The Importance of Sales: Mastering the Most Powerful Lever in Business
Sales is often underestimated and undervalued by people in business. Many fail to put enough time and effort into mastering sales, and as a result, their businesses suffer. In this article, we will discuss the importance of sales, why it is one of the most powerful levers in business, and how you can improve your sales skills to have a significant impact on your business.
Why is Sales So Powerful?
First and foremost, sales can make marketing more affordable. When you get a lead and turn it into an estimate, if your average estimate is selling for $2,000 per estimate compared to $1,000 per estimate, you have a lot more money to put into marketing. Putting more money into marketing means more business growth overall, and for every dollar spent on marketing, you get more business out of it. This, in turn, drives down your marketing costs. By doubling your sales per estimate by raising your prices a little and improving your sales, you will do twice as much business per estimate. This drives your cost of marketing down, which means you get more profitable and allows you to invest even more in marketing, further increasing the growth of your business.
Another benefit of having good sales skills is that you can hire better people. Charging more money means you can hire better people, and when you hire better people, you don't have to babysit or micromanage them, which means you have even more time to work on marketing, sales, and recruiting more great people. Additionally, better people deliver a better experience to customers, which justifies the higher price you're charging in the first place. Successful companies charge more money, get better people, and deliver a better product, which justifies charging more money. It all begins with getting really good at sales.
Lastly, you can increase your prices, which means you can make more profit margin per job you do. One of the easiest ways to make more money in your business is to charge a little bit more money and get a little bit better at sales. Do the same number of jobs this year with the same exact crew and just make more profit per job. Even if it's just $500 in profit per job, that's still a lot of money in your pocket at the end of the year.
How to Improve Your Sales Skills
There's no secret formula to getting better at sales. The first thing you need to do is get engaged in getting better at sales. No one who's really incredibly good at sales did it completely by themselves. They learned from other people and other experts.
One way to improve your sales skills is to invest in a coach or mentor. They can help you identify areas where you need to improve and provide guidance on how to improve. Additionally, there are numerous resources available online, such as books, videos, and courses that can help you improve your sales skills.
Another way to improve your sales skills is to practice. The more you practice, the better you will get. Role-playing with a friend or colleague is an excellent way to practice your sales skills. It's also essential to track your progress and measure your success. Set specific goals and track your progress toward achieving them.
In conclusion, sales is one of the most powerful levers in business. Without good sales skills, you can't charge enough money, you don't have enough margin, and you can't spend money on marketing or recruit great people. It's a critical separator between really successful companies and mediocre ones. By mastering sales, you can make marketing more affordable, hire better people, and increase your prices, which means you can make more profit margin per job you do. Invest in yourself and get better at sales, and you'll have a significant impact on your business.