Sales Prospecting Perspectives

It's halfway through July! We’ve officially entered the dog days of summer. That means it’s time to start assessing Q3 goals and targets. July is the ideal time for inside sales reps to regain their focus so they can follow up the quarter with great results. But with beautiful summer weather and vacations planned for the not-so-distant future, it can be difficult for an inside sales rep to remain fully focused and motivated. Here are 3 tips inside sales reps can use to stay on task during the peak of summer.

I'm a big teamwork guy. I like when everyone can share credit.

That may seem like an overly obvious statement for most of you out there, but if you asked yourself if you're a team player, what would your answer be? Deep down, do you prefer to collaborate with others or tackle things independently? I don't think there's really a right or wrong answer, but at some point, inevitably, you're most likely going to need to collaborate with a colleague or boss on a portion of your work in order to take it to the next level. 

As I've discovered over the years, the more responsibility I take on, the more I realize that working independently isn't really an option for me. As much as I would like to have direct control over my world, I realize that there are far too many moving parts for me to not have to rely on others for their input and insight. I'm perfectly fine with that, and I came to terms with that reality long ago. Most of us will have to if we have any intention of working in a management capacity or in inside sales. 

About a month ago, I talked about the challenges I've faced when managing conflict and I offered a couple of ways to address these obstacles that I’ve learned over the years. Since then, I've really made a point to consider alternatives to proactively manage conflict.

However, maybe “conflict” doesn’t have to be such a dirty word. It’s all in the tone with which we choose to approach a potentially contentious situation.  Being assertive doesn't have to be ugly if we come at it from the right angle.

Beginning a career in B2B inside sales is a great way to build job experience and fine-tune your professional skills. If you are a recent graduate with a background in sales or marketing and are looking to get your foot in the door of the business world, inside sales may be the career for you.

This coming August, I will have been part of the AG Salesworks team for 10 years. It has been far and away the most time I've spent with any company in my career and also has been far and away the most challenging and enjoyable. 

Sales Prospecting Perspectives is pleased to bring you a post from Patrice Morrison, a Business Development Representative at AG Salesworks. 

I’ve seen inside sales described using many analogies. But my favorite analogy by far is the comparison to the popular series, The Hunger Games. These books and movies focus on a woman who has to fight to the death in order to survive The Hunger Games, a twisted competition in which children ages 12 - 18 are forced to particpate, created by central officials to deter rebellion. Now you may be thinking: “How in the world could you see any similarities between the sales world and the dystopian world described by Suzanne Collins?” Even though they’re not shooting bows and arrows at jabberjays like Katniss Everdeen, inside sales reps actually share many qualities with Hunger Games tributes. Here are four:

Working in a sales-oriented job, inside sales reps have numerous goals to hit on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. But there are other goals to set besides the money-based ones. What personal goals can you set as an inside sales rep? One of the many things I love about AG is that we have various people with whom to discuss how to improve our prospecting skills in order to achieve our targets.

Some folks would describe me as a bit of a hippy in my office. I'm fairly laid back and try to remain as even-keeled as possible. My disposition could have much to do with the amount of times I was hit in the head throughout my younger years... but I guess I have to roll with it. 

I don’t know about everyone else, but I am absolutely addicted to the Winter Olympics. Every night when I am relaxing at home, I get sucked into the speed skating, skiing, and of course curling competitions! After watching the first few nights of events and discussing with coworkers throughout the day, I started to think about how our office has the same qualities that the Olympics in Sochi have. 

As an inside sales manager, I try to use my few minutes of downtime to read articles related to my field.  When I open the “news” section of my LinkedIn, almost all of the recommended articles revolve around professional women.  My news feed is flooded with articles about Sheryl Sandbergs Lean In, work life balance, women who don't want to work for female managers, women who do want to work for female managers, areas where women outperform men,  women being urged to “sit at the table." The list goes on and on.