It's not the hours we put in, but what we put into the hours...

In the August 25/September 1, 2008 Business Week, Jim Collins (Good to Great author) article Good to Great Expectations – Jim Collins on getting to the next level referring to CEOs states: “There are only 24 hours in a day, so what difference does it really make if you work 10 hours or 14, given that there are a thousand potential hours of work”.

Nothing could be more-true for sales people. Who has more potential work to do than a sales person?

Did you know that the most competitive companies only close about 15 PERCENT of the deals in their sales pipeline? That means that salespeople, (like you), spend time with prospects who, 85 percent of the time, AREN’T GOING TO BUY!

Unless I am throwing the ball for my chocolate Lab Winnie, I hate wasting time (actually I feel that this is anything but wasting time – but you get the idea).

There is a better way. Figure out what not to do. Put prospects that don’t belong on your forecast on you “Do not do list”. Figuring out what not to do is more important than figuring out what to do. From experience I personally know that following this approach will help you land 90 percent of the business you pursue.

Also, think about your answers to these questions:

1. Why are you successful?
2. How do you know when you are going to win?
3. Are you objectively analyzing your sales strategy to make sure your actions are as focused as possible??

Finally, here are links to two great blogs from Sales 2.0, one old and one new, that address the topic of this blog:

"Choose your Hot Prospects Carefully"

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"Are You Losing Them at Hello?" by Jill Konrath