and have standards and benchmarks that they strive to achieve. They get up early in the morning and keep going until they have finished their tasks. Even if they have a sick child or a broken dishwasher, they understand that there are always hurdles in life; however, they still achieve the goals that they set.

3. Practicing Poor Follow-up. A few years ago, there was a study done on the follow-up statistic of purchased leads. Seventy-two percent of purchased leads are never called. And even more surprising, only three out of 10 people are given a call when they enter their information in a Web site. Top salespeople not only follow up with their prospects, but follow up with their prospects with a proven series of between five and 20 different steps. You should send your prospect a series of e-mails, a phone call, an invitation to an opportunity call or an online Webinar, a letter in the mail, etc. Research suggests that you will close 75 percent more leads if you have a systematic follow-up program.

4. A Poor System. An entrepreneur without a system will never, ever come close to the systemized entrepreneur. If you have a step-by-step process that you follow, you will be more successful. Top sales professionals have a system for the following three areas:

• Generating leads
• Managing leads
• Following up with leads

5. Being Too Dependent On Your "Leader." This is one of the most insidious problems in the sales industry. People come into their business hoping that the "person at the top" will show them the magic formula for success. Unfortunately, there isn't a magic formula. Top leaders in the industry forge their own way and make their own success. When people become too dependent on others for success, they will never make it to the top. Remember that the sales profession contains some of the richest people in the world. One of the most wonderful parts of sales is that there is no limit on what you can achieve. However, there are some important factors to take into consideration when pursuing a successful career in any sales job. Make sure that you never make mistakes that will cost you the sale!

Jessica Swanson is an entrepreneur, marketer and life coach. She has mentored hundreds of others on how to achieve great results. For more information, visit www.jessicaswanson.com.