Opportunity isn't knocking.

I see it happen nearly every month, and it just doesn't make sense to me. Inevitably, when the last day of the sales month arrives there are a few sales reps and/or managers short of their goal. It's the result of one or a combination of several factors. Not enough activity, failure to qualify the customer's needs, not talking directly to the decision maker, missing key product features/benefits, and so on.

Here comes the part that I think could be improved upon. Most reps short of quota still have one, maybe two, opportunities left in their funnel.... The opportunities that won't answer their phone or return email messages. Out of ideas, the sales rep decides it's best to camp out in the customer lobby hoping to catch the decision maker and close the business. Sure there is a 1 in 20 chance that the business could close. The down side is the rep is wasting yet anther day not preparing for tomorrow, next week or next month. Additionally any type of credibility the rep has attempted to build as a consultant is gone and replaced by the dreaded used car sales mentality.

Here are a few ideas. Take some time to review how you ended up in this situation. Go to your manager with these ideas. 1) You let yourself and your team down, but.... 2) Here's what went wrong (see above reasons) 3) Have a plan for what you will do differently, starting today. 4) Schedule follow up meetings with your manager to check your improvement.

Ultimately, if you still want to stop by the customer's office that day go in with a plan. Start off by trying a Reverse Look Up on the building. Call the other clients to schedule additional appointments. Second, review the opportunity. Why would they buy from you? What benefits - solutions does your product provide? Should the chance arrive to speak with someone have something better to say than "Have you made a decision yet?"

Good luck and happy selling.