What I Believe are the 5 Most Difficult Aspects in a Sales Role

Being Confident.

If you lack confidence, you cannot overcome the obstacles you will face in sales. However, as it requires constant work to improve, reflection, and self-motivation, the majority of individuals struggle with self-belief. Only when you put in the effort and dedicate time to developing will you begin to experience real advantages that motivate you to work hard and advance. The snowball effect might be very advantageous to one's career. But if you lack self-assurance, you could experience doubt and second-guessing. Because of this, self-belief is among the trickiest aspects of sales. But, like the others, it may be conquered.

Maintaining Momentum.

You must put in a persistent effort if you want to consistently achieve good success in sales. Otherwise, your performance becomes unpredictable, with excellent months and bad months. Only some personality types are designed to give it their all every day, regardless of what else is going on in our life, making it extremely difficult to maintain the momentum. However, there are ways to keep momentum going, starting with regularity, attending to your personal needs, and allocating time for activities that bring in money, like prospecting, and giving them priority over all other work (apart from closing sales). Since it is difficult but not impossible, ambitious reps must make keeping the momentum a daily goal.

Frequent Follow-Ups.

Sending follow-up calls or emails is one of the most time-consuming and frustrating aspects of sales, but it's also one of the most crucial. Studies show that most discussions need weeks or even months of follow-up, but salespeople typically spend more time looking for new leads than they do following up with existing customers. Constant follow-up is actually the most difficult aspect of sales, tougher than prospecting, rejection, or anything else. But just like anything else in life, it won't seem as difficult if you develop the right habits. To determine how many times, you'll follow up on a lead before giving up, set aside some time. We can only hope that our perseverance will be rewarded.

Replacing our Needs with the Prospect's Requirements.

It sounds easy enough, to put ourselves in the prospect's shoes. But for some reason, when we are on a sales call, we often revert to thinking about what we want instead of being intensely focused on the customers perspective. Although it will be difficult, it is not impossible to make this adjustment. Remind yourself that you are there to help them, not to further your interests, and that making a sale will only happen after you have taken care of the prospect's problem. Throughout each call, keep saying this to yourself. The transition to this new way of thinking will take some time to implement, but once you do, it will come naturally.

Potential Effect on our Mental Health.

Little attention has been paid to the potential negative effects that a career in sales may have on one’s mental health. Given how difficult the work can often be, how strong the demands are, and how heartbreaking rejection can be, it's not surprise that some people say that there is a mental health issue in the sales profession. It so important for organizations to support salespeople. It's an investment in the workforce, and companies that care about the mental health of their sales representatives stand to gain from a more productive sales team. This is a topic that has to be discussed but is frequently skipped in the world of sales.

Potential Solution…. The good Old Nike Slogan. “Just do it”. That is the finest sales-related advice you will ever hear. Instead of focusing on what may go wrong, try focusing on what will go right. Yes, there will be occasions when you don't get the outcome you were hoping for. That is likely to occur rather frequently. However, there's always a risk that the next person you speak with may bite or end up becoming your largest customer. You should pick up the phone, dial leads one by one, follow up, and be positive. Be patient, it takes time. If you feel your nervous, depressed, upset, or overwhelmed, then breath, everything will be ok, it will get better; if you need assistance or advice, ask for it. Just make sure you have fun and enjoy your moments in time.