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7 Deadly Sins of Sales

To be successful, salespeople need a healthy dose of both ego and empathy. Ego to pick yourself up after the inevitable falls and move onto the next opportunity believing in yourself. Empathy to take a walk in your clients shoes and understand what real value means to them and how it can be delivered. These traits, possibly contradictory and ego being offensive to some peoples minds, are generally accepted as being essential human tendencies in those carving a successful career in sales.

But what about our own human frailties, the one’s defined in ancient Christianity as the 7 Deadly Sins. Dating back at least 1500 years, these sins were those transgressions against the Church which were seen as fatal to one’s spiritual progress.

In this post I’ll explore the 7 Deadly Sins of Sales, the actions and errors that are a result of our own inclinations and can derail the best sales process and the bring the even experienced salespeople undone.

1. Sloth

You’ve just won that big deal you’ve been working on all year. You’ve got a ‘golden egg’ client who you can rely on to meet or exceed target. You believe you have a USP so unique you will not come under significant pressure on your bid. Such situations have led to the downfall of many a salesperson, and for that matter businesses. Slothful salespeople take things for granted. Resting on your laurels will see you failing to do the things you should be doing; failing to continue developing and and failing to keep up with the latest in your market, your industry and sales techniques. You will not be using and challenging your skills and talents leading to physical and mental laziness. This leaves the door open for competitors and missed opportunities. And regardless of your level of success, you must continue to develop your skills, build your internal and external networks and deliver superior support to your customers. Read more