What Makes A Star Salesman ?

Every night, somewhere in the world, a Sales Manager goes to sleep, dreaming that a super salesman will walk into their life and set sales records for decades to come.

The chances of that happening are slim. Very slim.

What is a Star Salesman ? Is it the one who sells more than any other salesman on the team ? Is it the one who makes the highest gross margin or gross profit ? The one who makes the most dollars per dollar spent to employ him ?

I don’t know. Probably varies from company to company and industry to industry.

What I do know is some of the characteristics that make up a Star Salesman.

• A star salesman is ambitious
• A star can sell under pressure
• His knows his business and his product … inside and out
• He knows the problems a customer faces before he visits them
• He’s organized
• He knows how to get past the gatekeeper
• He’s a tremendous story teller
• He thinks about the customers business, rather than his sales
• He’s a great conversationalist
• He’s able to get the customer to tell him about his ideas
• He plans his sales calls and executes his strategy
• He makes it easier to buy than to deny
• He’s a voracious reader
• He’s a clear speaker, but doesn’t sound canned, corny or crazy
• He thinks well on his feet
• He manages himself well
• He’s a good loser, but hates the taste of losing

There’s 17 traits of a Star Salesman. Feel free to add to the list. I’m not known for having a monopoly of smarts, just for being a practicioner of the Simple Arts.