Most CEOs don 't know secrets of salesmanship

In a recent survey conducted by a big benefits management company (a management and human resource consulting firm), they asked 365 CEOs and sales management executives, "What are the three key factors that separate high performing sales professionals from moderate to low performing sales professionals?"

Both CEOs and C-level sales executives (all people who don't sell, but rely on their salespeople to produce sales so that they can get paid), ranked "self discipline/motivation" as the most important.

Next in line were, "customer knowledge," "innate talent/personality," and "product knowledge," and further down the list were "experience" and "teamwork skills."

Totally bogus.

These are qualities of corporate greed, not value, service or help -- the three things that customers require to give you their business and maintain loyalty.

MAJOR DUH : When "survey" companies ask questions of people, why don't they ask the people who are actually doing the work?

I'm a writer, but I'm also a salesman. I make sales and sales calls every day. If you're interested in the most important factors of a high performing salesperson, let me give you a realistic list of success characteristics.

1. Perpetual, consistent, positive attitude and enthusiasm. This is the first rule of facing the customer, facing the obstacles, facing the competition, facing the economy, and facing yourself.

2. Quadruple self-belief. Unwavering belief in your company; unwavering belief in your product; and unwavering belief in yourself are the first three rules. But fourth is the most critical of the self-beliefs. You must believe that the customer is better off having purchased from you.

3. Use of creativity. Creativity to present ideas in favor of the customer, and creativity to differentiate you from the competition.

4. Ability to give and prove value. To prove the value of your product or service, and your ability to give value beyond the sale to the prospect so you can earn the order, the reorder, and the loyalty.

5. Ability to promote and position. Personal use of the Internet to blog, ezine, utilize social media, and achieve Google top ranking, so your customers and prospects will perceive you as a value provider and a leader in your field.

6. Exciting, compelling presentation skills. Not just solid communication skills but superior questioning skills, listening skills, and a sense of humor. The innate ability to engage and capture the imagination (and the wallet) of customers and prospects.

7. Ability to prove your value and claims through the testimony of others. Testimonials sell where salespeople can't. The best salespeople use video testimonials to support, affirm and prove their claims. But the reality is, you don't get testimonials, you earn them. Same with referrals.

NOTE WELL : If you're looking for proof that you are "top-performing," testimonials and referrals are a report card.

8. Ability to create an atmosphere where people want to buy (because they hate being sold). This is done by engaging and asking; not presenting and telling.

9. Ability to build a relationship, not hunt or farm. I wonder if the executives talking about the factors of great salespeople are the same morons dividing their salespeople into "hunters" and "farmers." Please help me.

These are the same head-in-the-sand executives that can't open their laptops, and forbid Facebook, individual Web sites and blogs for their people.

ADVICE : If this is the situation where you now work, find your way to the competition.

10. Unyielding personal values and ethics. Great people have great values and great ethics. Interesting that 365 CEOs and executives don't deem them in the top 10.

10.5. The personal desire to excel and be their best. This is a desired quality of every salesperson, BUT the best salespeople have mastered the other 10 elements. And the key is all 10 must be mastered in order for this quality to manifest itself.

There is no prize in sales for second place. It's win or nothing. The masters know this, and strive for -- fight for -- that slight edge.

And as for the next poll taken, here's a great idea for CEOs and sales executives. There's an easy way to find out the most important factors and qualities of great salespeople: Make some sales calls yourself.

And if you really want to have some fun, bring your marketing people along.

If you want one more quality of great salespeople, go to www.gitomer.com, and enter the word MASTER in the GitBit Box.

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible and The Little Red Book of Selling. He can be reached at (704) 333-1112 or e-mail to salesman@gitomer.com.