One of the most recurring ghosts in sales activity is the uncertainty that often hangs over the results for the month or the period. Most of the time it is directly related to irregular sales in the equipment, that is, that some of its components failed to close the businesses they expected. But why weren't those businesses that "seemed" possible closed?
The causes can be varied, but the most recurrent and proven, is related to overconfidence and low activity.
Having confidence and security is positive, because it helps us make decisions, take risks and gives us the energy and strength to take us decisively to action. And of course it is positive, because we are not afraid to face a challenge. However, overconfidence leads us to close ourselves to other alternatives or simply to "wait" for the "good" result of the decision made., without listening to the feedback that we may be receiving and that is alerting us of the risk not calculated. We see this frequently in cases of sellers who maintain good sales averages, who suddenly trust their closing skills and wait until the last minute for final action. Or those who drop the "promises" of some prospects that "they will make a positive decision" and that "they will call them back." What a mistake!
The other factor is low activity, which in one way or another is related to trust. As there is "promise" or "confidence" in personal skills, activities that should be habitual and constant, such as prospecting, calls, making appointments, interviews and negotiations, are left for the last days of the period, when they realize that the time really is not going to reach and that many of the "promises" were diluted.
Can we prevent these two factors and overconfidence from our sellers?
Yes. It is possible that most commercial managers use the word “control” here to define what a salesperson should and / or should not do to achieve the expected results, and then move on to almost mechanical control. However, I prefer to use the term "support", "support" and simply "help" the seller who is sinning overconfident and / or is not developing the minimum activity you will need to have the results desired by him /she. People in general, and even more sellers, tend to react negatively to the expression "control", which they associate with "supervision", "inspection" or "inspection" and some more extreme with "intrusion". So I prefer to use support, support, help.
And how can we do it?
Through Leadership and Coaching. Trust in the Leader allows access to the objectives and strategies that seller is defining and also with the observation of the activities that he is developing. Through a coaching methodology, this Leader can guide (support, direct) this salesperson on the best way to execute their work. Needless to say, this leadership and coaching activity is permanent.
Self-confidence is positive, but excess in it can lead us to a path of complacency.
A hug. Freddy Hayvard.
