Introduction What is the most important quality in sales? Different people have different answers. Some say professionalism, some say communication skills, some say affinity, and so on. The author does not deny the importance of these qualities in sales; they are necessary conditions for success but not sufficient conditions. The author believes that the most important quality in sales is persistence. Without persistence, one cannot achieve great success in sales. This persistence is mainly reflected in the following aspects. > >>> 1. Persist in staying in the same industry Although the principles of sales are common across industries, it takes at least three years for a salesperson to fully understand an industry. Frequently changing industries means you have some understanding of each industry but not deep enough. Without depth, you cannot navigate the industry with ease, and you won't achieve good performance. Moreover, sales performance is closely related to your network, relationships, and resources. Often, when you change industries, your previous network, relationships, and resources become unusable, and you have to rebuild them from scratch, which is very detrimental to a salesperson's growth. > >>> 2. Persist in staying with the same company Many salespeople lack stability and frequently change companies. Many salespeople switch companies after three months without results, thinking that a change of environment will bring good performance, and believing that if they communicate well with clients, clients will follow them anywhere. This is a big mistake. First, be patient. If you haven't achieved results in three months, you might get results in the fourth month. The first three months could be a period of accumulation, but precisely at that point, salespeople give up. It's like boiling water: you heat it to 99 degrees and stop, and just one more degree would make it boil, but you stop the fire. Second, clients identify with you, not with you as a person. Think about it: clients meet so many salespeople every day; why should they remember you? Salespeople must remember that clients identify with you because they identify with your company, not with you personally. Most salespeople have this experience: clients with whom you communicated well before become difficult to communicate with after you change companies. Third, persist in staying with one company. As long as you are diligent, even if you don't achieve results in the short term, the boss won't let you go. If you persist, you will get results, and it's easy to gain the boss's favor and get a promotion. Fourth, when you change companies, the new boss will definitely ask about your previous performance. If you say your performance was good, the boss will ask why you left; if your performance was poor, the boss won't dare to hire you. In any case, the boss will test you for a period, and you have to integrate into a new team and new environment, which is a huge challenge for salespeople. > >>> 3. Persist in customer follow-up and maintenance Many salespeople, after initial contact with a customer and after the customer shows interest (maybe three months, six months, or a year later), start active follow-up. Initially, they show some enthusiasm, such as sending text messages, making phone calls, etc., but it doesn't last long. Gradually, the frequency of communication decreases, text messages stop, and phone calls stop. Soon, the customer forgets you. In fact, sales is about persistence. Can you communicate with customers more frequently than your competitors (of course, communication should be moderate)? Can you use more communication methods to make customers have a good impression of you and remember you rather than your competitors? Salespeople should all know the concept of lifecycle. That is, after closing a deal with a customer, our work is not over. We need to provide good service to increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. We also need to pay attention to the customer lifecycle because customers have different needs at different stages. We should study the different needs of customers at different stages, and we should also engage in emotional communication with customers beyond business communication. This emotional communication helps us reduce friction, enhance friendship, and thus improve customer retention and referral rates. > >>> 4. Persist in learning The competitive environment is very fierce. Salespeople can only improve their quality, temperament, and speech by continuous learning, which is very helpful for career growth. Salespeople must embed the concept of "live and learn" in their minds, continuously learning and improving themselves. Of course, there are various ways to learn. (1) After working for a period, you can take a few months to study at a university or attend training courses. Systematic learning is very necessary. Some may say there's no time for dedicated study, but you can use the following methods. (2) Regularly read newspapers and magazines. Reading newspapers allows you to browse a large amount of news information (you can read newspapers but don't spend too much time). Reading magazines allows you to deeply interpret a major event. Some may ask, reading newspapers is slow; I can just go online to get information. But you must know that there is too much information on the internet, with too much distraction. Most of the time is spent choosing information rather than reading it. (3) Develop a reading habit. Reading books is the best learning method, with the least distraction and the best results. Of course, we must be careful when choosing books. The author has found that many salespeople read too much rather than too little. Reading should be systematic, not too scattered, and you should take reading notes. (4) Regularly summarize. Summarizing is also a learning method. Summarize sales experience, daily insights, and life observations in a timely manner. Only through summarizing can you improve and elevate. Sales is a highly challenging profession. Only persistence leads to success! Excerpted from Marketing Frontline (ID: mgsjx8); -END- Content Selection Reply with the following keywords to categorize and read related articles: Sales Supervisor, Second-tier Management, Regional Manager, Distributor Management, New Channels, City Manager, Competition, 2015, Manufacturer-Dealer Game, Product Stagnation, Terminal Visit Management, Route Management, Deep Distribution, Internal Management, Sales Skills, Profit Improvement, Recruitment, Distribution, Daily Management, Team Motivation, Trade Promotion, Sales Misconceptions, New Product Launch, Township Market, New Product Pricing, Sales Target Achievement, Closing, Market Visit Inspection, Baijiu, Beer, Sales Increase, Agency Products, Cross-region Sales, KA, Terminal Merchandising, New Market, Market Operation, Learning, Book Recommendations, Inventory Management, Sales Novice, Consumer Promotion, Execution, Old Products, Expired Product Handling, Model Market, Investment Attraction, New Media, Distributor Development, Performance Appraisal, Assessment, Annual Planning, Shopping Guide, Morning Meeting, Display, Transformation, Pressure Stocking, Holidays, Distributor Cost Control, Channel Operation, Marketing Theory and Laws, Brand Truth, Order Meeting, Team Management, Training, Debriefing, Debriefing Report.