NYC customer service training

Sales Training: How to Have More Time for Sales and Prospecting in NYC NY


While presenting a sales training in New York City, one of the reps asked a simple question, “what's the easiest way for me to increase sales?” One of the top closers, half-joking, said, “get out and see more prospects”. “Hey, that's easy for you to say since you have two assistants” was the reply back. It was a playful, interactive banter during the workshop that opened up some fun Q&A on time management and being more efficient. The reality is, if you see more prospects, you sell more. That means you need to have more time for the actual task of selling.

With all the paperwork, meetings, and other functions of your your job, it may seem impossible, but there are ways to alter your routine in order to get more time to sell, as well as be more efficient with your time.

What are Three Easy Ways to Increase Selling Time and Efficiency:

  • 1. Stop for a moment and think of ways to save time during all of your usual tasks
  • 2. Know what not to do in terms of managing your efficiency
  • 3. Take the time you need to organize and plan.

Step 1: If you actually stop and observe all the “got a minutes” and inefficiencies in your day, you can easily pick up an hour or more. Are you jumping from one task to the other? Are you starting and stopping, which means time is always being wasted in the restart process rather than staying in flow? Are you staring at prospecting opportunities rather than acting on them? There are numerous time management and efficiency tricks to learn, but the bottom line is it all starts with you just observing where the time sucks are and choosing to do something about them.

Step 2: Some tasks are more valuable than others. If your a busy person with responsibility, the reality is everything won't get done all the time. You need to know what is essential. If you are in sales, then that usually means selling. Know what is preventing you from prospecting and selling, and find a way to minimize the things that keep you from those two activities. You may need to minimize email, or long lunches, or paperwork. Often an assistant can help with those “important” tasks that are a time suck in terms of sales. If you can't have an assistant, you may need to do them during non-prime selling hours if you are serious about being a top performer.

Step 3: Start each day knowing the three things most likely to increase your sales. What are the top six activities that will help you reach your goals? Write each of those things down and make that your priority. When other things start to jump ahead of those items, fight to stay on the point with the tasks that will help you reach your goals. The combination of being organized, and this simple little plan will have you selling more and doing what is necessary to have the opportunity to close more often.

Once you have mapped each of the above, you can now work on a daily schedule. Pick a time in the day, every day, to sit down and plan it all out, such as just before bed or first thing in the morning. Make sure you can commit to this time. From there, there are a number of steps you must take.

1. Write down your main objectives for the day
This includes mandatory meetings and commitments as well at the top priority items mentioned above.

2. Decide on how many prospects and/or which prospects to call or visit
The specific number gives you a target. Having that goal allows you to measure your success and clearly gauge your effectiveness.

3. Remember that calling prospects is often more efficient than traveling to the prospect
Visits can be highly personal but if they are not scheduled and accompanied by a specific agenda, a call will often accomplish the goal while being more time-efficient. You can reach more people by phone than in person. A call is both time-efficient as well as personal. A text or email may be time-efficient, but lacks personality and connection, so calling is a nice balance between in-person visits and just using technology.

4. Disregard irrelevant or unnecessary calls
Sometimes saying "no" or being unavailable is needed to stay on point. That doesn't mean you should not return calls or ignore client requests. It does mean protect the blocks of time you reserved for prospecting and making sales calls. If you reserve two hour blocks of time for those business building tasks each client is still attended to promptly. For example, if you reserve 10:00 AM to Noon for making calls and a client calls at 10:05, even in the most extreme example the client only needs to wait 1 hour, 55 minutes for the call back. The new business funnel is being filled and current clients still get a fast reply.

5. Make yourself a schedule for the calls that day
Keep some flexibility in case someone is busy, or if someone takes a bit longer than expected. In other words, build in buffer time. In an 8-hour day only schedule 6 or 7 hours so you have room for the unexpected things that come up. If there are no interruptions, you exceed your plan and get ahead of schedule. If you plan for the speed bumps you continually have the time for your priority items that move the sales needle forward.

Once you have your schedule, get started, and get started early. You'll be able to achieve so much more with just an extra hour or so in your day. If you're walking anywhere, pick up the pace. Not only will you get places faster, but it will put you in a better, more confident state mentally.

When it's time for a break, take a brief lunch. Take your time eating, but don't waste too much time. Keep up the calls as much as you can after that, and power through the rest of the day. Don't end too early if you can help it. You'd be surprised at how many more prospects you can call with a little more time at the end of the day. If you are allowed by your business, make calls at night – this works especially well for prospects in different time zones.

Sales Training: How a Sales Team Increased Call Volume by 15% in NYC NY

During one of the Mastermind sessions of a sales training in NYC, the sales team figured out how they could all increase call volume by 15%. Each rep was supposed to make approximately 40 calls per day (20 in the morning and 20 in the afternoon) which totaled 200 calls per week. Before they settled in at their desk in the morning, grabbed coffee, and so forth, each rep made two calls (which they pre-planned the night before). Just before heading to lunch, they made two more extra calls (often with coat on and signaling to a co-worker they just needed a second). Then at the end of the day, when they were packed up and ready to leave they would make two more dials. This led to an extra six calls per day and 30 extra per week. The team made the commitment to this tiny bit of extra effort, and call volume rose to 230 calls per week or an effortless 15% increase. Additionally, no one minded the extra couple of minutes when they suddenly “got lucky” and got to speak to a hard to reach prospect. And a number of those prospects purchased. The increase in commissions as well as in personal satisfaction was motivation for the entire sales team.

These practices aren't new for any salesperson but they are often what makes the difference between someone being a top producer and an average producer. Learning sales skills is important. Having natural ability is always an asset. Putting in the extra time and effort as well as finding ways to get more out on the same 24 hours we all have to work with is where everyone, regardless of ability can gain the extra edge.

Mark Anthony presents sales training and customer service workshops. For more tips or information on training and one-on-one coaching, contact him at 888-973-5569.

  • Role playing activities emphasize the information and tailor every customer service method to suit your representatives individual personality and style.
  • Personal customer service training consultations match the training to results that calm challenging customers fast and meet customer needs.
  • Limited class size to ensure individual attention.
  • Applicable customer service methods for the New York marketplace.
NYC customer service workshops