Productivity Tip: Making your car a mobile office

Sales Tip of the Week from Mike Leeds – Pro Sales Coaching

Productivity Tip: Making your car a mobile office

One of the keys to efficiency is to make yourself as "mobile" as possible. An increasing number of people are using cell phones that keep them connected to e-mail (smartphones like iPhones or BlackBerry's). This allows them to respond quickly to email requests rather than having to wait to get back to the office before they can respond. This kind of efficiency helps keep us as productive as possible in the field and saves us both time and gasoline (a couple of very perishable resources).

As I work with salespeople, I see another way to assist with productivity by making your car a mobile office. A great way to accomplish this is to create a car kit in a plastic tub that you can keep in your trunk. One of my clients and I recently put a car kit together and we included the following items: extra pads of paper for the portfolio, extra pens, additional business cards, brochures/collateral information, forms, stapler, promotional products, catalogs, pricing sheets, product samples, customer testimonials/reference information, and an extra laptop power cord.

This car kit has already paid a huge dividend to my client. He had what was needed in the trunk of his car, and didn't have to depend on remembering to take "everything" with him on "every" sales call (because it's already in his car). A specific piece of information was requested by the customer during a sales call, and the sales rep was able to get it from his car – rather than having to go back to the office, and schedule a follow-up appointment. The customer was impressed with how well prepared the sales rep was – and awarded him the order on the spot. I know this may sound basic, but we've all probably had to make some extra (and unnecessary) trips along the way. Being as productive as possible, having extra supplies & sales tools with you, and eliminating unnecessary trips – will help your overall efficiency (which in turn should help your sales success).

Have a great sales week!

Comments

[Gail Keith]

I have kept a car kit for many years - saved my butt more than once. Add Altoids and your business card book to the list. Altoids is obvious - but keep your mobile Rolodex handy too. Making a great impression is also showing your client you care about their business and can refer then to credible service providers - regardless of if you land the sale.