"Without hard work and discipline it is difficult to be a top professional"
Jahangir Kahn
Can this same message reign true inside the copier channel? Can this message be applied to a copier sales rep, YES!
There is no free ride to success as some copier sales reps may think otherwise! There is no easy button to press! There is absolutely no easy way to become successful. Without hard work, dedication, an extreme tolerance for frustration and setbacks you can never become a sales champion. If you say you really want it, then you have to be able to back it up by taking action. Far too many copier sales reps seem to lack a basic understanding of what’s really necessary for sales success.
THE ATHLETIC LOCKER ROOM
Ask any professional athlete and they will tell you they had an athletic dream; a dream of making it big. What professional basketball player didn't want to be like Mike?
While every professional basketball player may want the success that a Michael Jordan had, most in upwards of 90%, aren't willing to do pay the dues and do what is necessary to get there. The success strategy in my opinion is quite simple, it's not very glamorous and all in our mind. It’s a four-letter word called WORK!
The top 1% of professional athletes in any sport have a million- dollar success strategy. This is purely nothing more than a willingness to consistently pay their physical dues, bust their ass by pushing themselves outside their comfort zone each and every freaking day! Your sales success strategy as copier sales reps is nothing more than tons of sweat, fatigue, frustration and YES hard work!
SUCCESS IS HARD WORK
Top athlete's, the one percenters consistently push themselves on a daily basis to go the extra mile, run a little harder, sweat a little more, train a little longer, and work in a few more repetitions on their weak points. Can the same be said for the average copier sales rep? What are you willing to work on?
The cream of the crop, the one percent of professional athletes eat being great for breakfast! They are willing to bust their ass and to do whatever it takes. As copier sales reps you have to be willing to do whatever it takes. Forget about what everyone else is doing or not doing and focus on yourself. If you really want to stand out as a copier sales rep then you must stand out with your work ethic. This is what top professional athletes do best.
ARE COPIER SALES REPS PUTTING IN THE HARD WORK?
This may be a bit controversial but so be it. As a copier sales rep, you have to be willing to get off of your comfy couch, get outside of your physical, mental and emotional comfort zones on a daily basis. You have to be willing to push the envelope, to get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Success is simple and difficult at the same time. This is because it’s too hard for most copier sales reps to do what I’m suggesting. I get it every once in a while you'll work your butts off. Now and again you all will get motivated to step the pace up and sweat just a little bit more especially when your sales funnel is weak or you can't flip a current customer lease. However, to do this all day and every day most of you will turn your head and mentally say, "No thank you!"
What do you think separates the best copier sales reps from the rest of the pack? Do they have more sales talent? Not necessarily! Are they more gifted than others? On some occasions, yes. Do they want and smell sales success more than you? Ah Hah! Here lies the key my copier sales rep friends. You see, the very successful sales reps work harder than you on a more consistent basis because they want it more than you do! If you truly want to be a very successful copier sales rep, then your biggest obstacle is the very person you see when you look in the mirror! If you want it badly enough and are willing to go after it on a daily basis, week in and week out, month in and month out then you must commit to and buckle-down by elevating your training and performance to go to the next level.
I know most of you are thinking managing a lease end portfolio and upgrading my clients earlier than they need to is hard work but come on man isn't this just babysitting?
HARD WORK AND PRACTICE AS A COPIER SALES REP
Professional athletes do plenty of hard work, practicing their sport. We need to do the same thing as copier sales reps. The first area of hard work is to self-reflect.
Check out more on self-reflection as you listen to my podcast "Selling from the Heart"
MY CHALLENGE TO COPIER SALES REPS - DO THE HARD WORK!
Create some alone time with a blank piece of paper and reflect on why you do what you do, who you are, and what value you bring to your clients and to your community.
Think of how you are making an impact inside your company, with your clients, with your network and most importantly within the business community.
You must move your mindset from that of a copier sales rep to that of a copier sales professional.
Hard work requires:
- A commitment to yourself
- A commitment to a stronger work ethic
- A commitment to writing a business plan
DO THE HARD WORK - CONSUME CONTENT
To be successful as a copier sales rep and get noticed, I am going to ask you to throw something new into the game called sales - learn and share content!
You must become a broker of ideas and knowledge. You must consume content for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You must make a commitment to yourself to learn.
Copier sales reps must equip themselves with content knowledge
Yes, you must understand your products and solutions but more importantly you must learn about your clients and prospects business problems. Make the commitment to learn your industries content. You must learn where to find it and then how to share it with your clients and prospects to help them do better business.
Educate your clients and prospects around how you can help. You need to understand who you are selling to and how you can add value.
If you want to get a seat at the red hot executive table then you must add value by learning what executives are talking about.
COPIER SALES REPS AND THEIR MENTAL HANG-UP
You all must learn how to overcome the hard work and perseverance handicap that you have developed by being a member of "I have earned my stripes therefore I don't have to do it" society. Get back into the real world and stop the "my **** doesn't stink attitude". In other words pull your head out and start to develop goals, your personal mission and why are you doing what you are doing?
The right time is now! Self-motivate yourself by staying focused on a daily basis on the WHY. Why are you doing all of this in the first place? You as a copier sales rep need to have an emotionally compelling reason to go against the status quo as you watch the other aloof copier sales reps seek instant gratification by trying to cut corners and flip leases early as they have nothing new in their sales funnel.
The secret to success is mental. The secret to success as a copier sales rep is in your hands, not in your mouth. The secret to success will separate you from the wolf pack and your competitors. The secret to success is quite simple to understand yet so difficult to consistently use. Do you have what it takes to take your career to the next level? Can you honestly put your actions where your mouth is? Are you willing to walk the walk?
Are you living a sales lie?
COPIER SALES REPS MUST PUT IN THE HARD WORK-PERIOD!
Why do copier sales reps give up? No hope? No perceived chance for victory or real reward inside their company? Not enough patience to keep on going? No sense of personal fulfillment? Just a plain poor fit? Lack of the right talent or skill set? Poor relationships leading to discouragement? The questions and list can go on...
Copier sales reps you must embrace hard work and develop a strong work ethic. This means you must set aside your ego, fear and your "know it all attitude" thus embracing two things you have going against you - time and patience.
"Success isn't always about greatness. It's about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come."
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
I understand, I get where you all are coming from. I have walked a day in a life of your shoes and still do on a daily basis.
I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social aspects and modern strategies into your current sales process to grow net-new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way!
In 2016, Larry was recognized by ENX Magazine, “The Difference Maker” as someone who is making a difference inside the copier channel. Larry is passionate about helping sales reps succeed in creating their online brand image
You can find more blog posts inside the Social Sales Academy website.
I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my LinkedIn stories. Integrating the use of LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive copier world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire B2B Office Technology Sales Professionals to grow net-new business by helping them tell their story and communicate integrating the use of social. My commitment is to help office technology dealers thrive in a drastically changing marketplace. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Social Sales Academy and on my podcast at Selling from the Heart.
Comments (0)