Table of Contents
All entrepreneurs need to have sales skills.
Unfortunately, not all of them do.
If you have entrepreneurial ambitions and sales skills, give yourself a high-five. You can start a business and, thanks to your selling abilities, that business will have better odds of success.
Your sales skills will help you confidently introduce your new idea to the world. Today, we’ll look at some of these skills and how you can use them to your advantage.
Use selling skills to start a business: 5 skills entrepreneurs must have
When you first decided to become an entrepreneur and start a side gig, you likely considered:
- What product/service to provide
- How to create your product or service package
- Branding
- Investment capital
- How to get your brand in front of your ideal customer
As you started creating your business plan, probably the last thing on your mind was how sales skills could help you start your business. You’re not alone. Many new entrepreneurs avoid focusing on sales, partly because they are blinded by the glamour of entrepreneurship. What we see on social media—the carefully curated brand, the fancy brunches or dinners with clients, or the money that automatically comes rolling in—often is not an accurate picture of the day-to-day of a new business.
The reality is that you put in a lot of hard work, much of it on your computer—marketing your business, creating content, or on the phone with customers.
If you use selling skills to start a business, you’ll build something that’s not just successful now (or a couple of years from now) but one that grows and lasts for years to come.
Here are some ways to leverage those skills in your new entrepreneurial venture.
1. Determination
According to the most recent data from The Bureau of Labor Statistics (as reported by Lending Tree and Entrepreneur.com):
- 20% of businesses fail within a year
- About half fail by year five
- 70% of businesses close within a decade
Source: Lending Tree
As a salesperson, determination is a must. It requires getting out of your comfort zone and talking to strangers, often by making repeated cold calls in person or over the phone. You risk hearing “no” repeatedly. But your paycheck depends on it!
Similarly, as an entrepreneur, you will have to do things that are way outside of your comfort zone. Your commitment and focus will help you push through, even on the hardest days.
2. Knowledge seeker
If you’ve worked in sales, you know that part of the job is obtaining information. You have to thoroughly learn about:
- Your industry
- The company you’re working for
- The product or service you’re trying to sell
- How to sell
- Potential clients
- Client needs, wants, and pain points
As an entrepreneur, you’ll need to learn similar things. Additionally, you’ll need to learn about:
- The current market
- How to make good investments
- How and when to hire or outsource
- How to market your product/service
- Product/service development
- Branding
Having a desire to learn as much as you can about these topics helps you gain the knowledge you need to start your business and ensure its growth.
3. Creative thinker
According to Entrepreneur.com, creativity is one of the top problem-solving tools a business owner can have. It will help you to:
- Differentiate your business so your company/product/service can stand out among the competition
- Come up with novel marketing strategies
- Break conventional barriers
- Overcome client objections in a tactful yet persuasive manner
- Find optimal solutions to problems faced by you, your team, and your customers
4. Confidence
There is no doubt about it—successful people are confident.
That’s not to say that they don’t ever face insecurities. They just have the self-confidence necessary to know that, ultimately, they have the skills, knowledge, and determination to overcome and take on whatever situation arises.
Confidence as a salesperson is vital because customers feed off of your confidence. When you show confidence in the usefulness/effectiveness of your product or service, your customers are less likely to object to your offer.
That same confidence can carry you through as an entrepreneur. It will help you push past the natural nervousness that arises when you first start a business. It will also help you lead your team when the time comes.
5. Relationship builder
Sales is all about relationships. Customers are not willing to buy something from you if they don’t trust you.
Similarly, in order to get potential customers interested in your brand, you have to work at developing a relationship with them. You can do this by showing interest in their wants and needs. Show them you understand their pain points and that you want to help.
What to do if you want to start a business but don’t have any sales skills
No sales skills? No problem. Working for a company like Vector can help.
During your time with us, you’ll learn valuable social selling skills. Those who have worked with us in the past say they’ve learned valuable, transferable skills, including verbal communication skills. Nearly 75% say the skills learned while working for Vector prepared them for future careers, including entrepreneurship.
And it’s not just those who work with us that recognize what we’re able to help people achieve. We’ve won numerous awards and have even ranked as the 12th best place to work in the country by USA Today.
Source: McKinsey & Company
In addition to providing training, our team will show you how to advance your career—whether you’re interested in a managerial role with Vector or want to use your selling skills to start a business.
Got sales skills? You’re ahead of the competition
Even if you’re simply interested in a part-time, work-from-home opportunity to make extra money (as opposed to building an empire), you can still reap the rewards of newfound confidence and real-world experience. Whatever your motivation, sales skills can help you closer to your goals.
Want to improve your sales skills with Vector? Contact us to schedule an interview.