Is sales a numbers game?

Grant Leboff: Tony, one of the questions that I think people often ask is, is sales a numbers’ game? What’s your thoughts on that?

Tony Morris: I would say yes and no! Let me explain what I mean. I’ve been playing golf now about a year. When I took golf up a year ago, I bought all of the amazing equipment that Rory plays with, I spent a fortune on that and I was horrific. I played at the range and I was just dreadful. I’d watch the likes of Rory or Tiger, trying to almost copy everything they did, and I was awful. I’d have 100 balls up, probably 10 in the middle and left and right. I kept on practicing and it just got probably worse. After about six months I thought I’m going to invest in myself and get a coach. You know, it was a lot of money but I did and I’m now actually, I wouldn’t say I’m average but I’m getting there. After a year saying an average golfer is pretty good. The reason for that is when I go to the range now, I’m practicing the right thing. So I will now say it’s a numbers game because they say practice makes perfect, well that wasn’t the case a year ago when I was practicing the wrong technique. I would say perfect practice makes perfect.

I think it’s the same with sales. If you’re not trained and you haven’t read any sales books and you just go out there and you pick the phone up and you do what you think is right, then it’s not a numbers game. It’s a bit like me phoning companies saying would you be interested in sales training? Out of 5,000 I might get one that says yeah. I know that’s pure luck. Whereas if I’m trained to deliver the right questions and the right opening gambit, then it becomes a numbers game.

While I do believe there is numbers to it, and as a sales person you must know your conversions. You can break that down from number of calls, number of pitches, number of appointments, but I would only start measuring it once you know you’re actually doing the right thing, then it becomes a numbers game.

Grant Leboff: That’s an interesting take. Would you advocate that all sales people should have a coach?

Tony Morris: Absolutely. I think no matter what game you’re in. It’s funny, as you know, I do sales training, you get people who’ve done sales for 30 years saying I’m all right for training actually, thank you. My argument is if Roger Fedderer still has three coaches or if Paul McCartney still needs to rehearse before he goes on stage, doesn’t that tell you everything?

Grant Leboff: Yes, interesting point. One of the things we should always be doing is learning. For you, how does sales, because sales does change, right?

Tony Morris: Absolutely.

Grant Leboff: The customer journeys, everything else, so how do you stay on top then of the latest things you should be thinking about?

Tony Morris: It could be three ways. I go in training every two months. I’m training this week with a competitor of mine. I’ve not hidden the fact that I’m a competitor but I’m doing it just to develop myself and hopefully add to my courses. I’ve probably over 250 sales books now. Why reinvent the wheel? I’ve learned from the greats out there and I read online. There’s so many amazing blogs, like your own one, and I’m always looking to develop and grow. I think if a salesperson isn’t, then that’s a challenge and a problem in itself really.

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