Benjamin Franklin said: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” The unfortunate part about this quote is how today, people are not succeeding because they just do not take the time to prepare for success. Preparing for success really does not take as long as one thinks it does.
In business, as in life, you have to take a few extra steps to be prepared; Unless of course, being successful is not that important to you.
- Preparing before you make the call. Do you know about the company and the person that you are going to meet? Do you have a clear vision as to what the outcome is going to look like? What it is that you need to find out during the call? Do you have a clear strategy going in? Those are just a few of the things that you need in order to make sure that when you meet with the prospect it is an effective, efficient and productive meeting. Without this preparation, my question to you is: “Why are you meeting?”
- Qualifying preparation. Are you presenting to ALL of the decision makers? There is nothing more frustrating than taking time to make an elaborate presentation only to be told that it has to be brought up with the board, or, the manager, or someone else that was not at the meeting. There are many ways to make sure that ALL the decision makers are at the meeting and if it is impossible for them to be present, there are ways to make whoever you did present to as your white knight. However, this does take preparation.
- Preparing for objections. You know you are going to get them. You even know which ones you are going to get because they keep coming up. However, are you prepared to answer them, or better yet, know a way to make sure that they do not come up? Yes, there is a way to avoid having objections come up. It’s in the preparation.
- Preparing for the close. This seems to be the hardest part for some. It is better known as asking for the order. Which is what we are there to actually do. There are so many closes out there, but the unfortunate part is that most are so outdated that if you did try them on a savvy prospect, which the vast majority have become thanks to technology and the information highway, you would get laughed right out of their office. Preparing for this critical part of any call is of the utmost importance.
- Preparing for the future. This is the most lacking in preparation today. No one seems to know how to prepare for future business. You have gone in, had a great meeting and they came to a conclusion that yes, you will be embarking on a business relationship. Fantastic! Now what? This part takes as much preparation as the part about getting prepared for the call in the first place.
That is just five different areas that require preparation. There are many more. You may choose not to do any of them. However, what are you then preparing for?
To be better prepared, register for The Action Suite where the talking stops and the doing gets done. We develop skills, as well as knowledge and know how to implement immediately into your business in order for you take those extra steps towards the next level towards your own personal success.