This Sales Technique Can Help You Hit—and Surpass—Monthly Sales Goals

“Roll” is a musical term that describes the basic picking pattern that follows an eighth-note arpeggio. A basic roll requires a musician to use their thumb, index, and middle fingers in rapid succession. As a banjo player, I found it at first to be difficult, but now that I’ve mastered it, it’s second-nature to me. And, playing the banjo made me develop my sales technique. Here’s how my Banjo Sales Technique can help you hit—and surpass—your monthly sales goals.

Prepare the Right Way

Everyone knows the phrase “practice makes perfect.” Actually though, it should be “perfect practice that makes perfect.” If I learned how to “roll” the wrong way, I could still pluck a few notes on the banjo. However, I wouldn’t have been able to build speed and play more complicated songs. You can’t get to an advanced skill level without mastering the fundamentals.

Proper meeting preparation is one of the fundamentals of sales. It’s essential if you want to hit—and surpass—your monthly sales goals. Sales meeting preparation isn’t just about reviewing your sales deck. You need to research the company. So, don’t just look up the organization’s overview. Research the business’ goals and trajectory.

But, that’s not the only part of meeting preparation. Don’t forget to discover what you can about the meeting participants. What will each person need to know about your product/service based on their area of expertise/title? If you can write down a list of possible objections each person may have, you can address them upfront and/or be ready to objection-handle if necessary.

Also, it’s important to set a clear agenda for the meeting. Make sure you confirm that everyone agrees to the agenda, and if they have anything they want to add before the meeting, they can. This allows everyone to stay focused and avoid anyone wasting time. Inc. claims organizations waste $399 billion in productivity because of meetings, so a disorganized sales meeting doesn’t benefit anyone.

Finally, focus on your mindset. Remember, you want this deal, but you don’t need this deal. If you’re confident—but not pushy—you’ll “roll” through the meeting.

Improvise, Improvise, Improvise

I know I sound like a broken record—pun intended—when I say how valuable improvisation is in sales, but that’s because it truly is. And, just like playing the banjo during a live performance, you have to roll with the punches. (OK, no more puns for the rest of the blog.) At any given moment, you can get unforeseen objections, or even have your deal completely sidelined. In these circumstances, it’s critical you can think fast on your feet, ask the right questions, and provide the answers needed to get everything back on track. There’s a saying, “Time kills deals.” Unfortunately, it’s true. The longer the process takes, the less likely the deal is to close. If you’re selling right, the need and solution fit has already been worked out in your discovery and qualifying process. Then, closing becomes as simple as confirming where to send the invoice and/or who to CC on it.

The Banjo Sales Technique is a sales technique similar to the banjo’s place in this country. The banjo’s a staple of American styles of music like bluegrass, country, folk, and jazz—just like preparation and improvisation are two of the main tools of a salesperson’s toolbox.