Get into the Modern Style of Sales and Trash the Old School Way of Selling

The truth is that most of sales gurus are peddling old fashioned information.nnThey’re only teaching 25 tips, or 10 rules, or a “road map” to sales success. That’s the old school approach. nnThe reality today is that sales success takes more than sales skills. You need proficiency beyond the “Tie-Down Method”, or “Qualifying Your Customer.” You need more than just a networking group meeting and thank-you cards. You must have access to what’s working in today’s market, and you need to use what works in this century. You need the mindset and real world knowledge that are going to make you a superstar. nnSelling is a job that demands a new and improved tool kit. I’m not talking about tricks or slippery systems to get a customer to cave in. These tools are ones that influence you not the customer. These are the tools that make you better. And when you get better, it’s amazing how much better your customers get.nnThat’s what this article is about. It’s about throwing out all the old school rules of sales, or at least being willing to question them. It’s the Contrarian Guide to being a sales superstar. In all fairness, I must give you a disclaimer that not all sales education, techniques or training are bad; some are quite good, and still usable today. nnHowever, many are not. The idea is that everything is up for review. Nothing is sacred just because it’s the way you were taught or the way you have always done it.nnThis will teach you what to do, when to do it, how to do it, and most importantly, why to do it. nnEverything you learn may be explained in a manner that is probably opposite of what you have been taught. As a matter of fact, what I tell you to do may sometimes be the wrong thing to do; but doing the wrong thing is part of success. nnContinually testing, tinkering and improving are all parts of the equation that brings about sales success. To be a sales superstar, you have to be willing to make mistakes more often and fail more often. Your failures are a big part of your sales education. Learn to embrace the bumps in the road, but don’t accept them as permanent.nnThe world of sales is a not a perfect one, and nobody in it has absolute answers. Selling is part science and part art, and it can never be fully mastered. That is exactly why selling is such a fun, exciting and fulfilling profession. nnVery few people reach sales superstar status; that is also why it pays so well. Am I trying to scare you by telling you this? If this scares you, then pick another profession. nnSelling is not for the faint of heart.