Five Myths That Are Killing Your Sales

Cold calling doesn’t work. Selling through social channels is the only way. It’s all about digital marketing. More leads means better leads. Automation has replaced person to person contact. Buyers know everything now. Nobody can be sold unless they want to be. People don’t even want to talk to a salesperson anymore. 

And so on and so, as the old shampoo commercial went…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hyxmj1Yf6Dk

There may be some truth to all that but when it comes to sales, the more things change the more they stay the same. However, there is always some newbie out there announcing their “revolutionary theory” which is going to redefine the entire concept of selling. Of course, you gotta buy their book or attend their seminar to learn the secret recipe. Unlike me, they rarely give away any knowledge because if they did, people would realize right away how full of it they are. During my 35 years in the sales game I’ve seen these jokers come and go. Unfortunately, the misinformation they dump on people lasts long after they are forgotten.

Here are 5 sales myths that will bring you down and hold you down until you’re out or until you realize they are complete BS.

1. Cold Calling Is Dead

Anyone who tells you that cold calling will get you nowhere fast should be kicked out of your office fast. The truth is that cold calling is still more effective than cold emailing. Salespeople who use the phone convert 8.21% of the time. On the other hand, salespeople who use email convert on average just .03%. That’s according to a Salesforce.com study but I could have told you the same thing just from observing my operation and reading the stats every day.

2. Buyers Don’t Take Meetings Off Of Cold Calls Or Emails

Whoever says that prospects will never agree to meetings based on a cold call or an email they opened has obviously never seen my salespeoples’ calendars which are always full. According to a study conducted by the TRAIN Group 82% of buyers agreed to meetings with sales professionals who cold-called them. 

3. Sales is a numbers game. More everything leads to more sales.

More leads means more calls which means more visits which means more presentations. If only it were that simple but it’s not. Successful sales result from the quality of the leads not quantity. Seriously, what good comes from spending hours pursuing poor leads? It’s just a waste of time. I’d much rather spend the same amount of time it takes to call 10 unqualified leads pursuing one good lead. Studies show that when leads are researched and developed, not only are deals closed with less effort but customers end up making larger purchases.

4. Customers don’t want to deal with salespeople

In the digital age, there is this belief that customers do most of their purchase research online and that’s the only information they’re interested in. The common mentality is that customers have already decided when they connect with a salesperson. The fact is that yes, more than half the time the decision to buy is made before someone engages with a salesperson but… 

even though buyers spend time online doesn’t mean sales is not involved even at the early and late stages. Buyers still require more specific information relating to their situation and feel better when there is some personal interaction.

5. The Average Buyer Does This/Doesn’t Do That.

Look, folks. There is no “average buyer.” There is no single decision maker who is responsible for the entire purchasing process. Nobody will ever get to speak to the person with the final power of approval on the first phone call. Do you really think that this person is sitting around answering phones? There could be ten or more people, starting with the gatekeeper, between a salesperson and the person with the authority to make a deal. Even if you’re dealing with individual consumers, very few of them live in a void where they make decisions by themselves. That makes it impossible to make predictions based upon the “average buyer” because they don’t exist.

I know how much information about sales is out there. It’s hard to know what to believe and what to ignore. I can tell you that certain principles have held true because while technology may have changed just about every aspect of our lives, in some ways people have stayed the same, including the way they sell and are sold.

-Grant Cardone

If you feel that your sales department is operating with bad information or outdated techniques then contact the Cardone 10X Sales Training team. During a 15-minute complimentary consultation they can review your situation and make a recommendation on how to get your team operating at full capacity.