5 Sales Habits that Will Guarantee You Hit Target this Year

In sales, it's essential that you are able to engage customers and get them to trust in what you're saying to close the deal. Not only does this help you increase revenue, but also encourages repeat custom and long-term loyalty.

To achieve this, you need to make sure you are using your time wisely. Selling has very little to do with natural talent or charisma (though it can help) and much more about the skills you have and methods you use.

These five habits will help you hit your targets and become a much better salesperson:

1. Working to SMART goals

Research has shown that setting specific goals can better motivate sales teams, rather than just simply trying to 'sell more'. These should align with your individual annual sales goals and the overall targets the business has. However, it's also important to ensure that you are setting goals that are realistic. It's good to be ambitious but putting targets in place that are unrealistic will be damaging in the long run.

2. Monitoring your progress

Putting targets in place is just the first step. You need to regularly monitor your progress and identify what you're doing that is helping you to get closer to your monthly, quarterly or annual goals. Looking at factors like number of calls, leads, conversions, follow ups, and revenue can help you better understand what works with customers and what doesn't.

It's worth noting that different tactics may perform better with certain demographics, compared to others. By analyzing your work, you can identify what's working and - more importantly - what isn't. This will help you refine your sales techniques and make them more effective.

3. Dropping the hard sell

Consumers no longer want to be sold something that is pushed onto them, especially among the millennial demographic. This means as a salesperson you need to adjust your thinking. Instead of thinking 'how can I sell this to them', you need to focus on 'what can I do to help them'. Your sales tactics should be more guidance than a hard sell, advising consumers and helping them through the buying cycle.

4. Asking questions

You may think you know the customer well and what they want, but you need to make sure this is the case before you offer them anything. It's important to think about how - and what - you're asking them as anything too personal or irrelevant could be damaging. Asking well-placed questions can also help you identify a dead lead, allowing you to use your time on a customer that has more potential.

5. Being honest

Sales teams have developed a bad reputation for smooth-talking people into deals they don't want or need. You need to distance yourself from this stereotype and ensure you are always being honest with the people you talk to, especially when selling a product to them. This also means you should never promise something that you're not absolutely sure you can deliver. Introducing this as a habit will make you the type of salesperson customers want to deal with in the future.