6 Ideas That Will Make You a Sales Superhero
What’s the last superhero movie you watched?
Recently, Huda took his team to watch Wonder Woman to have a good time and bond. While watching the movie, Huda started thinking about the connection between superheroes and salespeople.
“As salespeople, we’re kind of like superheroes. We’re out there fighting for the company,” exclaims Huda, Regional Head of sales at Banglalink.
Great Salespeople = Superheroes
It would be cool to have a superhero with superhuman sales skills, wouldn’t it?
Anyway, the two really do have a lot in common. Just consider what both do.
As Huda says, “Every operation needs good salespeople — they bring in customers. Companies depend on sales to sustain themselves.”
Compare that to the definition of a superhero in the Cambridge dictionary:
“A character in stories or movies who has special powers, such as the ability to fly, that are used for fighting evil or helping people.”
The world needs both salespeople and superheroes. No wonder Jeb Blount, a global leader in sales, actually writes that “salespeople are the new superheroes.”
With all that said, let’s hear some tips on how you can be a sales superhero:
1. Stay cool
Being a superhero can be frustrating. When the Hulk gets mad, look out!
Part of being a good salesperson means having the right mindset. If you ask Huda for advice, he’ll highlight certain qualities a salesperson should possess.
“You must have patience. You have to be honest. You must communicate well. Customers must understand you’re there to help them. You also should have analytical skills,” notes Huda.
2. Have the right weaponry
By weaponry, we mean tools (unless you’re actually a superhero at night). Anyway, in the sales game, you have to stay up-to-date. Otherwise, you’ll need a time machine — and it still may be too late. “Voice used to be the main part of our business at Banglalink. But the trend is clearly towards data — and there are lots of opportunities here. We’re focusing on mobile technology, because this is where we can offer the greatest benefits to our customers,” attests Huda.
Embrace the latest technology if you want to be a sales champion. If you need any convincing, just look at the weaponry superheroes have. Wonder Woman has the Lasso of Truth, an invisible plane, and magic bracelets (she needs them to be at her best).
3. Create your own Justice League
Even superheroes need a team. Consisting of the world’s greatest superheroes, the Justice League tackles threats that are too massive for one single hero to handle.
“We’re all about building the right sales team at Banglalink. We make sure we’re getting the best people through the interview process,” states Huda.
That interview process first involves a group discussion and exercise. After that, a presentation is given. Then, there is a role-play session. If a candidate gets through those, there is a final structured interview.
“This allows us to examine leadership, teamwork, communication, presentation, and analytical skills. We get to see everything about a candidate, and we take input from many different people to determine who’s right,” explains Huda.
You have to be a pretty awesome superhero to join the Justice League. If you want to be a sales superhero, surround yourself with pretty awesome people. That’s what Huda advises.
“Batman is better with Robin. Team bonding is very important to company success. I’m always organizing events, like going to a resort or out for dinner. This helps us work as a team better. If we make it a team game, we can be more productive.”
4. Learn teleportation
Wouldn’t it be cool to be able to teleport like some superheroes? You’d never miss out on a business opportunity.
Though it’s technically not possible to teleport, you can do something like it with new collaboration tools and social media.
“We use WhatsApp, Viber, Facebook Workplace, and SMS to stay consistently connected with each other. We also use social media to interact with customers, as we must go where they are,” says Huda.
Huda believes this new wave of collaboration and sales tools is changing the sales game. For instance, 70% of sales reps are using social media to build and nurture relationships and 56% are using collaboration tools.
So, if you want to be a sales superhero, use such tools. You’ll learn to teleport, and you’ll always be there when the customer needs you.
5. Go to battle
Do you know what Wonder Woman’s mission is?
According to film producer Charles Roven, it’s to “bring peace and love back into humanity’s heart.”
Wonder Woman is willing to risk it all to achieve this mission, too. There’s a lesson for anyone in this story.
“As a salesperson, it taught me the importance of working hard on the side of your customers. Our goal is to enrich their lives,” states Huda.
As a way to reach out to people and offer more services to people, Huda has organized numerous campaigns, such as street marketing activities and university campus events. To understand the needs of his customers, Huda and his team also engage in tireless research — both in the office looking at numbers and out in the market interacting with customers.
6. Have more control than Wolverine
That doesn’t sound hard to do, right? What’s interesting is that there are actually a lot of superheroes that don’t have it all together, like Deadpool and Wolverine.
“My main career advice is to be disciplined. Establish a good educational foundation. To be successful in sales you must need to communicate well with your customers. Questioning and listening skills also plays a vital role here.
You need to be well-versed with your product and that of the competition as well. Relationships do still matter and trust is everything.”
Final words
Huda has shown you what it takes to be sales superhero. The only question left is: What’s going to be your superhero name?
