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Your Prospects Are In Your Family Tree

SELL YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS IN JUNE

BY GRANT CARDONE

Why are you spending all your time on sales prospects that aren’t in your family tree or people you don’t know when you haven’t yet sold everyone you do know? Your family and friends drive cars and trucks. They need cars and trucks and are going to buy them from someone. 

Why are you not prospecting them? Why are you not calling them?  When was the last time you brought them a new car or truck to look at or drive to work?

You don’t need Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to sell to your family.  You need to use social to remind them you are selling cars. What you need to do to sell them a car this quarter is to get in front of them.

1) GET YOUR PEN OUT: Make a list of everyone close to you. This list isn’t just people you like. It doesn’t mean they are in the market or they want your product or can get approved for a loan. It means simply make a list of everyone you know starting with your blood relatives:

   a) Mom, dad, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, grandparents….

   b) Friends – anyone that has ever been a friend at any time in the past

   c) Neighbors

2) MAKE A HIT LIST: Put these people on a list of targets to close before July. I don’t want you simply calling them, I want you to have a goal of closing a deal before this month is over. Maybe your parents told you not to mix business with family – well your family members aren’t paying your bills. This is business and if you can’t sell people you do know then how are you going to sell people you don’t know? If you work at a great place with great products, then your duty is to sell your product to your family, friends, and neighbors.

3) PICK UP THE PHONE: Start making calls to set up a time to go see your list. Do NOT ask them to come to you. It is your job to go to them.  “Hey, I am going to be in your neighborhood later today are you around?” When they say yes ask this question, “I am selling X cars what do you want me to bring over to show you for fun?” Again your job is to get in front of your family members and don’t miss the opportunity to bring them your bling-bling shiny things.

4) PUT ON PROSPECTING HAT: When you get in front of them have your prospecting hat on not your sales hat. I know I told you earlier to have them on a target list to close, but first you have to find out what they want the next time they do buy. Ask questions such as, “The next time you do something will you go bigger or smaller than what you have now? Import or domestic? Car or truck?”

Great sales people keep their pipelines full and their calendar slammed. If you are spending more time with other sales people and customers that you don’t know you are destined for failure in this business. Keep your calendar full with appointments. An appointment is defined as an arrangement or agreement to meet someone at a particular time and place. So many automotive people think appointment means the customer has to come to you but it is not true.

Business Doesn’t Come to You: You Go to the Business

selling prospectsWhen I show interest in your product you better come to me and take time out of the equation or you become susceptible to competition.  Recently I was looking at selling a piece of property. I emailed three agents and asked them what they thought of the market at this time.  All three answered me and one of them was at my place 24 hours later.  Who do you think got the deal? I also recently expressed interest with a Lambo dealer here in Miami. One week later he has still not brought me a car. Ridiculous! Unacceptable! So he is either too lazy, too rich, or too busy to make time for me – so instead of buying a car from him I will make fun of him.

Wake up folks – If you can’t or you are unwilling to call on your friends and family and neighbors get out of this business and find another industry to fail in because that is what is going to happen. Sorry for the strong language. Also to the managers that allow your people to stand around – shame on you. They are copying the example you have set for them. Everyone needs to do this not just sales people and you will all have a stellar month. This is no longer the time of sales people being successful waiting on showroom traffic or the phone to ring. You have to create your business every day. When I went from being a salesman to a businessman I no longer waited on showroom traffic and created my day turning time into money!

Be great.

Grant Cardone
Grant Cardone
Grant, a national speaker and motivator, is a respected, highly regarded master salesperson whose passion is to teach people how to sell themselves, their products and services regardless of economic climate. His books, audio packages and seminars provide people of all professional backgrounds with the practical tools necessary to achieve high levels of success. Follow him on Twitter @grantcardone.

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