The Sales Mindset You Need To Adopt For Success

There are different schools of thought on what makes a good sales mindset. However, our experience has taught us that a genuine interest in your prospects and customers will usually get you far.

The Management Shift by Vlatka Hlupic has some great insights into what makes a salesperson succeed. In the book, she lays out five levels in the Emergent Leadership Model:

• Level 1: Lifeless
• Level 2: Reluctant
• Level 3: Controlled
• Level 4: Enthusiastic
• Level 5: Limitless

A vital indicator of the success of salespeople is their purpose. Those in the lower levels of the Emergent Leadership Model sell out of desperation as a means to an end and simply because it's their job. Salespeople at levels four and five, on the other hand, sell to provide value to their clients.

The difference lies in their drive for selling. Good salespeople are not ruthless: they are meticulous about who they sell to and why.

If you adopt a value mindset and sell to meet the needs of your prospects (rather than to meet your sales goals), your results will be limitless.

In this article, we run you through the features that make up a good sales mindset. Adopt some of these to make better connections with your prospects and consequently see your sales improve.

The sales mindset you need to adopt for success

Change your goal from selling to helping

If sales goals are your top priority, you need to rethink your sales mindset. It's easy to fall into the habit of purely aiming for sales, but it will not get you the best results.

Instead, your aim should be to help your prospects. The most successful salespeople have a genuine desire to help.  This requires focusing on your prospects' challenges and asking them questions. Take an interest in who they are as people and decide whether your product or service will genuinely benefit them or not.

When a prospect has objections to your offer, aim to resolve their concerns rather than jumping straight in with a counter-offer.

Helping your prospects will lead to a mutually beneficial relationship. A prospect is more likely to be open to your products or services if you understand and empathise with them.

Focus on the value you can bring to your customers

Value is key to a good sales mindset! You mustn't be just selling for the sake of making sales. Good sales should benefit both you and your customers.

Consider how your product or service will benefit your prospect and use that as your focus.

Doing this should be clear whether or not a prospect will genuinely benefit from what you have to offer. If you don't think a prospect will find value in your products or services, you should be able to recognise when to leave them alone and move on to the next.

Be patient

Whilst it can be tempting to rush your prospects to buy (and sometimes it is necessary to encourage them to move along the buyer's journey); generally, you should avoid it. Putting pressure on a prospect is likely to damage the relationship and prevent them from trusting you.

To nurture positive relationships, you need to respect your prospects and their decision-making processes.

Make a connection with your prospects

Good sales require good relationships.

It will help if you put the focus on building a relationship rather than making a sale. For example, take a genuine interest in your prospect and try to help solve their problems. Avoid causing any tension. Position yourself as someone they can trust.

Not only can a good relationship result in an initial sale, but the prospect is also more likely to become a lifelong customer.

Remember that no two prospects are the same.

Don't take emotions from previous interactions into conversations with new prospects. This will only lead to disappointment.

Consider each prospect a fresh start and get to know their situation. You need to be able to assess the situation for what it is and react accordingly.

Use positive language

Every time you talk to someone, they are subconsciously influenced by the exact words you use. Be conscious of your comments and try to use positive language where you can, rather than negative.

They might seem pretty similar, but you can see how people may react differently to each phrase when you break it down. For example, 'you're welcome' is an excellent alternative to 'no problem'. The use of 'no' and 'problem' gives the phrase a negative spin, which you don't want when trying to build a strong foundation with a prospect.

Ultimately, a good sales mindset involves a genuine desire to connect with your prospects and solve their problems. Gone are the days of pushing sales on prospects that don't need your products or services.

When paired with a streamlined sales process, a good sales mindset will get you far. We can help you bridge your sales and marketing efforts to ensure that every lead is accounted for. Get in touch to find out how.

Are you struggling to get your salespeople to use your CRM system? Download our guide: 5 Reasons Why Your Sales People Won't Use A CRM.