Are You Ready to Win? How to Prepare for the Big Game

In football, the big game happens once a year. But when you’re in sales, you might find yourself preparing for the “big game” on a monthly, weekly, or even daily basis. Not only does closing the deal feel as good as taking home the championship trophy, it can take the same amount of preparation, training, and execution as a professional football player would for a game.

Are you ready to win? Let’s take a look in the preparation and execution that your professional playbook calls for:

Game Plan

Every championship-caliber coach or salesperson will tell you that you can’t achieve success without preparation. In sales, that prep comes in the form of research about your prospect, their industry, the competition, and what’s at stake before you pick up the phone and start talking. Knowing background information on who you will be speaking with will help give you the insight necessary to start and build a strong relationship.

Any professional coach will tell you that knowing how your weaknesses line up with your competition’s strength is key to winning each matchup. Identifying how to convey your strengths and advantages to the prospect is a crucial part of the sales process. You’ll cross the goal line when your prospect understands that they can’t succeed without your product/service. It may take a team of people and multiple interactions to strengthen that relationship, but when you come up with a plan and execute it well, you’ll be able to close the deal.

Game Day

It may sound like a no brainer, but you need to show up ready to play the game. Regardless of how many games a player has played before, you need to focus on this game. Past wins don’t matter. Don’t phone it in! If you’re in sales, this means being on time for calls, delivering on what you promised, and if necessary, ask for a face-to-face meeting with the prospect.

When football players step out onto the field, they are surrounded by distractions. Screaming fans, flashing cameras, microphones, the halftime show, reporters and commentators… you name it. But the only way those players get a win is by tuning out the distractions and focusing on the end goal. Don’t let the distractions get in your way of closing the deal. Focus on your product/service and don’t allow the competition to get in your head.

Keeping your eye on the prize is a crucial part of the championship win. Never allowing anything from getting in between you and your goal will propel you towards victory. In the end it all will come down to executing your game plan, being ready for surprises, and strong teamwork. All of this will lead to you closing the deal.

In the end, winning a championship or closing the deal isn’t going to be easy, but it will be rewarding. Stay strong, stay focused, and don’t forget to enjoy the game.

Do you have a specific part of your sales strategy that helps you win the “big game”?

Article by Ryan Mitchell, Social Media Coordinator at Billtrust