Sales Intelligence – Elucidation on the Cognitive Aspect

I stumbled across a blog by Dr. Greg Chapman. In one of his entries, he quotes an article by Jim Prigg that contains some ideas on Sales Intelligence that I might not have otherwise considered.

While I usually think about sales intelligence as information that provides a competitive advantage or makes a sales individual more effective, Mr. Prigg talks about Sales Intelligence as a cognitive skill.

I’ll let you decide if this is useful for you. Personally, I enjoyed the different perspective.

What of the binding glue of Sales Intelligence in the world? This is indeed a rare ability to bring buyer and seller, protagonist and antagonist and
negotiator and purchaser together?

This unique skill is most evident in the sale of intangibles (insurance), concepts (wealth creation), ideas (aged care) and ideologiesSo often in our society academics, bureaucrats, legislators and consumerists fail to understand that there is a real demand for Sales Intelligence.

So often people don’t want to face reality and purchase the product that solves their problem. Case in point: Insurance. Yet our capitalist economy depends on it to keep the wheels of industry, commerce and society rolling.

Sales Intelligence is absolutely essential to the success of our corporate, business and personal life. Yet, scant regard is given to this skill by those who wish to frame our consumerist laws and social mores today.

Sales Intelligence draws its strength and resilience from across all the intelligences. Yet people who are illiterate, blindly ignorant, stubborn, deaf and dumb, devoid of analytically skills and numerically challenged can be make tremendous sales people. Perhaps that irks the intellectuals?

So what are some of the components of this Sales Intelligence?

Compassion.........................Solving problems
A competitive spirit...........Enthusiastically wanting to achieve
Empathy..............................Single minded focus to see as others do
Goals definition..................Rewards for effort
Emotional strength...........Record keeping
Self analysis.......................Skills practice
Call persistence.................Profitable productivity
Self belief............................A sense of humour
Resilience...........................Persistence
Diagnostic analysis..........Sharing

One of the remarkable things about Sales Intelligence is that you never stop learning. There are always new challenges and there is always a constant and universal demand for the skill.

Any other thoughts on the topic? If so, please share. (cdalley@primary-intel.com, 801-838-9600 x5050)