I love to sell. Yes that’s right I really enjoy the profession of sales even commission only sales.  You see sales is one of the few professions where you determine your pay. Want to earn more money, see more prospects, sell more.  I once heard Norman Seabrook;  presidentof the New York City Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association (COBA) say during a union address that you don’t get what you’re worth you get what you negotiate.  That’s what salespeople do negotiate new business, service existing business and sell more to make more.

However, selling is a learned profession, great salespeople invest years in reading sales training books, taking courses, attending sales training seminars all to master the Art of Selling.  Business owners on the other hand started their companies because they’re experts in their related fields whether it’s food-service, graphics design, or landscaping.  However, the beginning business owner now find themselves having to add the title of sales professional to their resume or do they?

Let’s look at what a salesperson does:  Salespeople locate and qualify prospects.  Prospects are those individuals or companies that have a want, desire, need for your product/service.  Prospects can afford your product/service. and last the prospect can be met with.  Next comes the initial meeting, fact-finding, uncovering what problems the salesperson’s service/product can solve.  There may be some resistance to the salesperson’s solution.  Good salespeople see the resistance as an opportunity to dig deeper and uncovering the real meaning of the resistance and state further how the salesperson’s solution can solve the prospect’s problem.

In the end a sale is made.  Either the salesperson has an order or a signed agreement or the prospect has convinced the salesperson that their solution is not right for them.

With everything that a salesperson does is the small business owner the best equipped person to sell for their company?  In many cases no.  Yes they know their products/services, business owners know their differential advantages but knowing the information and presenting it in a way that generate sales is where the sales professionals excel at.

So here’s a radical ideal, business owners are competent in the knowledge of their business, sales professionals are competent in identifying prospects and negotiating new business, so let the business owner run the business and hire salespeople to sell.  Business owners invest the time in finding  one good sales professional to represent your company, create an attractive compensation plan and marketing materials and watch your sales climb.

You can get started at The National Association of Sales Professionals, A Career in Sales, and the United Professional Sales Association.  Also don’t forget your existing network of clients, friends and associates.