6 Good Habits of Successful Salespeople

BY Jessica Helinski
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Good habits make good salespeople. Unlike the average salesperson, successful reps have established routines and behaviors to ensure they go above and beyond their goals. By modeling your own habits after these reps, you’re likely to boost your success with everything you do, from customer service to hitting quota.

Good habits of effective reps

So, what are these habits you should strive to adopt? HubSpot’s Aja Frost shares 26 “selling habits, tips, and life habits” that can help you break away from “average.” Below are a few highlights:

  • Identify and stick to buyer personas
  • Use a measurable, repeatable process
  • Review your pipeline
  • Practice active listening
  • Follow up effectively
  • Personalize

Identify and stick to buyer personas

A buyer persona is a profile, backed by research, of a target customer. It’s a snapshot to use as a comparison when qualifying leads to ensure you are pursuing appropriate ones. It also helps you craft the effective sales strategies that align with your target customers’ preferences. It is vital that you not only identify a buyer persona, but also stick with it. “A clearly defined buyer persona is crucial to an effective sales process,” Frost explains. “And a sales rep who sticks to that persona is effective in generating sales. Otherwise, a salesperson might fall back on spray-​and-​pray tactics that result in inefficient prospecting.” Good habits, like this one, prevent you from wasting your efforts.

Use a measurable, repeatable process

As much as you may want to believe intuition guides the best reps, it’s actually good processes that make a difference. Salespeople who rely on tried-​and-​true sales processes are hyper-​aware of what is going on, from who is in their pipeline to what the next sales call should accomplish. “Low-​performing reps rarely analyze results because they haven’t been tracking them,” Frost writes. “High-​performing reps obsessively review key metrics and adjust as necessary.” Get started with this good habit by tracking, measuring and crafting an effective process and then, follow it!

Review your pipeline

Always look over your pipeline with an objective eye. Yes, it’s exciting to have a packed pipeline but in this case, quality trumps quanity. Make sure that you are a pipeline expert, understanding everything from a pipeline’s stages to performing periodic check-​ups. Good habits regarding your pipeline will help separate you from the rest. “Effective sales reps don’t mark a deal as likely to close because the [prospect] likes them,” Frost points out. “They’re able to objectively review opportunities, avoid happy ears, and come up with accurate sales forecasts.”

Practice active listening

Multiple past Media Sales Today posts have extolled the value of active listening when selling. This soft skill is important to understand, and helps you connect with buyers. You must be fully present and engaged each time a prospect speaks, and the more you can show you’re engaged, the better. Note that this is not the easiest habit to adopt.

As Frost points out, “it’s human nature to care more about what you have to say than your prospect. However, it’s incredibly valuable. Not only will you build stronger relationships, but you’ll unlock information that’ll help position your product as the best option.” Follow professionals’ advice to hone these skills and put them into practice; your relationships, and sales, will benefit.

Follow up effectively

Most salespeople understand that good habits include following up after a proposal. But, crafting a follow up isn’t always done. Not only should you always follow up (to at least ensure your communication was received), but you also need to know when and how to best do so. Educate yourself on this topic with past Media Sales Today posts to get started building this good habit.

Personalize

The most successful reps take their communications seriously, allotting time and being thoughtful to personalize each and every one. Today’s buyers don’t tolerate mass mailings or generic messages; they want their vendors to give them customized attention.

Instead of following a script and approaching each prospect with a ‘one-​size-​fits-​all’ mentality, high-​performing salespeople are committed to learning as much as they can about a prospect to tailor their message,” Frost explains. “These sales reps understand the unique pain points their prospect is facing and can explain why their product is a good fit.”

Life habits

Good habits don’t just involve work; successful reps have lifestyle habits that allow them to be well-​rounded, balanced and the best they can be. To read these tips from Frost, check back on Media Sales Today for Wednesday’s post.


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