Fish or Cut Bait

Have you ever had a day at the office where you were super busy, but at the end of the day didn't talk to any prospects? I definitely have. It is so easy to think of those as productive days, since we feel busy, and we're probably getting critical things crossed off of our to-do list, but don't be fooled. A Bass Pro would be mortified if he had to waste an entire day on the lake without getting his line in the water.

The philosophies of fishing and selling are identical: spend as much time as possible in front of your prospects, enticing them. In fishing this translates into having your line in the water... In sales this means talking to your prospects, either face-to-face or over the phone. So what can you do to ensure that you're fishing instead of cutting bait?

Get organized, and plan ahead.
This seams obvious, but it is often overlooked. The top professionals, however, take the time to get organized and plan ahead so they can maximize their time on the water. Nothing is left to chance. They categorize their baits by type, size, color and weight. They routinely check their rods, reels and line. And, of course, everything on the boat is checked. When a tournament rolls around they check the specs of the lake and the weather forecast and decide which types of baits they will use, and they rig their rods up ahead of time.

I was so impressed with my boater during my first tournament. He had eight rods (4 spinning and 4 baitcaters) fanned across his bow, already rigged and set to go. I, on the other hand had my rods tangled in a mess next to me rigged with a dried out plastic worms from last season. I really didn't have a plan for the day.

At each spot he quickly picked up has rod and began casting, while I sat there staring at my tackle bag wondering what to tie on. He knew even before we got to the spot what he was going to cast. If his line got snagged he would cut it and immediately throw the next line in. If he had to replace a lure he knew exactly which box it was in and would tie it on within seconds.

The result... as you can imagine he far outfished me that day. Why? Because he maximized his time, and spent most of the eight hour day actually fishing, while I spent most of it trying to figure out what to do next. He did all of the other stuff the day before the tournament.

The same thing should apply to your sales day. Define what constitutes "time on the water," otherwise known as prime selling hours. If that time is 9-5, then do all of your other stuff before or after that. Look at where you are going the next day, and decide how and what you're going to pitch to the prospect, and then prepare it. Make your copies, submit your paperwork, check your e-mails, print your directions, fill your gas tank up... so that you're not doing the next day while someone else is in front of your prospect.

Remember: A productive day of fishing does not entail cutting bait. That should be done some other time.