Rate Your Sales Ability

Do you feel perfectly at ease talking to potential customers about your products or services? Or, like some of us, do you tremble at the thought of making the approach? You can find out just where you fall on the super salesperson scale by reading the following statements and rating yourself on a comfort scale of 1 - 4, with 1 being the statement you're least comfortable with saying and 4 being the most.

1. I believe the product or service I'm offering will truly help my customers.
2. I'm always on the lookout for opportunities to tell potential customers about my product or service.
3. I know my product inside and out and can demonstrate it without a problem.
4. I can convincingly explain the advantages of my product over my competitors'.
5. I have thought of all the possible questions potential customers could ask me about my product and have developed answers to those questions.
6. I've compared my competitors' prices and priced my product competitively.
7. I know my product isn't for everyone, so I don't worry too much if a few customers turn me down.
8. I respect a customer's right to disagree with me and don't take it personally.
9. I've planned ahead and have a written goal for each week's sales.
10. I learn all I can about sales and practice my techniques so I'll continue to improve.

Now add up your score and rate yourself according to the following chart:

Sales Confidence Scale
31-40 = Super Salesperson!
21-30 = Rapidly improving in sales
11-20 = Not-so-sure about sales
1-10 = Help! I'm afraid of sales.

After adding up your score, if you've just discovered you're not the most confident salesperson out there, don't worry! Most sales phobias are a result of one of the Fearsome Five: fear of rejection, fear of cold calls, fear of objections, and embarrassment. Fortunately, most of the time, these can be overcome by being prepared.

But wait ... did you notice that we listed only four of the Fearsome Five? That's because the last is the fear of closing. Closing means asking your customers to buy your product Many salespeople don't ask because they're afraid of rejection. To help you overcome this fear, you've got to have a healthy attitude toward the sales process. Look at it this way- do you have to lose except a sale?

Amy Fennell Christian, a writer living in Augusta, Georgia, is a freelance editor for YoungBiz.com