Are You the Best-Prepared Person in the Room?

Be the very best prepared for every meeting.

Be the best salesperson who's ever shown up to it.

Know the person. Know the company. Know the industry.

Five, Ten, Fifteen Minutes

That's all it takes: five, ten, fifteen minutes before you walk in. People notice the difference when you show up like a professional instead of a stranger.

I watched this play out with two reps calling on the same customer, about a year apart. The first rep walked in straight off three days of PTO, no prep, nothing to bring to the table. Nothing came of that meeting. The second rep learned the customer's background and needs ahead of time, showed up with real ideas, and walked out having booked a follow-up meeting.

Show up prepared and you get the meeting. Show up with the right moves once you're in it, and you get the next one.

Three Things Worth Knowing

Before your next meeting, find out:

• Something about the person you're meeting: their background, what they care about.
• Something about their company: what they do, who they serve.
• Something about their industry: what's shifting, and why it matters to them.

Show up as the best-prepared person in the room. Then show up good enough to get invited back.

Roy Waterhouse is the founder of Lean Sales Group, where he coaches salespeople on building trust and growing accounts.