Selling for\na living in the twenty-first century requires coming to terms with a dizzying\narray of interconnected, hard-to-anticipate changes in the areas of technology,\nmarketplace trends, and client agendas. Falling behind in any one of these\nareas means losing relevance and with it, your competitive edge. Here are three\nsimple things you can to do make sure you stay up-to-date and relevant in the\nworld of your ideal buyer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
STEP ONE: CREATE A SOLID PERSONAL\nDEVELOPMENT PLAN.<\/strong>\nStart with setting goals that will help you expand your own skill set. What new\nskills should you identify as targets for mastery 30, 60, or 90 days from now? What\nis your overall goal for 12 months from now? You will probably want to focus on\ndeveloping your skill base when it comes to leveraging information platforms\nthat you can use more effectively to connect with prospects in your targeted\nindustries. For instance, many salespeople we work with haven\u2019t yet bothered to\ncreate a repeatable process when it comes to using LinkedIn to generate targeted\nreferrals, or created videos that will set themselves and their company apart\nfrom the competition within a specific niche. Rest assured that your\ncompetition is making an effort to sharpen their skills in these areas. That\nmeans you need to, as well!<\/p>\n\n\n\n STEP TWO: IDENTIFY THE RELEVANT CHALLENGES\nFACING KEY INDUSTRIES YOU SERVE.<\/strong> This requires identifying the news sources most likely\nfollowed by your best customers and ideal prospects in a given industry, and\nthen consistently keeping up with those news sources to stay on top of the\nhot-button issues they identify. Again, it\u2019s surprising how few salespeople do\nthis. Find out what your top three customers are reading for industry news, and\nthe sources they check multiple times during the work week. Then \u2013 read what they<\/em>\nread and watch what they <\/em>watch. It should then be easy to incorporate the\n\u201chot-button\u201d issues into your discussions! Also, be particularly curious about\nthe impact of new technologies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For instance,\nif you know there is a shift toward increasing reliance on artificial\nintelligence in a given industry that you serve, your opening questions with\nprospects and referrals can incorporate that: \n“A lot of your counterparts in other companies are taking a step\nback and looking at the impact of AI on their business plan. Is that something\non your radar screen?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n STEP THREE: IDENTIFY APPROPRIATE BEST\nPRACTICES YOU CAN SHARE.<\/strong> A big part of staying relevant in your personal competitive landscape is\nbeing aware of best practices in Industry A that can add value to the lives of\nyour customers, prospects, and referrals in Industry B. You can\u2019t, of course, share\ntrade secrets, proprietary processes, or anything else that might run afoul of\nethical or legal guidelines, or damage an existing relationship. But you can<\/em>\nshare good ideas that aren\u2019t confidential or industry-specific with contacts\nwho are likely to benefit from them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example:\nOne of the recruiting secrets I\u2019ve learned from my work with successful tech companies\nis the tactic of securing multiple<\/em> in-depth, voice-to-voice<\/em> discussions\nwith past employers before finalizing a sales hire. In other words, don\u2019t base a\ncritical decision to hire a salesperson (or anyone else, for that matter) on a\nsingle hastily-written \u201creference\u201d that may not accurately reflect the\ncandidate\u2019s experience, fit with your organizational culture, or skills. This\nis a simple best practice that\u2019s easy to understand, easy to follow, and easy\nto benefit from \u2026 in pretty much any industry, so I make a point of sharing it.\nThis is just one example. There are likely dozens you could come up with from\nyour own world that will be relevant to buyers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The point\nhere is that most of your contacts will have a strong sense of what\u2019s going on\nin their own companies, and a fairly good idea of what\u2019s going on in the news\nheadlines, but they won\u2019t necessarily have a fix on what\u2019s going on in other\ncompanies that could help them to stay ahead of the competition. If you make a\npoint of keeping them in the know about that, they\u2019ll love you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By following\nthese three simple steps, you can keep your skill set up-to-date, stay on top\nof the big issues facing your most important buyers, and instantly add value to\nthose lucky enough to have you in their orbit. In short, you can boost your\nrelevance and your earning power \u2026 and stay a step ahead of the competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n