The numerous changes we see all around us every day and the roller-coaster economy, has presented us with a few new and interesting challenges. Everything continues to change, and will most certainly keep changing into the future. The markets are no longer the same, peoples buying habits and their demand for products has also changed. This continual and never ending ebb and flow of change and the on-going innovation all around us, is driving the development of new products, services and even ways of doing business.

To Thrive as a Sales Professional, you Can no longer Remain a Creature of Comfort
The greatest challenge facing all sales professionals, operating in these challenging, continually evolving and changing times, is their innate need to return to their self–imposed sales comfort zone, where they keep doing things the same way they always have done in the past. This need to feel comfortable will keep them locked in a world of average and will stop them from noticing any new opportunities, markets or new customers, which may have appeared, due to all the on-going changes in their environment.

There has never been a better time to be involved in sales than, right now. New opportunities are appearing almost daily, for the observant sales professional. This means that if anyone wants to excel as sales professionals, they need to break free from their old way of thinking. They need to develop their suppressed powers of observation and re-learn the art of innovation. These two skills are the only way sales professionals will thrive in the new and ever changing sales landscape.

By developing these new skills, they will be equipped to take advantage of all the great new opportunities, which present themselves every day. They can no longer afford to be creatures of comfort. They must reach out to unknown and untapped, markets and discover new prospects, as this is where the opportunity for huge sales success lies in the ever changing sales landscape. There are so many sales professionals competing for the same piece of the pie today. It is now time to break free from the old way of thinking and to discover all the new pies, which have become available.

You need to Shake Things up a Little
If you have ever committed to weight training program and followed a training routine to the letter. At first you make fantastic progress and you see great improvements and results. After a while, although you go to gym for the same length of time every day, you do the same routine, yet the results seem to plateau and progress slows and even stops altogether. At this point, you need to re-evaluate your weight training routine and shake things up a little.

It is much the same for any sales person who wants to sustain or improve their sales performance. As you know most sales people target prospects, who fall into their comfort zone. People much like themselves, from a similar demographic or psychographic standpoint. This is a very, limiting strategy and is completely unsustainable.

It is necessary for the sales professional, who wants to excel and realise their full sales potential, to step outside of their comfort zone. This will allow them to continue to grow their numbers and succeed on a grand scale. To succeed in these ever changing markets, it is crucial that sales people research and sell beyond their comfort zones.

Stop Avoiding Difficult or Uncomfortable Situations
The only way for sales people to break their sales plateau, is to accept that they must break out of their self-imposed sales comfort zone and do the uncomfortable. They must stop avoiding situations where there is the potential to fail or make mistakes, as this is the greatest limiting factor of all. If you do not put your neck out, do the uncomfortable and try to succeed, you will remain trapped where you are and have zero chance of success. If you commit to stretch yourself daily, tackle the things, which at first may seem challenging and you do the, the odds are stacked in your favour that you will eventually succeed.

As you keep expanding your comfort zone, you will eventually transform something, which was really uncomfortable into something familiar. This opens up all sorts of new doors, which may have remained closed to you, had you not dared to step outside of your sales comfort zone. As a sales professional, it is crucial that you keep an open mind and try to identify new trends and possible new markets for your products or services. The more you are willing to look outside of your comfort zone, the more you will increase the possibility of using these ever changing times to your advantage.

Ok so if I want to break out of my comfort zone and become a sales super star, how do you do it? The first skill needed, is the ability to become a keen observer. Stay alert and continually look for any new trends in your environment, then find ways to turn these into sales opportunities, by innovating and discovering new sales opportunities.

Research, Innovate and be Creative
Once you have identified any new trends, it is time to find creative ways of building mutually beneficial relationships with the right prospects. Gather as much useful information as you can about them, by researching them via Google, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. This information will serve you going forward and help you to build and cement the mutually beneficial relationship; you need to build, with the right people in your target markets.

Build Connection with your Prospect
Once you have researched your prospects and you are clear on their needs, how you can connect with them and you have mapped out a plan for how you intend to build those crucial, mutually beneficial relationships with them. It is time to contact them and start the process of actually building connection with them. This is the time that you use the information you have gleaned about their personal interests and background, to gradually build connection with them, without actually trying to sell them anything to them yet.

After each meeting, record your thoughts and any valuable information, which may help you later, to develop the relationship. I have an electronic sales recording system, where I carefully record this information immediately after each meeting. I then use this information to research the client a little more. Explore actual company results or outstanding achievements, related to their tenure at the company. I record this in my electronic sales recording system, for use at the next meeting with the decision maker.

Show them the Value you and Your Product or Service Offers
Once you have built rapport with your prospects and they have grown to know, like and trust you, it is time to show them the value you, and your product or service offers them. Remember the emotions expressed by the decision maker, while they were talking about the past, present and future. Those emotions will help guide you towards an innovative way of showing the decision maker how your product or service will serve them and their business. As you know logic makes people think, but it is emotion which makes people act. Always focus on the decision makers emotions when developing your sales strategy.

Innovate and Show Value
After the meeting explore all the opportunities you have identified during the meeting where your product or service can support them, by either eliminating some pain or helping them to better achieve any desired outcome. This process requires you to be creative and to innovative. It is crucial to stop thinking like a traditional sales person. Look for innovative ways for supporting them and helping them in the long term. Focus on building a mutually beneficial long term relationships with all your prospects. Forget about trying to make a quick short term sale and focus on how you can utilise your product or service to help them in a meaningful way.

Always look for ways to serve your clients and to add real value to them and their business. The decision maker is going to use their emotions to buy and will only buy from someone they know like and trust and who will add real value to them and their business. Keep this as the focal point, during all interactions with your clients, keep observing, constantly innovate and you will expand your sales horizons beyond what even you though was possible.

Author's Bio: 

Hi my name is Andrew Horton; I am an inspirational Speaker, Master Teacher, Radio and TV Host, Global Traveler and Author. My area of focus is in the field of human behavior, expanded awareness and enlightenment. I travel the planet constantly researching, learning and seeking ways to unlock the mysteries of the human mind. I delve into the inner workings of the universe, always looking for ways to understand my role in making things better and contributing to the improvement of the human experience. Please visit my website to sign up for a daily inspirational message, by following this link Daily Inspirational Message. This is your daily call to action, a reminder to do things better each day. Visit my website at http://www.andrewhorton.co.za