Original Article By Matt Hallett

Mindset is everything when it comes to sales success. Our thoughts influence our beliefs. Beliefs influence our actions. Our actions impact our sales results.
To help your sales team develop the right mindset, here are some principles on sales excellence…

1. To Open the Door to Opportunity…Don’t Sell Products. Sell the Problems You Solve.

It’s not about the product. It’s all about the pain that your product can solve. Connect with your prospects by sharing stories about how you helped similar companies overcome their challenges, issues, and business problems.

2. What Sets the Best Salespeople Apart Is Not What They Sell…But Rather the Value They Create Through Delivering Insight.

Top salespeople offer unique perspectives and educate their prospects on key business issues. They challenge their prospects’ assumptions. They create value by sharing ideas on how their prospects can increase revenue, reduce costs, or mitigate risk.

3. It’s Not About Waiting for the Right Sales Opportunities to Show Up. It’s About Managing Your Sales Opportunities Right.
The best salespeople don’t wait around hoping the right opportunity shows up. Instead, they maximize every opportunity in the pipeline. This involves identifying all the players, understanding each one’s role in the buying process, and engaging each one in a collaborative discussion to identify their goals, challenges, and key success factors.

4. The Success of Your Sales Presentation is Not Based on the Knowledge You Convey…But on How Well You Align Your Solution with the Customer’s Business Outcomes.
Too much knowledge is a curse. When salespeople know too much about their offering, they show up and throw up. The desire to demonstrate expertise ends up killing the chances of making the sale. Top salespeople know that a successful presentation is based on their ability to link their solutions back to the customer’s key priorities.

5. A Good Salesperson Knows How to Present…A Great Salesperson Knows How to Tell a Story.
Facts and data are forgotten…while stories engage, inspire, and stir the soul. Top salespeople tell memorable stories which help them build deep connections with prospects and customers.

6. Don’t Bring Price Up into the Sales Discussion Without First Building Up Enough Value.
Value is perceived…and perception is reality. To increase the perception of value, it is essential to have a solid understanding of the prospect’s needs. By aligning the solution with your prospect’s specific needs, the prospect will see more value and be much more likely to accept your price.

7. Price is Only an Issue in the Absence of Value.
Value is the gap between what your prospects can do for themselves and what you can do for them. The larger that gap, the more willing the prospect will be to accept your price.

8. Skilled Negotiators Never Concede Anything Without Asking for Something in Return.
One of the fundamental principles of negotiating is to never give something away without getting something back in return. In social psychology this is known as the principle of reciprocity. “You scratch my back…I’ll scratch yours.”

9. Success in Sales is Dependent on the Attitude of the Salesperson…Not the Attitude of the Prospect.
Attitude is everything. By having the right attitude, you can achieve more than you ever thought possible. Regardless of the hand you get dealt, you have a choice over your attitude. You can choose to be optimistic and motivated, or you can choose to have an attitude of self-defeat and disappointment. The choice is yours.

10. If You Are Not Taking Care of Your Customers, Your Competition Will.
Customer satisfaction is critical. In our hyper-competitive marketplace, you must ensure your customer’s experience exceeds their expectations. If not, then your competition will.