Sales Fall Out From Commission

I received an email late in the day yesterday detailing a possible commission structure. I was not happy at the proposed commission and had to take a few minutes to digest the information. It took a couple of hours, but I reflected and thought about the potential changes. I wrote down the list of the opportunities, what structure would work for me, and also what would not work.
It is hard to let a potential deal go through if it is not a strong enough commission structure, but I am willing to let it happen if I cannot get what I want and need too. The relationship has to work both ways.

Commission Sales

I have a friend how has a business in the holiday services business. He has done a great job of building his business, but has come to a point to realize sales is not his strength. He has sought out help and found no one that is willing to take on a project that has growth opportunity. It got me thinking if I were going to hire someone to handle sales for my company what would I look for? What characteristics make a good sales person? What qualities will help someone in sales succeed?

I will post my responses as well as others in the coming weeks as a common thread in No Excuse Sales.

Making Sales Work

I just watched a video of a sales group. They rang a bell whenever they made a sale, and then proceeded to hit each other's hands. This is a great technique for getting morale up. Make sure you start every day with some motivation.
Don't excuse yourself, make sure you get through your work, make it work. Sell!

Sales Complete

What to do when a client has said yes, has the contract, and just has not signed it. I panic. Maybe that is not the right process, but I indeed panic that the deal is not done. I have waited for three weeks for a client to just sign the documents. I cannot proceed until they are signed. They have said they want to do it, are excited, but have not completed the work. I don't know what to do. I do not want to be overbearing, but I want them to know it is priority. I have sent an email reminder and talked to them on the phone, but wanted to give it a couple days before I moved forward with anything. I guess today my lesson is patience.