The dreaded sales slump. Everyone knows that feeling of watching your numbers dwindle and feeling powerless to change the downward trend. Athletes refer to a slump as a plateau, but whatever you call it, it feels devastating. The stats aren’t particularly encouraging either, with nearly 55% of all sales reps reporting they don’t feel they have the skills to succeed.
However, it’s important to remember that sales slumps are a normal part of business and don’t have to be permanent. As Willie Jolley preaches, “a setback is a setup for a comeback.” So gear up for a comeback.
In this blog post, we’ll explore the causes of poor performance and discuss some tips you can use to get out of one. With the right strategy and dedication, these tips can show you how to get out of a sales slump in no time. Let’s dive in!
What Exactly Do You Mean By Sales Slump?
Just like they sound, sales slumps are dry spells in your business where you’re not making the same number of sales as usual. These can be caused by various factors, from changes in the market to new entrants.
Whatever the reason, with no new leads and an empty pipeline, the company will have trouble generating revenue. That’s why knowing how to get out of a sales slump and back into successful selling is important.
What Causes Sales Slumps?
There are many possible reasons for decreasing sales revenue; we’ll expand on a few for you. Sales slumps could be caused for any of these reasons.
Excessive Expectations
In our post-pandemic economy, everything is in a state of flux, including the goods you offer, the level of competition, prices, trends, etc. What seems ordinary at first glance will not stay that way for long.
With this level of constant change, it can be difficult to set goals and expectations, but they are now more important than ever. Having practical and reasonable expectations is the first step to avoiding a letdown.
A great way to do this is by creating realistic (SMART) goals. For instance, take the normal amount you sell in a month, then increase that amount by an attainable number, say 25%, and shoot for small increases over time.
Attitudinal Issues
An important component of selling is attitude. Whether caused by personal troubles or challenges at work, your attitude will affect your motivation and, ultimately, how well you sell.
Additionally, a poor attitude could make you feel more depressed, anxious, or dissatisfied than is normal. Start with an attitude adjustment if you want to know how to get out of sales slumps.
Confidence Lost
You need to have faith in your education and skills to overcome confidence difficulties. Consider getting further training, reaching out to colleagues, organizing weekly brainstorming meetings, or reading books by experts in your field. There are many ways to boost your self-esteem and belief in your abilities.
Lack Of Product Knowledge & Buyer Understanding
Spend extra time investigating the product if you’re having trouble selling. What your product can accomplish for your prospects may be more significant than the actual product you’re selling.
The root of many slumps is a failure to comprehend your prospect’s motivations and convey credibility while describing how your product is the best solution. Make sure you understand your target market and their pain points by connecting with them regularly.
Techniques Showing You How to Get Out of A Sales Slump
If you’re having trouble selling during a slump, you might feel like you’ve lost your touch and even be fearful of losing your job. Slump periods can be particularly difficult because they often involve lots of negative interactions, disappointment, and rejection.
Here are some tried-and-true strategies to tighten up your sales funnels and get you through this terrible time.
Adjust Your Attention
Even the most seasoned salesman might lose confidence when they experience rejection after rejection. However, sales are all about your mentality, and if you’re approaching potential customers out of desperation, they’ll know it.
You may reset and change your concentration by taking a short break before returning to it. This ability to shut out the background “noise” is key to getting out of a slump. By focusing 100% on your goals, you can achieve this state of focus.
Review Your Numbers For The Past Month
Review stats like your closing rate and your sales out data from last month or last year to get an idea of what kind of progress you’ve made. Compare your sales funnel to the same period in the past to see if you’re improving. You may find that you’ve improved your conversion rate or that you’ve lost customers.
Either way, you’ll know whether you’re moving forward or backward. You must determine your baseline performance before planning how to get out of a sales slump.
Repeat Existing Working Techniques
You should review your sales CRM for any trends or methods that helped you reach past peaks. Now is the time to use them again. It’s time to go back to those strategies after your sales have entered a dip. If they worked for you before, they’ll work for you again.
Review The Un-Closed Leads
Examine the data and figure out why your sales aren’t closing. Narrow your focus to the leads you didn’t close and investigate what went wrong with your process. Develop a plan to address those issues and implement them step-by-step.
Reach Out To Customers
Why not contact a few of those clients when you’re feeling down? To follow up, give them a short phone call or send an email. Of course, the objective is not to try to sell them something but rather to inquire about their situation and see if you can do anything to assist.
Be Consistent
Sales lulls come and go, and the only factor you have any influence over is the daily effort you put out. Make sure you create goals and stick to them so that you are always prepared to clinch a transaction. Be sure your goals are specific and you have a clear plan of action to achieve them.
An example of this is if you begin your month selling zero out of the ten prospects you pitch, and you regularly sell 50% of all clients you contact. This means you must sell 15 out of the next 20 cold leads to recoup your monthly average.
How to Stay Motivated in Sales
The key to overcoming a plateau is motivation. There are many ways to spark motivation, including attending conferences, connecting with a mentor, or taking a micro course. The ability to find motivation is literally only a keystroke away.
Even if you aren’t operating at 100% motivation daily, the key is to fake it ‘til you make it and keep pushing through. Eventually, your brain will catch up with what your body is putting down, and you’ll feel that passion for selling again. All of these ideas are examples of how to stay motivated in sales.
Work On Non-Sales Activities
When you’re experiencing a sales slowdown, focus your efforts on those tasks. This will not only keep your spirits high but concentrating on things you enjoy doing will also give you more self-assurance and give you the drive you need when your sales motivation is down.
The feeling of success you feel in other areas of your job will transfer to a higher belief in your selling abilities, which is often the first step in how to get out of a sales slump.
Prioritize Your Prospects
If you realize that you’re expending too much time and effort into a possibility that is unlikely ever to come true, then it might be time to shift your attention elsewhere. For instance, focus on follow-up calls if you’re having trouble closing cold leads.
You Could Ask For Help
People often feel embarrassed asking others for help in getting out of a slump because they think it shows their lack of confidence. However, if you want to solve an important problem, sometimes all you need to do is listen to another person’s perspective.
Why not set up a team sales training and bring in experts to conduct a workshop? Learning together as a team will increase morale and self-esteem, not to mention the new sales skills they will learn. Sounds like a win-win.
Take A Break
You might want to take some time off to relax and recharge your batteries. Talk to your boss about whether he/she would be willing to support you on this path. You don’t have to take a long break, even a longer lunch hour, or working from home two days a week instead of one could be enough of a break to help you regroup.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are The Best Ways To Save Energy?
Structure your day, so you conserve energy for important tasks. It also helps to schedule your most difficult tasks for the morning when you have the most energy and the sharpest focus.
What’s The Best Way To Keep Your Cold Calls On Track?
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by something, take the task you think you can’t handle, like a cold lead, and set aside 30 minutes for it.
What Causes a Sales Slump?
A slump in business usually occurs when there is a series of disappointing deals. The causes of these failed deals could be due to many issues, such as a lack of product knowledge or a misunderstanding of the customer’s needs.
What’s The Best Way To Close Deals?
To close sales consistently, you must be consistent in how you approach selling. Take the strategies you have succeeded in in the past and apply them to future prospects.
Is It Necessary To Change The Sales Process From Time To Time?
Yes, changing the sales process is essential for getting out of a slump as long as you don’t lose sight of your goal. There are always new techniques and strategies to learn how to serve your customers better while increasing revenue for your organization.
Explore The Best Sales Training Programs At The Brooks Group
Getting out of a sales slump can be difficult, but it is not impossible. By following the tips and techniques outlined in this blog post, you can regain your momentum and get back on track to reaching your sales goals.
If you need help rewriting your team playbook, The Brooks Group can teach you how to get out of a sales slump. We use our customized programs and award-winning virtual sales training to help your reps get maximum results.
With hard work, determination, and The Brooks Group workshops and training programs, you can break through the current slump and start selling again with confidence!
