Why the Next 60 Days Are Critical
Doyle Slayton | Sep 09, 2009 | Comments 18
The next 60 days are critical to our success. There are very few times during the year that are as important as September, October, and early November.
This is the Time to Start Thinking About It – Companies who think about adding a new initiative or making a change in service providers, vendors, etc., often begin that process during these next three months. There are plenty of companies who will buy your products and services regardless of the time of year, but there also exists a large number of organizations who take the stance of, “we only make these types of changes in January”. The best thing you can do in the next 60 days is to get in front of as many prospects as your schedule can possibly handle!
Some Now, Some Later – The great thing about building your pipeline is knowing that some of your prospects will close now and others will close later. This time of year allows those “late converters” to, in reality, come on board much sooner. Let me explain… If you consider the two “buying perspectives” discussed in the previous paragraph, your prospect will either come on board right away… or if they are a January hold-out, your chances of getting a signed agreement in October or November are very high. This is the time of year when deals start poppin’!
Call Me After the First of the Year – The window of opportunity is short and you have to take full advantage. By the second and third week in November many of our prospects go into holiday mode. We begin to hear that all too common, “call me after the first of the year”. This response can be a winner or a killer. If you power through these next 60 days with tons of prospect appointments, your schedule will be packed through the end of the year… so prospects who shoo you off until next year won’t negatively impact your success. In fact, you have two possible scenarios with these folks. Either they have no interest, or they have a legitimate reason to buy in January, February, or March.
Let’s bring things full circle. Why are the next 60 days so critical? Because these 60 days will determine your success for the next 6 months! Use this time to give everything you’ve got… where you feel like you’ve got nothing left to give… knowing that when the holidays come around, you’ll have time to rest, recharge, and have a powerful pipeline awaiting your return!
What experiences and best practices can you share for making the next couple of months super successful?
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Very timely! Thanks for the article.
You are so right. The holidays are just around the corner and now is a great time to prospect really hard and you will reap the rewards after the first of the year. If they are ready to buy now great if not the next call is much warmer.
thank you, great content,
Buyers like to buy, they don’t like being sold. With that said …help your customers buy, and the next 60 days will set you up to win for the next 6 months.
Mark Allen Roberts
This article is so true, not only this 60 days but also the 60 that precede the first May bank holiday of each year.
Love the blogcast.
Tracey Laflin
Spot on, Doyle! We need to focus our energies at this critical time period to bring closure to existing proposals on the table while asking the critical questions that will drive our new sales into 2010.
Great article, you really need to take this advice and focus on business now to generate momentum for 2010
Right time on the right place?
Thanks…..
Great article! Just imagine what would happen to everyone’s sales results if they would channel the same energy at the end of the year to the first 9 months of the year?
Far too many sales professionals continue to leave in the Land of Ketch-Up where the soil is red with a lot of blood, sweat and tears. This may help to explain why 40 to 70% of all sales targets are not achieved.
Ah, yes, the old “call me after the first of the year” routine. . .
Timely blog Doyle.
And of course we all know the correct response is. . .
“happy to, how about January 1st at 7:00am”
you’ll get a pause and then a chuckle on the other end of the phone, but you’ll also get the topic of their calendar on the table and can set a specific appointment to talk.
now that we have read this – GO OUT THERE AND LINE THEM UP!
Love the topic. It takes discipline to take advantage of these selling seasons and so worth it for the small percentage that actually do!
Thanks for the timely article.
Jill
Great post Doyle.
The other thing to keep in mind is that the economy is supposed to show signs of recovery beginning the 4th quarter of this year. It’s supposed to continue through 2010, which should mean more prospects will be able to buy again. Let’s hope.
If you have been working your plan and planning your work for the last few years, then you will even have more business. This year in spite of the recession my business has grown significantly. For me in my business, action verbs have replaced the word hope because this word potentially implies that someone else is responsible for your sales success.
Thanks for the heads-up Doyle!
Dan Olson
For all practical purposes, we’re at the end of the 3rd quarter-Year 2008 already!!
So now is the time for people to be talking to each other so that needs can be identified, capabiolities matched and objectives finalized!
That is what I am concentrating on!
Al
Time is money.
Time passes by.
Time is of the essence.
The clock keeps ticking.
Time and tide wait for no man.
There’s no time like the present.
…and don’t put off ’til tomorrow what you can do today!
So, as NIKE says: Just do it!
Excellent thoughts! Thinking and planning ahead is essential right now. Success requires being intentional and proactive instead of reactionary.
Perfect timing! The fourth quarter is when budgets are being worked on and contracts are being negotiated. If someone says call me at the first of the year, personally I think it’s to late. Work on getting the appointment now so when it’s time to make a decision you’re one of the first in line.
A few years back I attended a sales training and to this day still use this. When it comes to any catagory or business we keep a file cabinet in our mind. Our file cabinet can only hold so many businesses. When you think of Fast Food Restaurants with great burgers who do you think of? If you think of a Fast Food Restaurant with great fries your list is probably different. We want our potential customers/clients to have us in their file and when they think of the product or service that we provide that we’re in the top 3. Happy hunting and selling!