Essential Sales Strategies for 2024: A Step-by-Step Guide for Success

Discover the ultimate blueprint for excelling in sales in 2024 with these proven strategies.

If I Were Starting in Sales Now, This Is What I Would Do

1. The first thing I would do would be to make a list of industries that I believe would benefit from what I am selling. I would want 10–15 industries to ensure that I could acquire the opportunities I need.
2. I would research each industry, identifying their headwinds, so I know what kind of challenges they are experiencing now. Then, I would research their tailwinds to ensure I know what opportunities they may have. I would use this research to make certain I can answer the question “Why change?” before I do anything else.
3. I would turn this research into an executive briefing for each industry. This would allow me to create value for the contacts I would pursue. This would also prove that I have done my homework, differentiating me and my sales approach.
4. Then I would make a list of the largest companies in each industry. I would hope to acquire 20 dream clients, large companies that are likely to spend heavily on what I am going to be selling them.
5. Ranking them by size, I would make a list of the largest companies in each industry. I would acknowledge that the decision makers and buyers were not waiting for me to show up on their phone, email, and traditional mail.
6. I would acquire data sources so I could have access to phone numbers and emails. This would speed up my prospecting results. It would also allow me to identify the contacts I need to get a meeting.
7. I would build a prospecting sequence that would cover 13 weeks. I would not touch each contact every week. Instead, I would create a narrative that would cause the client to take notice that I am speaking to their challenges and opportunities in every communication. I would use the phone first, followed by a letter, as it has better odds of being opened and read compared to email.
8. I would acquire assets with high value in my industry. I would do this so that I am known for having a solid perspective on the industry. Publishing my ideas would prove my expertise and ensure that I am known on social media.
9. As part of my prospecting sequence, I would follow my contacts on LinkedIn to learn more about them. When any contact responded to any communication, I would ask them to connect on LinkedIn.
10. By this time, I would be booking meetings with some of the contacts in some of the industries. I would use the executive briefing in the first meeting to ensure that my client found the meeting a good use of their time, leading them to agree to a second meeting, which would include more stakeholders.
11. I would lead the client through their buyer’s journey, making certain that they succeed in making the changes they need to improve their results. As part of leading the client, I would correct the information disparity by providing a conversation that results in the parity that would allow the decision-makers to make a rare decision they must get right on the first attempt.
12. I would continue until I needed to start over again.