Top 10 Tips For New Salespeople

If you just started or are about to start your career in sales, congratulations! You're about to embark on an incredible journey of helping other people solve their problems and get paid for it. 

Like most salespeople, you're going to want to earn as much money as you can and maximize every opportunity you have to experience success.

Getting the most out of your sales career means getting the most out of how you start your sales career. Here's my top 10 tips for new salespeople.

Tip #1: Stay away from the low producers. Trust me, nothing in this world will inhibit your chances of becoming successful than hanging around unsuccessful people. Low producers have poor attitudes, make excuses, blame everything on someone else and never take responsibility for their below-average results. As you know, misery loves company - and you should never spend your time with miserable people.

Tip #2: Hang around the top producers. Although this might intimidate you, it's going to be some of the best advice you can take. High achievers, top producers and successful people have developed their skills, have great attitudes, take responsibility and also want to see you win. You've heard that 'success leaves clues', so watch these high producers and learn from them what you can.

Tip #3: Listen to your manager and learn about your product. Obviously, there will a lot to learn about the product or service that you sell. You're going to want to know the ins and outs about your product and how it compares to others like it on the market. Being able to answer customer questions and show off your competitive advantages is going to be important if you plan on earning money as a sales professional.

Tip #4: Don't listen to your manager about how to sell your product. With a few exceptions, most sales managers are just glorified salespeople who performed well for a few months and were promoted to share how they did it. Your manager is likely out of touch with the sales process and unable to effectively teach you the processes within the sales process that makes the difference. Pick up some amazing lessons from Stupar Sales Academy and implement them.

Tip #5: Don't pay attention to your quota. Your monthly or annual sales quota is literally a made up number that has nothing to do with your potential. Instead of chasing after the same results everyone on your team is chasing, why not stretch yourself to see what you can really produce. Doing this might allow you outproduce your entire team like I did at my last sales job (and earn more than everyone else, too).

Tip #6: Know what you're shooting for. You may want to focus less on your income and focus more on being the top producer. You may not care where you end up on the sales board and care more about the amount of money you take home each month. Either way, you're going to want to identify what you want, be specific about it and go after it.

Tip #7: Outproduce everyone. Since you're in sales, it's likely that you're a competitor. Never compare yourself to people that generate average results. Aim for the top and ask yourself what skills you need to develop in order to lock in that top spot. When you outproduce everyone else, you'll put yourself in the best position to earn the most money as well.

Tip #8: Get specific on areas of improvement. No matter what type of results you're getting, you can always do better. Identify areas where you can improve. It could be the number of calls you make, how many appointments you can schedule, how many presentations you do or improving your closing ratio. 

Tip #9: Get off of salary as fast as you can. If you're receiving guaranteed compensation from the company you sell for, you're capping the amount of money that you can earn. Ask your company for a commission-only opportunity or find another company that can offer you that type of role. Working a commission-only compensation plan is the only way for you to truly earn as much money as you would like.

Tip #10: Live below your means. Nothing is worse than having to sell because you have to sell. The point of generating an income in sales is to create a lifestyle that you can enjoy - not just continue living the lifestyle you're used to. This is going to require you to save money, make smart investments and decisions financially. Selling actually gets easier when you want to sell and gets harder when you have to sell.

If you're interested in maxing out your sales career, taking your skills to the next level and joining a community of high achievers, check out Stupar Sales Academy.


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