“Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers.”

— Seth Godin

If you think about it, everything in the world is about sales.

We sell our products or services.

We sell our time and effort.

We even sell our knowledge, our opinions and our advice.

Ultimately, when it comes right down to it, all of us are salespeople, even if we don’t call ourselves professional Sales Development Representatives (SDRs).

For SDRs, especially those working on commission, their skills and habits play a huge role in their success. But what are these skills and habits? What differentiates a brilliant SDR from a mediocre one?

Dive in to this article to learn more!

Habit 1: They learn to prioritise their tasks

In sales, there’s always something that needs to be done. Whether you’re meeting a customer, planning to meet a customer or trying to figure out what to do next after meeting a customer, there’s plenty to keep an SDR busy all day, and then some!

But being busy is not the same as being productive. Successful SDRs understand this difference and focus on being productive, not just on being busy. To this end, they learn to prioritise their tasks. They identify the most important activities, establish the amount of time needed for each and design their schedule to accomplish these activities within that time. They also avoid unnecessary scheduling compromises and learn to say NO to activities or requests that don’t fit in with their goals.

Habit 2: They don’t wait for things to happen; they are PROACTIVE

A salesperson who sits back and waits for opportunities and sales to come to him will never succeed. A proactive salesperson on the other hand can keep his existing customers happy, can foresee changes in the marketplace and can succeed at the ever-important task of prospecting. A successful SDR is one who can foresee his customers’ problems even before the customers themselves. He checks in with them regularly, suggests solutions to their challenges and follows through when he says he will.

Habit 3: They define their goals and do everything they can to stay on track

Exceptional salespeople define their activity goals and assign numbers to them. They then use this data to track their progress and make adjustments where required. Without clear activity goals, you will get caught up in other activities – especially non-revenue generating ones – that don’t give the results you need.

In addition to short-term activity goals, a competent SDR will also work towards his long-term goals. He is always mindful of the way he divides his time and how this can affect his goals in future.

All of this requires being more mindful of his most precious asset: TIME.

Habit 4: They pay attention to details

In the modern business landscape where buyers’ preferences and habits are drastically different from what they were in the past, sales are no longer about simple give-and-take transactions but more about relationship-building. Salespersons need to invest more time and effort into wooing customers and into doing everything they can to keep them on board.

One critical skill that can go a long way towards helping SDRs do this successfully is attention to detail. What is your customer’s name? What is their background? Are you sending them the relevant materials they requested? Are you setting the right context for your sales pitch? A successful SDR does extensive research on their prospect. He understands their pain points and focuses on finding solutions for their challenges. By taking care of the little things and understanding how they contribute to the big picture, he creates a space in his customers’ hearts and minds as someone who cares about them and not just about himself . This is what differentiates the successful SDR from the mediocre one.

Habit 5: They practice their communication skills

If there is any one profession that hugely relies on people-to-people communication, it is sales. A salesperson just cannot afford to be a lone wolf individual contributor who is happiest to work from his cave on top of a mountain.

Sales is all about communication – with customers, with prospects, with managers and even with peers.

And a successful SDR understands that good communication is as much about what you say as how you say it, to whom and when. He also practices developing the necessary skills that can help him become a master communicator:

• He sends clear and concise emails
• He talks comfortably to prospects and customers over the phone
• He puts people at ease when he talks to them in person
• He focuses on being human rather than on being sales-y
• He asks for feedback and accepts criticism with equanimity

Wrap up

Sales is not just about glamour and fat commissions. It is also about understanding human problems, building relationships and finding solutions to those problems. Not every SDR understands this. Unfortunately, these are the ones who struggle to do well.

In addition to the 5 habits discussed above, a successful SDR makes an effort to genuinely empathise with their customers and prospects by asking the right questions and really listening to the answers. He also develops patience and curiosity, and amasses knowledge of his own product/service and company. He sets time aside to practice these habits and to sharpen his sales skills. And most importantly, he doesn’t rest on his laurels but humbly accepts that there is always room for improvement.