Two sales secrets that helped the newbie

Gary Harvey //May 16, 2011//

Two sales secrets that helped the newbie

Gary Harvey //May 16, 2011//

Jay works for a well-known financial institution – one of the troubled firms that has recently been in the news. Jay is no novice to the investment world. However, he has been with the firm for less than two years. Around the office, he is still one of the “new kids on the block.”

So, how is Jay doing in today’s rather turbulent economy?

Better than many of his colleagues who have been with the firm for a considerably longer period of time-two, three, four times as long.

How can that be?

Did he bring a large book of business with him when he joined the firm?

Does he have a large group of influential friends and contacts?

Does he come from a well-to-do family that associates with high net worth people?

Did he inherit a large book of business from another broker who recently retired?

No, no, no and no. So how is it that Jay is continually bringing in new investment assets while his colleagues are struggling to maintain their current accounts?

Jay’s success can be attributed to two things:

1) Not paying attention to the daily stream of bad news;
2) Working every day. Not just going through the motions – but actually working.

Jay’s daily behavior – his work ethic – is not a function of the current economic condition or a headline on the front page of the Wall Street Journal. It’s a function of his aspirations: to bring in a specific amount of investment assets in a given period of time and to be the very best at what he does … period.

Jay works diligently every day regardless of the economic news and the stock market reactions. When the firm was purchased by another institution and his colleagues were sitting at their desks wondering if they would still have a job the following week, Jay was out prospecting for appointments. Good times or bad, Jay’s business development activities remain constant: prospecting for new opportunities by networking, obtaining referrals and doing something relatively unheard of today – making cold calls. That’s right – cold calls via telephone and in person.

To adjust to the existing market conditions, Jay didn’t change his proactive business development behavior. Instead, he changed his focus. He reevaluated the market potential and needs and directed his efforts to a different market segment with different financial instruments.

When asked why he was out prospecting while his colleagues were back in the office waiting (and hoping) for someone to respond to the latest marketing mailing, Jay responded, “There’s business out there. Somebody’s going to get it. It might as well be me.”
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