An Easy Trick to Hit Your Sales Goals

Posted on Wednesday, August 26, 2020 07:38 AM

The impact of COVID-19 has hit the sales efforts of many hard.

Every successful salesperson likes to keep score. And there’s nothing quite as deflating as a scorecard that shows you’re not winning.

It doesn’t have to be that way, though. Here’s an easy trick on how you can keep score to make sure your sales goals hit the mark 100% of the time.

AN UNEXPECTED METHOD: EASY AS 1-2-3

Instead of focusing on one area, broaden your viewpoint.

This score-keeping method is based on keeping the score for three different sales targets: Must, Should, and Could. Set your expectations for these sales targets by answering these three questions prior to each sales call:

• What must happen for this part of the sales process to be considered a success?
• What should happen if I do what must be done?
• What could happen if I do what must be done?

STEP 1: MUST

The “Must” target is the foundation for your scorecard.

It should represent one single activity that’s completely within your control that must occur for this sales effort to be considered a “win” on the sales scorecard.

An example would be “Call prospect for an appointment.”

If you made an effort to place the call, that activity can get counted on the scorecard. Did you dial the phone and initiate the call? Mark it down as a win in the “Must” column! If your goal is to initiate 25 sales calls today, there’s no reason you shouldn’t have at least 25 tick marks in the “Must” column, which would mean hitting 100% of your goal.

STEP 2: SHOULD

Notice that the “Must” example was not “Set an appointment with prospect.”

That would require the participation of your prospect, and is therefore not completely within your control. However, that is what should happen, so it’s a great candidate to fulfill hitting the “should” target for this activity.

Look at it this way: Setting an appointment won’t happen unless the call is made, so making the call must happen. If the call is made (and the prospect answers the call), an appointment should be set.

Will you hit this “Should” goal 100% of the time? Probably not, so come up with the number that’s realistic for you. But you definitely won’t hit that goal unless you first hit the “Must” target.

STEP 3: COULD

If everything comes together perfectly, what could happen? Set that as your “Could” target.

So you should get the appointment, but don’t stop there!

If a customer was down to their last few brochures and needed more when you happened to call, could they place a printing order right on the spot?

Don’t expect this “Could” target to get hit often, but also expect that it really could happen, so dream a bit here.

THE VALUE OF  “MUST”

Having a “Must” target that’s completely in your control will change the way you approach each sales call.

You’ll find yourself thinking up new, more poignant questions that you “must” ask. You’ll find yourself proactively planning ahead for the best way to ask those questions. Most importantly, you’ll feel your momentum increase when you hit your “Must” target 100% of the time!

THE BIG WIN IS IN “SHOULD”

The target to aim for is the “Should” target.

That’s where your energy should be focused. But, remember that the path to “Should” goes through “Must” first. The momentum you feel when you hit your “Must” target 100% of the time will naturally flow into greater success with your “Should” target, too.

DON’T FORGET WHAT “COULD” HAPPEN!

Every so often everything will line up just right.

The momentum that started with the “Must” target and fed into the “Should” target will sometimes carry on through to the “Could” target! Those “Could” opportunities don’t come along very often, but they sure are fun to celebrate when they do!

Now, go set up some Must-Should-Could targets of your own. Then, get out there and sell more printing!