Sales professionals love winning new clients, accolades, and rewards! Unfortunately, the adoration only appears after lots of faith, toil, and sacrifice. Legendary blues singer, Albert King, captured the sentiment when he sang, “Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, But Nobody Wants to Die.” When sales professionals deliver on their revenue generating promises assorted rewards flourish. But, the work involved with this success is relentlessly demanding, grueling, and challenging. So, how do successful professionals endure their pain to get into sales Heaven?

Prospecting in Niches
Successful sales professionals do not set out to conquer the world, only their specific piece of it. Dominating niches leads to better results than cold calling. The initial step is to identify an individually interesting segment inside the assigned industry where passion drives intimate learning. Identify the point in the industry where intense interest and potential profitability intersect. Upon accepting any role focusing on generating revenue, identify the specific niche and start prospecting it. Sales success is responsible for feeding lots of people, strike targets where superior intelligence and informed execution will yield the largest bounty.

According to Stephen Covey, success results when beginning with the end in mind. Beyond researching and studying the niche to understand that marketplace’s specific challenges and needs, success requires actual execution. Furthermore, execution requires having a plan. And great plans enable successfully launching, performing and concluding the campaign. Methodical steps include allowing for contingencies, yet repeated experiences aggregate knowledge leading toward sustained excellence. Ultimately, acquiring more depth of knowledge in a particular niche leads to more consistent results and consequently more consistent rewards.

Closing Through Contacts
In dominating a niche, relationships precede effective prospecting. Next, prospecting precedes selling. A sales pipeline is an accurate metaphor because to drive optimal value through it, the pipeline must be continuously full. Prospecting is a dynamic activity. It ignites the process that concludes in closing deals. Potential clients must continue entering the sales pipeline, as long as that sales process’ structural integrity remains. As long as leaks are minimized, then the progression of prospects, referrals, and customers continues. The right relationships results in better input, and consequently better output.

Referral partners help identify prospects that fit successful professionals’ defined target niche. Satisfied clients that proudly want to be references realize that their ongoing satisfaction is connected to the sales professionals ongoing success. Great references do not perform this role simply out of their heart’s goodness. Their self-interest is satisfied because their sales professional’s success and ongoing excellence manifests in their consistent performance. Every great vendor is their clients’ essential supplier. Great sales professionals deliver for their customers’ selfish needs. Building more contacts through superior performance makes future sales success a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Conclusion
Upon invading a specific niche, focusing on intelligently identified targets, deploying proven revenue-generating tactics for individual and corporate benefit, and creating a better life for clients drive progressive sales professionals’ success. Successful sales professionals do not have to save the world. Success relies on narrowly focusing on individuals immediately around them and improving individual lives. Intentionally network and prospect inside a defined niche. Do good in the environment where influence and familiarity prevail. Involve current contacts. Expect greater rewards upon evangelizing specific services. Celebrate enduring rewards after delivering excellence to clients.

By Glenn W Hunter
Managing Director of Hunter And Beyond, LLC