FDLIC Corporate Officers blog about current issues in the preneed industry and in funeral service, providing insight, commentary, and news updates.
Five Sales Lessons from the Game of Baseball
Monday, February 1, 2010
You can learn a lot about sales just by looking around and being observant to activities in life. For example, I am a huge baseball fan and I coach little league. I spend a lot of time thinking about baseball strategy and how to play baseball better and how to have a better baseball team. I also spend a lot of time thinking about sales and how we can do a better job of helping families who are interested in preplanning. It stands to reason that if it worked well for Hershey Co. to combine chocolate and peanut butter in order to create a "Reese's Peanut Butter Cup," it might work to combine two of my favorite pastimes as well. So, here are my five sales lessons from the game of baseball.
#1--We Must Be Brilliant on the Basics
You will not win many games in baseball if you cannot field, catch, throw, hit and run. These are the basics of baseball. In every baseball practice I have ever seen, from little league to the big leagues, players pay close attention to the basics. The same is true when it comes to sales. We must never forget the importance of prospecting for new opportunities, relating with the customer, discovering needs of the customer, advocating solutions for the customer and supporting the sale. Not only do we have to remember the basics, we have to intentionally work to get better in these areas by practicing and stretching ourselves to improve. We simply cannot take these basics for granted. We must be brilliant on the basics.
#2--Keep Our Eye on the Ball
In sales, just as in baseball, it is important to keep our eye on the ball. If you can't see the ball, you will never hit the ball and you will never catch the ball. In the game of sales, the ball is the customer. As elementary as it sounds, the customer has to be our primary focus. You will not do yourself or anyone else any favors if you ignore your customers and fail to focus on their needs. We have to continually look to meet and exceed the expectations of the customer. We do that through our ability to listen and to "decode" what the customer is trying to say. Many times our products and services will sell themselves if we will just focus on our customers, find out their needs and wishes, discover any roadblocks, and work with them to find a solution. We must keep our eye on the ball.
#3--Don't Try to Hit It Out of the Park
We are all enamored by the grand slam and the walk-off home run that miraculously wins the big game for the good guys. Sometimes this carries over into sales, and we can try way too hard to get the "big hit." We try to step up and win the game with one swing of the bat. When we are trying to hit it out of the park, we tend to strike out a lot. The lesson here is that sometimes we don't need the big hit to help the team. We just need to get on base. In sales, consistently getting the little "hits" is important. A single to the opposite field can be just what we need to restore our confidence. Getting on base in sales can be as simple as setting an appointment, preparing for the meeting, going to a conference to gain new skills, truly listening to a customer, or receiving a referral from a friend. Getting on base is a good thing in baseball and in sales. Don't try to hit it out of the park.
#4--Defense Wins Championships
There's an old adage in baseball that "defense wins championships." In baseball, a good defense is critical. Generally speaking, the fewer runs allowed by a given team translates to more victories earned. In sales, we have to play defense too. We have to defend ourselves from negative thoughts in order to be successful. We have to defend ourselves from the opponents of complacency, overconfidence, pride, and laziness that distract us from being successful. Many of our counselors find their work fulfilling because they are getting to help people. Keeping a positive, helpful attitude is your first line of defense that sets a great tone for a great day. In baseball and in sales, defense wins championships.
#5--Understand the Integrity of the Game
In baseball the integrity of the game matters. You don't run up the score on an opponent, you don't steal bases with a 10-run lead, you don't intentionally throw at a batter's head, and you never give up on the game until the final out. That's the way the game is played and most everyone understands that. Integrity matters in sales as well. You don't sell customers something they don't need. You don't assume the customer is not interested in what you have to sell. You don't mislead the customer into believing something other than the truth. And you never, ever compromise your integrity for any reason. Treat every customer the same way you would treat your own mother or grandmother, and you'll do well. We must understand the integrity of the game.