If I could only give one piece of advice. I’ve mentored a lot of sales professionals through the years and with some, it will be a never ending process. But recently I had a brief encounter with a young sales person who had just started a new job. He was a very sharp guy. Great look, great suit, great shoes. He impressed me the moment we shook hands. We were on an airport shuttle and struck up a conversation. It was only about a 15 minute ride but we exchanged cards and he asked me the following question: “What’s one thing I can do to that would be a game changer in my sales production?”
I shared with him my Golden Arrow. Public Speaking. For free. With a giving mindset.
Go out and find opportunities to speak, Not in a selling way but in an educational way. Groups and associations are always looking for speakers so the opportunities are out there. Create a list of topics that people want to learn more about and that you just happen to know a lot about. (And if you don’t know a lot about something, go learn it!) For me that includes things like: Health Care Reform, Workplace Safety, Employee Productivity, Human resources, Customer Service and others.
The magic of this is that when you speak before a group, and do a great job, you are immediately perceived by the attendees as “an expert”.
So you give an educational and entertaining talk, and then (very important) hang around after the event is over. Inevitably, someone, or even several people, will come over to talk to you about what you do. I’ve actually been surrounded by people after a speaking event exchanging cards and even setting meetings.
But again, the key is to go into this focused on GIVING rather than GETTING. The “giving” mindset is what gives this such power. The less “salesy” you are, the more effective you will be. Its also a tremendous tool for building self confidence and polishing your speaking skills. You win no matter what!
It’s is one of the most powerful networking tools available but it’s up to YOU to make it happen. Your Golden Arrow.
Onward & Upward!
Ben