Recollections From My First On-Field Sales Day

The day had come for the eventual showdown.

“You are the Man! You have to do it… who else will?”

I kept telling myself.

I was dressed up for the occasion. Stationary in hand, flyers ready. My pitch felt right – I had been practicing all morning. But, there was also fear. It made my throat was dry and palms sweaty. With eyes darting from left to right my inner self pleaded with muffled screams to escape this scenario. This was the first time I was going to attempt a cold sales call on-field. I was uncertain of myself but my immediate future depended on me to take this step. And I had to make a home run, I could not fail. With a knot down my gullet, I crossed the threshold of the first retail shop. Facing the man across the counter, with almost a stammer, I began.

…

Prior to that day; almost six months ago, my sales team started to fall apart. There was discontent and lack of unity. My company was relatively new and it needed constant organization and restructuring. As the founder, I was needed on all fronts; trying minor fixes and fine tuning here and there, finalizing job descriptions and setting up SOPS in almost all departments. The sales guys were the people on whom I depended the most – to help me build the company which was still in its formative years. Little did I know, a small rebellion was afoot. A month earlier my sales manager told me that he wanted to quit. Most of his reasons revolved around the following: – I was not a good employer. – He desired greater autonomy than he already had. – The margins between negotiations were too thin for him to make his sales targets. To this day, the true reasons for his leaving the firm are unknown to me but with him the rest of the team also left enmasse. I recall vividly his departing words to me;

“I brought in business to this company and these are my clients. I would like to see how they will work with you!”

The immediate concern then, was my fledgling enterprise and it needed me to be a leader – not an impulsive boss reacting with spite, to his former employee’s refusal to give up his procured customers or to the brutal challenge that he made about re-engaging “his clients.” It was clear to me that I would have to lead from the frontlines as well as build a new sales team. And so I, who had never stepped in the actual field, ventured into the unknown. My first order of business was to personally survey all possible markets. I observed how retailers conversed and entertained visitors in their shops. Their mannerisms and conversations were noted. Each time, I would sit in my car at the edge of the market and make my little “spying plans” before exiting for a stroll among the hustle. I believed in getting the feel of the surroundings, to acclimatize myself before I embraced the salesman’s role. It is amusing to recall how the very thought of conducting sales scared me and honestly I wasn’t ready either – I would picture myself delivering a sales pitch and a thousand heads turning in my direction; jeering, judgemental, cruel and unforgiving. But it was just the imposter syndrome weighing down upon me. More than once, I had to clear the doubts from my mind because my confidence was the need of the hour. All excuses had to be discarded. The moment to act had come!

…

“Hi, I’m Taha. I am dealing in goods you would be interested in…”

And just like that I did it! It was magic! Reassuring and immersing. Being in control in the heat of the moment, I could feel every fiber of my being under the pressure of the challenge. My heart pounding furiously in my chest with exhilaration. As smoothly as I had executed my very first pitch, so was the positive reaction I received from my first potential customer. Once done, I went to the next shop and then the next. On that day, I might not have performed well enough for a sales professional, but for me it was a personal triumph. Not only did I overcome my fears of personal selling but I also convinced myself to be consistent at sales and marketing. With that vigor and discipline, I could ensure my company’s survival. I also think I truly evolved as an entrepreneur and embarked on the leader’s journey that I so desperately want to be on. Until that reassuring day, I would insistently question myself;

• Am I prepared for this?
• Do I need to train myself?
• Is it unbecoming of me, a company founder, to personally sell on the field?
• Why am I, so highly educated, planning to work at such a ground level…?
• Was I destined for this?!!

I would sometimes share my doubtful thoughts with my better half only to be reassured that I was made for this and that I would end up getting addicted to it. And hopelessly addicted I got! The drive and excitement of meeting the real person behind the transaction is unexplainable. Every small task completed is a real victory in the entire marketing effort. Like one brick over the other that turns into a mighty wall in its due course. Though now, I oversee the sales effort in unison of my small and vibrant team, I still single out days to personally revisit my earliest patrons. By the end of the evening, I return home with warm feelings of accomplishment. These feelings live with me, all the time. They have changed how I look at marketing and sales. It is an ever evolving way to carry your business forward. Any one who has ever known me can testify that I am an agent for change. I live for constant change. And it was the change in my own attitude and choice of leadership role that saved my little enterprise. So, I have not just welcomed it – I have embraced it. Now, I am sharing my personal experiences and lessons from my successes and many failures. I have collected insights from a thousand sales calls that can shed light on the psychology of the human seller. I have tested many business SOPs and recommended meaningful changes to those who sought my advice – some even found success through it. I share these thoughts and recollections so that it would benefit others and maybe, just maybe, someone would be able to build something better which they could not have, without it. So, to the world I say, I am ready and available. Reach out and let’s conquer together!