Sales Superhero

Let’s get real. The world continues to wallow in an economic malaise where unemployment is high and consumers and businesses keep their pocket books mostly closed. It is a tough time to be a sales professional. This is the brutal reality.

The global economy is unforgivingly complex. The most brilliant economists, central bankers, and politicians all have opinions and are working their tails off to come up with solutions to get us out this economic quagmire. There is a great deal of disagreement on what to do. If you doubt me just turn on your favorite cable news channel and watch for five minutes.

Even so, as an entrepreneur my economics are fairly simple. Here is how I see things as a business owner: When more people buy our services, we make more money. When we are making money we feel good about tomorrow so we hire more people, spend more on marketing and advertising, and give our employees raises. That puts more money back into the economy and other businesses grow and add employees – and the cycle continues – thus creating a vibrant economy.

In my simplistic, though realistic world, we simply have to get consumers and businesses to start buying more products and services. When that happens the economy will start moving in the right direction.

This means that the real key to economic recovery is to get salespeople selling more to more people. In other words, any economic recovery is going to be led by salespeople.

Consider this: (and while doing so think about your own household, employer, or business) Most people and businesses over the past seven years have cut huge amounts of fat from their budgets.

Household budgets have been slashed and most families are living a much more austere lifestyle than they were before the economy hit the wall in 2008.

Businesses too have undergone massive cost cutting. Any expense considered non-essential to the company’s survival has been axed. Even essential expenses have been slashed though negotiation with vendors and lowered consumption. There have been massive layoffs as organizations have cut headcount to the bone. Businesses and their employees are working in a much leaner environment than they were ten years ago.

However, the once place savvy businesses are investing, is in their sales organizations. They are spending money on sales hiring, sales onboarding, sales training, sales tools, and technology to support sales teams. The reason is simple: corporate executives and business owners are keenly aware that they cannot cut their way into prosperity. Long-term growth and profits will only be achieved by driving sales.

This is why salespeople are the new superheroes. You are the front line of the global economy and people all over the world are counting on you. Through your efforts you will save millions of jobs, you will keep your employers financially viable, and you will lead us to a new era of growth and abundance.

As you head out to hit the phones and pound the streets; as you encounter reduced budgets, scared buyers, and unscrupulous competitors; as you overcome objections and persistently attempt to close sales in the face of unrelenting rejection, I want you to stop for a moment and look at yourself in the mirror. See yourself for who you really are, a superhero who, one sale at a time is saving economy and the world.

So go put on your cape, lift your shoulders up, stick your chin out, and be proud, we are all counting on you.

Jeb Blount advises many of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer experience, strategic account management, sales, and developing high-performing sales teams. He speaks to and delivers training to high-performing sales teams across the globe.  He was recently listed among the world’s 50 Most Influential Sales and Marketing Leaders and named one of the World’s Top 30 Social Selling Influencers. Jeb is the author of six books including People Buy You. Contact Jeb at jeb@salesgravy.com, call 1-888-360-2249 or visit http://www.salesgravy.com