Following are 10 fun and interesting facts about sales and selling performance. If you feel a little twinge when you read some of them because they might be a development opportunity for you, I’ve included some recommendations about how to improve. Going one step further, I've included links to previous articles/posts related to some of the topics.

1. Natural sales aptitude - About 50% of the results of a salesperson are due to their natural talent/aptitude. Test salespeople before you hire them. If you aren’t a “natural born salesperson”, then focus your efforts on the other 4 critical factors of sales success.
2. Lead nurturing - 66% of buyers reported that consistent and relevant communications from the company was a key influence to buy from that company. Set up and execute a solid lead nurturing workflow to move your buyers through their natural sales funnel.
3. Phone calls - During a phone call, 82% remember you by the tone of your voice vs. what you actually said. Make sure you sound right not just say the right things.
4. Power of inside coaches - Salespeople have an 82% success rate at seeing a new prospect when an inside recommendation is made vs. 20% from a very effective cold call. Seek out and find an inside coach who will help you close the deal.
5. Mirror and match - Only 18% of buyers will buy from a salesperson who doesn’t match the buyer’s personality type vs. 82% success when personality types are aligned. Identify your buyer’s style and modify your approach to align to that style.
6. First impressions - When making a first impression, 55% is how you look, 38% is how you sound, and only 7% is what you say. The processing speed of your eyes is about 25 times faster than your ears. You have about 13 seconds to make a 1^st impression and people make significant judgments about you in the first 30 seconds of meeting you. Prepare for that first meeting to make a lasting positive impression.
7. Ask questions and listen - 95% of buyers state that the typical salesperson talks too much, and 74% of buyers said they were much more likely to buy if that salesperson would simply listen to them. Ask great open-ended questions and actively listen to your buyer.
8. Handling objections - When buyers have a few objections and you can satisfy them, your success rate is 64%. Learn how to find and overcome buyers’ sales objections.
9. Buyer values - Factors of importance to buyer decisions; salesperson competence – 39%, solution recommended – 22%, quality of offering – 21%, price – 18%. Focus on ROI and how well your products and services bring value to your buyers.
10. Ask for the sale - 48% of sales calls end without an attempt to close the sale and the national sales closing rate is 27%. Learn how and when to ask for the sale.

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