How To Double Your Sales in 12 Months

by Ben Lai | Jan 9, 2015

You’ve probably heard it said many times “Sales is a numbers game.” Although it has its limitations, there is a lot of merit to this proverb. Using some basic math, I’d like to prove to you how you can indeed double your sales in as little as 12 months if you are willing to invest your time and energy into it.

Follow the “Double Your Sales Formula”

There are 7 key result areas for salespeople that determine their success. These skills include:

a) Prospecting – setting appointments with only the best prospects

b) Relationship selling – establishing trust and rapport

c) Consultative selling – identifying needs accurately

d) Presenting – making persuasive presentations that link solutions to problems

e) Overcoming objections – uncovering and handling reasons for not buying

f) Closing – confidently asking the prospect to make a buying decision and take action

g) Resales and Referrals – taking such good care of clients that they buy again and again, and refer others

Your sales results will be a factor of all of these skills put together, represented by this formula:

a x b x c x d x e x f x g = current sales

If you improved by just 1% per month in each area, this will result in an 11% improvement over 11 months (assuming you take a one month holiday each year), and effectively double your results:

1.11 x 1.11 x 1.11 x 1.11 x 1.11 x 1.11 x 1.11 = 2.08 x current sales

The most important takeaway from this formula is a universal principle: small and regular improvements over a period of time will amount to monumental success. Make it a goal for yourself to continuously improve each and every key skill area and watch your sales grow!

Double Your Sales by Opening Up All Lanes on the Sales Freeway

You will only achieve up to the level of your weakest skill. To illustrate, let’s imagine for a moment a four-lane freeway to the city with 7 distance milestones. When all four lanes are open, traffic flows freely and optimally. Imagine what would happen if at any milestone along the freeway, the four lanes turn into one. This will create a choke point, and will severely limit the traffic passing through.

Each distance milestone represents the key skills stated above. If you are weak in prospecting, this will limit your total revenue because you will have very few people to build relationships with, make presentations to, and so forth. In this case, it almost wouldn’t matter how good your presentation skills are if you can’t even secure the first appointment. Improving on your weakest areas will open up the lanes for you to achieve sales success.

Double Your Sales by Changing Your Thinking

You will perform only up to the level you believe you can in your mind. This is sometimes referred to as the “mental thermostat.” An air conditioner will cool a house down or heat it up to the temperature you set it at. In a similar fashion, you will always act in ways to bring your level of success up or even down to where your mental thermostat is set. If you were completely contented with earning $80,000 in a year, you will automatically adapt your behaviours so you achieve plus or minus 10% of this amount.

In order to lift your mental thermostat, set yourself achievable goals and decide in advance what you are prepared to sacrifice in order to achieve it. When setting an income goal, continuously think about the benefits that money will bring to you and your family. Once you have decided how much you want to earn, talk to people who have already achieved that level of success and emulate their behaviours. If you follow all these steps, your eventual success will be assured.

Conclusion

The key to doubling your sales is to continuously improve your skills, work on your weaknesses, and change your thinking. Achieving this will increase your commissions and income, securing your and your family’s financial future. This article has only touched the surface of strategies that will lift your sales, but I hope it has inspired you to invest in your most important and leveraged asset, you.

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