Ruth Klein - The Everything Guide To Being A Sales Rep: Winning Secrets to a Successful - and Profitable - Career!

Dear Reader,

I grew up in a family of shoe dogs, as my dad is fond of saying. Both my mom and dad sold shoes at a family-style store for most of my childhood. I remember going there after school and watching my parents talk, smile, and laugh with their customers. Even though they worked hard and were tired at the end of the day, their job seemed fun to me. I dont ever remember my parents saying they didnt want to get up to go to work.

True to my family, I was always selling something. In grammar school I sold salted peanut s for Blue Birds. In high school I sold holiday fruitcakes for the orchestra so we could go on out-of-town recital trips. As an adult I sold all manner of tickets for fundraising events.

Today, I am still in sales, but in addition to fundraising tickets I also sell my clients products and services in terms of marketing and PR. Above and beyond all else, I know that successful selling is really about selling yourself first and your products or services second. It is about developing and maintaining relationships and reaching your goals by living your values. It can be a fun, fulfilling, and pur poseful lifestyle-and it is worth pursuing.

I hope this book shows you something of what I have learned from a lifetime in sales and improves your bottom line. But most of all, I hope this book gives you a sense of enjoyment in your sales career. Youre in a remarkable business.

Publishing Director: Gary M. Krebs

Associate Managing Editor: Laura M. Daly

Associate Copy Chief: Brett Palana-Shanahan

Acquisitions Editor: Lisa Laing

Development Editor: Rachel Engelson

Associate Production Editor: Casey Ebert

Director of Manufacturing: Susan Beale

Associate Director of Production: Michelle Roy Kelly

Cover Design: Paul Beatrice, Erick DaCosta, Matt LeBlanc

Layout and Graphics: Colleen Cunningham, Sorae Lee, Jennifer Oliveira, Brewster Brownville

THE

EVERYTHING

GUIDE TO BEING A

SALES REP

Winning secrets to a successful-and
profitable-career!

Ruth Klein

I dedicate this book to all the entrepreneurial-spirited men and women
that make up the sales engine of our world economy. Heres to you,
your professionalism, and positive spirit!

Copyright 2006, F+W Publications, Inc.
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced
in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions
are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

An Everything Series Book.
Everything and everything.com are registered trademarks of F+W Publications, Inc.

Published by Adams Media, an F+W Publications Company
57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322 U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com

ISBN 10: 1-59337-657-X
ISBN 13: 978-1-59337-657-4
Printed in the United States of America.

J I H G F E D C B A

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Klein, Ruth.
The everything guide to being a sales rep / Ruth Klein.
p. cm. (Everything Series)
ISBN-10: 1-59337-657-X
ISBN-13: 978-1-59337-657-4
1. Selling. I. Title.

HF5438.25.K585 2006
658.85dc22
2006019734

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

This book is available at quantity discounts for bulk purchases. For information, please call 1-800-872-5627.

Visit the entire Everything series at www.everything.com

There are so many wonderful sales professionals whom I admire and who have taught me so much over the years, whether in person, via video, or through conferences.

First, thanks to my agent, June Clark, who inspired me to do this project; Dan McNeill, who made my words organized and spirited; Alan Klein, who was more excited than I was when he first learned about the book; Yossie Ziff, who brought in food during tight deadlines; Jerry Weiner, who is the consummate salesperson; and my beautiful children, Naomi Klein, David Klein, and Daniel Klein, who anxiously awaited the completion of this book.

I also want to thank all my mentors whom I know personally as well as those whom I only know through books, interviews, or conferences.

Thanks to my clients for sharing a little bit of their lives, spirit, and successes. None of this would be possible without the support of and interchanges with my clients.

This book is truly for all the sales professionals who take their craft seriously and conduct themselves with integrity and purpose.

To all of you: Thank you and may your successes continue multifold.

Top Ten Things Every Sales Rep Should Know

1. Your primary specialty is solving problems.
2. Follow consumer and lifestyle trends to help you understand your prospects, and customers deeper needs.
3. Develop a team of people or businesses that can fill in for you in case of emergency.
4. Invest in your education, appearance, and helpful technology.
5. Use a month-at-a-glance calendar to plan your schedule.
6. Keep your desk clear to maintain a clear head.
7. Identify at what point in the selling process you hear no so that you can practice turning these nos to yeses.
8. Excellent customer service is the admissions ticket to the two best types of advertising: word-of-mouth and word-of-Internet.
9. Use visualization daily to practice your sales skills and reach your goals faster.
10. Planning and organization are directly tied to your profits.

How would you like to wake up every morning ready and willing to go to work? In fact, what if your work was more like play? What if you enjoyed your workday so much that you did not view it as work at all? What if you arose every day knowing that you were going to solve peoples problems and build relationships while doing so?

All of these options are available to you nowin a sales career.

A career in sales is fascinating. Perhaps its because the sales process, buying habits, customer service, and consumer trends all feed into a passion for understanding the intricacies of human behavior. Sales involves trust and basic relationships between people, as well as a grasp of what consumers need and want, and its endlessly absorbing. Youre always learning new things.

Sales is also ancient. It began with the trading of goods among prehistoric tribes in Africa, and well never know where the first markets were or who first felt the call of sales. But full-time sales professionals were uncommon before the Industrial Revolution. Most merchants ran small shops and both made and sold their wares. However, with the rise of large companies and the specialization they enabled, sales became a serious profession. Indeed, the world could not be what it is today without sales professionals fueling the growth of the myriad products and services all around us.