 |
TIME TO ADJUST
by
Joe Bonura, CSP
Are You Out of Balance?
When recently driving on the interstate, l felt
a vibration with my steering wheel. I immediately knew that my
tires were out of balance. The tires required an adjustment or
they would wear out unevenly, and I would be purchasing a new
set of tires earlier than expected. I took the car to the auto
repair shop, and within minutes, the tires were adjusted, and
I was back on the road again.
Set Backs
This fall I had to remember to set my clocks back
one hour. For the first few days, I found myself waking up at
4:00 AM instead of my usual 5:00 AM. Because my body and mind
had to adjust to the new time change, it took about two weeks
before I felt comfortable with the "new normal" time
adjustment.
Decide To Participate
If I had decided not to participate in the time
change, what do you think would have happened? I would have been
one-hour early for every appointment. My whole schedule would
have been out of kilter, and my life would have been out-of-sync
with the rest of the world.
Daily Adjustments
Life is all about adjustments. You adjust to the
weather by wearing or not wearing a coat. You adjust to your favorite
sports team, winning or losing. You adjust to economic conditions
by controlling your expenditures. You improve your golf game by
adjusting your swing. The list of adjustments you make on a daily
basis is endless.
Watch Out
Without thinking, many of your adjustments are automatic.
For instance, when crossing the street, you see an oncoming car
so you either stop or alter your course. If you do not adjust,
you might collide with the oncoming car.
Insanity
In selling, you must also adjust. If one routine
is not working, then you must develop a new one. If a sales approach
is not getting the desired results, you must reevaluate the situation
and adjust your approach. Failure to do so will put your sales
success at risk. As the saying goes, "Doing the same
thing and expecting different results is insanity."
Stop, Look, and Listen
If you are not reaching your sales budget, it is
time to stop, look, and listen. Stop, take a look
at your customer, and listen to what the results
are telling you.
-
It may be time to cull your calling list.
-
Are you repeatedly calling the same people,
and getting nowhere?
-
Eliminate the non-potentials and include more
lucrative opportunities, adding new prospects to your old list.
-
Do you continue to call on the same people because
it is comfortable? Is that productive?
Get a Move On
You can add new prospects by looking at new industries
that require your product or service. Consider a change from retail
and manufacturing to service industries, or vice versa. Would
that work? As an example, I worked with an advertising media outlet
that primarily concentrated on retail stores because that was
the competitions' approach. I convinced them to go after non-traditional
advertisers, resulting in new opportunities and massive new income.
Watch What You Say
What do you say when you make phone appointments?
Are you getting the appointments? If not, what can you adjust
in your phone approach? What can you say to increase the number
of appointments you get? In order to change your top and bottom-line
results, you must constantly adjust to reality, and not continue
what you have always done, expecting a different outcome. Shake
up your world and come out of your comfort zone.
Seek a Friend
Have an accountability partner observe your presentation.
Ask for advice to improve your approach to get better results.
Periodically modifying your presentation will produce new energy
and avoid sounding like a robot on steroids.
You Become What You Think
About
Read something every day to improve your sales skills.
Visit my website and read some of the free
articles on sales, customer service, and marketing. No
new input equals no new output. For thirty to sixty minutes
daily, I read business books and articles with the intention of
learning something new that I can apply to that day. I am always
amazed at how many times something I read in the morning will
help me adjust something I do during the day.
Keep Track to Stay On
Track
For 30 days, keep track of how you spend your sales
time. At the end of the 30-day period, consider how you invested
your time. Note the word "invested." You do not
spend time, you invest it. After reviewing the results
of your 30-day assessment, adjust your routine for increased productivity.
Life is comprised of seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, and
years. How you use those time segments will determine your success
in the future. Small changes can equal big results.
What Are You Waiting For?
So what are you waiting for? Adjust your schedule
today and increase your productivity immediately.
© 2013
|

To see Joe and hear one of his favorite selling tips,
follow this link to a video he created to share with folks who are
interested in making more sales, or finding a job:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9AyPsDMu0I
REPRINT info:
Joe Bonura would be pleased for you to reprint the article text
free of charge (non-exclusively), but asks that you include his
name and contact information:
Joe Bonura
Joe Bonura & Associates, Inc.
Website: www.bonura.com
407 Landis Lakes Court
Louisville, KY 40245
(502) 553-1746 phone
E-mail: joe@bonura.com
About Joe Bonura
His background is unique. Joe owned and operated
a highly successful advertising agency for 18 years. During that
time, he found his advertising campaigns were more effective when
he educated his clients in the areas of sales and service. He
conducted training seminars for his clients as added value. Word
spread that Joe was a quality speaker and more and more people
asked him to speak. The demand became so high that he sold the
agency to three of his associates to start his own speaking and
consulting company, Joe Bonura & Associates, Inc.
Joe is past President of the Kentucky Speakers
Association and a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), a prestigious
designation earned by only 8% of the 3,600 member National Speakers
Association. Joe presently serves on the board of directors of
NSA.
He is author of the audio learning systems "Three-Dimensional
Selling®" and "Turning Customer Satisfaction Into Customer Excitement®."
He is author of the book Throw the Rabbit—The Ultimate
Approach to Three-Dimensional Selling.
Click here TO
ENGAGE JOE BONURA FOR A TRAINING SEMINAR AT YOUR COMPANY
|
|