If you asked anyone in any given profession, “What’s your plan to succeed?” and the answer came back, “I’m just going to wing it,” what chance would you give him/her to be in that job 6 months from now?
Exactly.
Most people who sell print/signage/promo do not have a process. They wing it. I put the number at 90%.
And I think I’m being kind.
The worst offenders are the people who have other hats to wear, including sales. They are typically selling owners, but not exclusively. And if they have no one else to compare themselves to, their “process” probably looks like this:
- Wait for inquiries
- Respond quickly
- Send quotes
- Hope for the order
That’s not a sales system. That’s a reaction system.
A complete system includes:
- Consistent lead generation
- Structured outreach
- Defined follow-up
- Ongoing account development
But you can have all components in place and still it will be incomplete without one of two additional pieces.
The first is discipline. It takes drive to get and keep it going.
According to a fact I just made up because it proves my point but is likely true, 99.9% of us lack the discipline required. That leads to the second missing piece: accountability.
To grow sales, you need a process.
To run the process, you need discipline.
If you lack discipline, find accountability.
