1. Don’t Stay Stuck in the Recession

You might have noticed that as soon as the economy started to show the first signs of souring, it didn’t take long for the news media to jump on top of the story. You couldn’t turn on the television or pick up a newspaper without hearing about how bad the recession was, how bad it was going to be, and how the earth was generally coming apart at the seams. Of course, news makers aren’t stupid. They know that bad news draws viewers and readers, and so they did their best to make sure you heard just how ugly things could get.

Chances are you probably felt at least a little spooked, and that sentiment came through in your day-to-day selling activities. Now that there is an end in sight, you’ll need to let some of that fear and hesitation go. If you’re convinced that the economy is bad, your clients will be, too. They’ll pick up on your lack of confidence, and you can bet that won’t be good for business. The best thing about a recession is watching it end, so be mentally ready when it does.

2. Keep Your Ears to the Ground

It took several months, hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs, and a major financial meltdown for most people to realize that the recession was actually happening. How quick do you think they’ll be to recognize an economic recovery?One of the best ways to take advantage of a better economy is to be out in front. As soon as your clients have money to spend, you want to be the first person they talk to about investing some of that cash into new products, services, and equipment. But to do so, you’re going to have to keep a close eye on what’s going on around you, because by the time you read about the recovery in newspaper, it’s going to be too late – your customers will already have bought from someone else.

The key, then, is to look for the news behind the news. Don’t wait for a giant headline to announce “Recession Over.” Instead, look for the small news items and quotes like a detective, searching for clues about your industry. Are local businesses hiring? Do you see press releases from firms that have been awarded new contracts? Any of these would be strong clues that things are starting to turn around, at least for some of your clients and prospects.

3. Take Things Slowly

Looking through the first two tips, you might have gotten the impression that the end of a recession means your customers will be willing to buy just as soon as you’re willing to sell. For some of them, things might be that easy. But for most, you’re going to have to work through the recession mindset for a second time.

The best advice is to be sensitive to your customer’s frame of mind. If they seem anxious or hesitant to start buying again, then ease in with some smaller sales to take some of the tension out of the relationship. It might not be as profitable at first, but you can be sure that your clients will appreciate your patience and eventually reward you with higher sales.

4. Be Ready for Competition

Sooner rather than later, companies are going to start hiring fresh salespeople. You might not think you have much to worry about from new salespeople, but you’re wrong. Some of these folks are coming into your industry with family and social connections. Others are retreads from familiar firms who are looking for a fresh start, but have one or two of your clients in their database. And, a few will be recent graduates or career changers who don’t have any experience or contacts at all, but who have the skill and desire to take some of your business away.

In order to fend off all of these competitors, you’re going to have to keep one eye in the rear view mirror. That means being smart about your business. As more money and business start to float around, then by all means do what you can to find new orders. But at the same time, make sure you are keeping in touch with your existing client base. Don’t let them think you’ve gone missing.

5. Reposition The Value of Your Products and Services

There are a lot of companies and salespeople out there who came up with incredibly creative ways to keep new orders coming in while the economy was slow. Some ran “fire sales,” while others turned to special financing and other gimmicks. A brave few even went out on a limb and hit the problem square on, referring to their deals as “recession bargains.” In each case, they recognized that their buyers were concerned about security, and used price as a way to draw people in.

But regardless of whether your department tried such a tactic, or whether it worked, now is the time to take down the banners and advertisements offering rock-bottom prices and get back to what works best in a healthy economy, selling value. Position your products and services so that your customers know they’re getting good value, and they’ll keep coming with bigger orders.

6. Start a Sales Library

Only about one out of every twenty or so salespeople makes any kind of effort to read sales books that will help them earn more money. If you were to survey all salespeople across lots of industries, you might even find it’s less than that. For that reason alone, becoming an active reader – that is, devoting a short time each day to looking over some sales educational material. This will give you a massive advantage over your competitors. Why? Because when it comes time to meet with your clients and prospects, you’ll have the advice of dozens of experts and veterans on your side.

An economic recovery brings new opportunities, but it also means increased competition for sales. Study up for it now by reading a few books and you’ll be prepared for the business when it comes.

7. Get Ready to Run

What would you do if your sales volume tripled next week? Do you have the inventory in place to cover that many orders? What about the staff, or the follow-up systems? The middle of a recession is no time to go crazy spending money, especially if sales have been slow and you don’t know when you’ll be able to recoup those investments. At the same time, you need to keep a close eye on what your prospects and customers are doing. There’s almost nothing worse than having a big sales rush and not being able to meet it. With that in mind, you will need to walk a fine line between saving money and being ready for bigger business. At the very least, you should be sure that you are personally prepared for an increase in the number of customers, phone calls, and orders that could come with a sudden change in the economic picture.

Your office should be stocked, organized, and running efficiently. If you haven’t been seeing very many prospects lately, be sure you have pressed suits, working demos, and whatever else you might need to start closing orders. If you feel like you might not be ready for an upswing, take care of those problems immediately.

Remember, things don’t always happen gradually. Just because things seem slow today doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be so tomorrow. This recession will end, possibly in a few months, and you’ll need to be ready to sell the moment it is.

http://www.carlhenry.com

chenry@carlhenry.com