The Secret to Becoming a Highly Paid Salesman
Great, you just got hired as a salesman for the top Certified Replacement Contractor in your area. You’re excited and eager to learn this new trade and ready to start the training program. As you talk with the Sales Manager you find out that your training is only going to last a day or two. Then it dawns on you that the Sales Manager expects you to know more about the sales position than what you do… and he wants you to get out selling within a couple of days.
You see the Sales Manager doesn’t have a lot of time to spend with you, the new guy, because he is spending most of his time helping the other salespeople on his team. On the second day on the job he takes you out and shows you how to measure a project, take pictures, how calculate the estimate, and then put together a proposal. Once you’ve all this done he sends you off to give your very first sales presentation…Good Luck!
Now that might be an extreme case, but you also might be one of those salespeople who have gone to work for a busy replacement contractor and been in that situation and you really don’t know what is expected of you.
In this article, I want to take a look at the expectations for a salesperson going to work for a Certified Contractor. Yes, I know you are expected to make sales, but let’s take a closer look at what else is expected and what things you can do to improve your chances of making this a long-time profession.
Expectations of a Certified Contractor Sales Professional
As a salesperson working for a replacement contractor most likely you will be working in residential sales, and you will be reporting to either the Sales Manager or the Business Owner. You will work with other sales personnel and set appointments with homeowners.
The important thing to remember about sales in the Home Remodeling industry you will be going into the homes of potential customers. That means your attitude and appearance are very important in making that first impression.
To be successful you need to develop and maintain a positive mental attitude, recognizing that if you have a poor attitude there is a very good chance that the prospective customer will see it and your sales performance will suffer.
You are a professional and that means you must look like a professional.
The most successful salespeople, that work for certified contractors, maintain a healthy lifestyle, dress for success, have polished communication skills, and are very good at Time Management.
Let’s face it if you show up late for a sales appointment looking like you were working on one of your job sites, you smell bad and you drove up in a beat-up pickup truck, with out-of-state license plates, your chances of making that sale are slim.
As a professional salesperson, you are responsible for learning as much as you can about your company, the company’s sales process, the products you are selling, and your industry. That may mean that you may have to look for extended learning opportunities outside of your company.
If you want to have a decided advantage over your competitors then you need to know how to apply new technical information and product knowledge as changes take place in your industry.
You must have the personal discipline to continually work on self-improvement through reading books, watching videos, listening to audio recordings, and attending seminars and training as much as you can. Remember high-income earning salespeople are always sharpening the saw.
Leads and the Successful Sales Professional
If you want to be successful in selling home improvement products then it’s very important that you understand your responsibility when it comes to leads and lead management. Contrary to what a lot of salespeople believe, your company is not responsible to provide you with 100% of your leads.
Now if the company can that is great, but understand, the top salespeople always generate their own leads. They don’t have to rely on someone else for their success and they won’t blame someone (not getting enough leads) for their failures.
So let’s recap what is expected if you want to be a high-income producing sales professional for a certified contractor.
- Positive Mental Attitude
- Dress for Success
- Work on improving your communication skills
- Drive a vehicle that runs well, has room to carry your sales supplies, and has magnetic company signs.
- Make Time Management a priority – Don’t be late for appointments
- Never stop training – always study your craft and your industry
Continually work on Self-Improvement and developing yourself
The expectations discussed in this article are what I would call common sense expectations, but to be truly successful, in any type of sales, you must expect more out of yourself than anyone else expects from you!
