Professional Selling: A journey, not a destination

The most important person in the sales process is you. Customer-focus is a critical function of the sales process, but not as critical as the focus on your own professional attitude. Professionals in all occupations are focused on self-esteem, self-analysis, and self-preservation. PROFESSIONAL SELLING deliberately challenges you to question everything you have ever known or held dear about selling and professionalism. It argues that selling is a physical skill, which requires salespeople, sales managers, and sales trainers alike to apply the simple processes of repetition and hard work, in order to have a successful outcome. If you are looking for the answer to sales success in some miracle technique or phrase in this book, then you may be disappointed. The answer to sales success lies within. This book should be viewed as part of the process of self-discovery. It is only through self-awareness of who we are, what we want to be, and what the barriers are to our potential success that we can begin to tackle those barriers in order to achieve the potential that lies within us all. The Institute of Commercial Management (ICM) is pleased to endorse this textbook. PROFESSIONAL SELLING provides a range of excellent examples and practical guidance to assist sales professionals in developing their skills. It also can be used to support study in professional selling at undergraduate level. In particular, this book is designed to cover the syllabus contained in the ICM Professional Selling programmes. All enquiries regarding these programmes should be directed to Business & Training Solutions International Ltd at info@businessandtrainingsolutions.com or direct to ICM at info@icm.ac.uk.