Dear Archive Visitor, And the winner is... YOU! Every time you seize the phone and call your prospects and customers. Unfortunately no one is going to hand you a golden Oscar every time you pick up your phone, but you can mentally picture someone presenting you with one of those golden Oscars any time you choose. Ah! The beauty of the imagination! In today's article I share how you can make a huge difference in other people's lives by stepping outside the proverbial comfort zone and showing prospects and customers that you care enough to call more than once.

Building an Empire in Your Direct Sales Business (Listen right now) is one of the most rewarding things you may ever do Ñ you can earn an outstanding income, you get to decide your work schedule, you can earn world travel, and you meet the best friends of your life... all while running a business out of your own home. However, building a successful direct sales business requires intriguing prospects quickly, leaving them hungry to know more, and knowing how to use the telephone effectively. This jam-packed-information AUDIO covers 3 simple ways to accomplish all of that. Listen right now at your convenience via live streaming or download.

Stepping Out of the Comfort Zone By Tammy Stanley Something truly amazing happened to me at 6:30 this morning. If you've been reading my ezine for awhile, you already know that I'm a 5:30 AM spin class addict. A few months ago as I was running to get to class on time a woman said, "You look like you're going where I'm going." From that day on we started spinning right next to each other. Today seemed like a normal day. My friend and I set up our bikes right next to each other and she told me how she was going to visit her parents in Minnesota this week. However, when class ended my friend said something that really struck me as amazing. She said, "Well, I won't see you until Monday, and just in case something happens to me on the airplane, I want you to know I love you and have loved meeting you here for spin class each day." Keep in mind that this is a friend I've only seen at the gym. We've never met except at spin class. I can't help but think that what she told me was amazing, and the reason why is that I know it took real guts to say. She risked putting herself out there and telling me how she felt. She didn't know how I would respond; she couldn't be sure that I wouldn't feel uncomfortable with such sincerity and emotion. Naturally I couldn't help but draw a parallel to the sales profession and how frequently you have to risk putting yourself out there when it comes to building connections and relationships with your prospects and clients. You can't be sure how your prospects and clients will respond, but I suggest you let my friend serve as an inspiration - concern yourself more with sincerity than with what your prospects might say or how they might respond. Several months ago I was contacted by a CEO that wanted my promotional materials. After sending my materials out, I left 6 voice mail messages before I heard back. I can assure you that it definitely occurred to me that the CEO might perceive me as pushy or (worse yet) desperate, but I decided that it was more important for me to do what I tell my audiences to do - Seize the Phone! Studies show that 52% of salespeople quit calling after just one phone call, and only 4% call more than 4 times. The kicker is that the 4% that call more than 4 times get 60% of the business. It's not easy calling someone more than 4 times. The toughest part is getting past the voice inside your head that tells you what a fool you'll make of yourself. But here's something one of my clients told me one day that convinced me to ignore that voice. This client happened to be friends with a gentleman who became the CFO of Burger King. One day he called his friend to see how the job in Hamburgerville was going. The CFO told him that the number of sales calls he had to wade through during any given day was astonishing, but that he had figured out how to deal with them. If the salesperson didn't call him at least 5 times, he figured that salesperson must not want his business badly enough so he wouldn't bother calling him back. Of course no matter how empowering that is to hear, you will probably feel less than empowered the next time you're reaching for your phone to leave "the fifth message." But I encourage you to stay the course. This morning when my spinning buddy took the risk to tell me that she loved me, she rocked my world and in that moment she changed our relationship because now I realize now how much she values me. Every time you seize the phone and call your prospects, keep your focus on the reality of the situation, namely, you wouldn't keep calling if you didn't value them. WANT TO SEE MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE? WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER OR ON YOUR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Author, Sales Trainer, and Professional Speaker Tammy Stanley publishes the propelling 'Sales Refinery Insights' weekly ezine for direct sales professionals. If you're ready to jump-start your direct sales business, make more money, and create more value, get your FREE tips now at www.tammystanley.com/ezine/ezine_offer_ds.htm

It never ceases to amaze me how many leaders fail to tell their team members to sign up for my ezine. I can't think of a single reason to keep this a secret. Can you? If you've subscribed to my ezine for any length of time, you know that I crank out an article for this ezine every week, and every week on Thursday you receive my ezine to remind you to stay the course and just how to do that. What possible reason can you give for keeping this a secret from your team? Maybe you've forwarded this ezine and your team members didn't sign up for it. As a leader I wouldn't forward my copy; I'd send a separate email to my team members saying that they're missing out if they aren't getting Tammy Stanley's powerful weekly Sales Refinery Insights. Then I'd tell them where they could sign up, www.tammystanley.com, and then I'd say, "I'm not telling you to think about doing this, I'm telling you to DO IT TODAY!" Often the thing your team members miss the most, strange as it may seem, is a boss telling them what to do. When you tell them what to do, they often sigh with relief because they don't have to think about making another decision; they only have to do what you told them to do.

Tammy Stanley, founded and directs The Sales Refinery, a sales training company that assists sales professionals to generate more business and build long-lasting sales teams through powerful marketing, selling and leadership strategies.

Tammy has been coaching and training since 1994 and has a deep understanding of the challenges and needs of the independent sales consultant. While raising four children, Tammy built a multi-million dollar direct sales organization, reaching her company's Circle of Excellence 7 consecutive years in a row. She earned numerous sales and leadership awards, world travel, and promoted 11 offspring managers.

The Tammy Stanley Sales Refinery
Tempe, AZ 85283
Call Today: 480-775-4866
tammy@TammyStanley.com

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