Selling by the Numbers: Don’t Count On It

Remember the advice from that sales veteran who coached you on your first job?

He advocated selling by the numbers. “The more contacts you make, the more likely you are to get a sale. Just keep on the phone, dialing for dollars. Sooner or later you’re bound to get a bite.” Does activity at all costs work? We say it can…but what a waste of precious value selling time.

Okay, you say, but what about his other advice on getting your name out there? How effective are advertising, attending trade shows, mail campaigns, and the like in producing value-based sales?

Again, we say that there is some value in creating brand recognition but, overall, the productivity of these techniques in reaching your market is poor. Research claims that only 3 to 10% of these activities produce real sales.

Imagine a scenario where you could get a new customer at least 50% of the time. This is the result of mining referrals. This is the only real number you should pay attention to if you want more predictable value selling success.