Today, two people who have 30+ years of sales experience in New York City under their belts, our Business Development Manager, Gary Calder, and founder of Ryze Code, Joe Ryder, share with us a little guidance for those working for a sales manager who’s never sold before.

“JR: Many companies have sales teams that are made up of inexperienced salespeople. And yet, these salespeople are the ones expected to drive revenue for the company. How can this be expected? It sounds a little crazy, right?

GC: In theory, sales is the easiest job in the world. In practice, sales is preposterous. The only way to succeed in sales as a rookie is by learning tips and tricks from your sales manager. There needs to be some sort of guidance and leadership by an experienced individual who is constantly teaching his team and helping them. If there isn’t, it makes the job almost impossible.

JR: This one time when I had failed at getting a client, I had a manager say to me, ‘Well, Joe, didn’t you tell them how great our product is?’ How great your product might be is completely irrelevant if you don’t know how to work with clients.

GC: Knowing how comes from knowledge that your sales manager should be equipped to share with his team. Unfortunately, there are many sales teams that are lead by inexperienced sales managers, who have difficulty attaining their own clients.

JR: If you’re a salesperson and you’re working for a manager without sales experience, here are a few tips to follow:

  1. Landing an account takes at least 10-12 consistent follow-ups. Many people make a meeting, follow up once, call it a day, and then waste time wondering what happened when work never comes through.
  2. Your job starts when you get the commitment from the client. Just because you got the commitment for work doesn’t mean you’ll actually get the business. You need to meet with your new client regularly to make sure the work comes through.
  3.  Keep in constant contact with your client. How can you ensure that your client is happy? Pick up the phone, check in, and follow up, follow up, follow up.”

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