We all know that familiar saying, “you need the right tools for the job”, and in the business world, this is no different. We need the right technology, the right equipment and the right manpower to get the job done correctly and efficiently. In a sales environment, we are always striving to hit our numbers, top last month and chase down the competition.
Yet, all too often, the availability of tools for a sales person is overlooked.
But, if these tools will help us to sell smarter, more efficiently and profitably, they are surely worth our time of day?
Josh Saladin is a prime example of this. As Sales Manager for Michigan based Integrity Business Solutions, Josh proves in clear cut black and white sales figures, that having the correct tools and technology is one huge leap towards becoming a better sales person.
Integrity Business Solutions provide everything from office supplies and printing services to janitorial and break room supplies. Josh began with the company back in February 2008 with nothing: zero territories and zero sales. Today, Josh has single-handedly reached a staggering $3 million worth of sales per year and now sells into a customer base of over 400 accounts.
Here at sales-i, we were lucky enough to catch up with Josh last week and learn his keys to success. When we asked Josh how he had been so incredibly successful, he simply answered with: “I see my customers regularly.”
The addition of sales-i to his customer meeting and preparation efforts affords Josh the opportunity to ensure every meeting is a productive one.
“I use sales-i for all my sales calls. My customer base, my accounts, they’re like my own personal business. With sales-i, I can get a clear idea of where my customers stand compared to another date range using the Leakage Report. I can then dig and drill around to find everything I need to stay on top of each of my accounts. I use the Sales vs Gaps report for a quick snapshot of my customers over a monthly period. It can help me to capture any lost business or lost sales before it becomes too late and they move to a competitor for good.
Josh continues, “Anyone can have a relationship with a computer, but it is the face time I have with my customers that builds trust and strengthens my relationships with them. I can now keep an eye on my customers and sales-i helps me to react proactively if I notice a customer may be slipping slightly one month.”
With over 400 customers and $3 million in sales per year, sales-i helps Josh to make every sales call and every meeting personal. But results similar to Josh’s don’t come overnight. Implementing tools and technology into your sales team takes dedication and a commitment from your sales team in order to derive maximum value. Adequate training needs to be delivered, those championing the tool need to share their vision with users and the users themselves have to understand the benefit that these tools can bring to their daily working lives. Helping your team to streamline information, foster stronger customer relationships and keeping them organized will ultimately allow your sales department to become a smooth, slick operation, growing sales and improving the bottom line.
