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Tallahassee, FL—In our last installment, we discussed the importance of finding the right location, or hot spot, when it comes to both fishing and sales. Next, we will examine the importance of using the right equipment—which in the case of sales are both your selling skills and knowledge.

Sometimes people assume from my focus on connecting with the customer and looking out for their best interest, that I don’t emphasize product knowledge or selling skills. Assuredly, that is not the case. It is important to remember that you must have all three (location, equipment, and the right bait) to find success in either sales or fishing. If any one is missing you will not find success—or fish.

Over my many years in the jewelry industry I have obtained some great equipment from mentors like Shane Decker, Brad Huisken, and Terry Chandler. These great men have taught me knowledge, passion, and most importantly, integrity. There are many other great leaders, sellers, and co-workers that over the years also have contributed to my success.

Everyone you work with has the potential to teach you something with the skills and talents they possess. Many times you are unaware of the impact they had on you until you discover little treasures within you that are directly the result of something they taught.

The most important equipment for a successful fishing trip is the fishing pole and tackle. In sales, this would be your knowledge of the product. You may ask, why is this the most important? Picture yourself having an amazing boat (selling skills) to maneuver around the lake and find hot spots. But when you get there you do not have a fishing pole. Likewise, if you do not know your product, you will not find success.

Every store should set aside at least 30 minutes each week to focus on a brand or product in the store. If you are not doing this on a regular basis, you will find it’s like trying to catch a fish in the middle of the lake without a pole. It is better to have a pole and fish from the shore: at least you will have a chance to catch something!

Once you have product knowledge, it is important to find the right “boat,” which is your selling skills. It could be the basic “greet, ask open-ended questions, overcome objections and close” routine. These are wonderful basic skills that every sales associate should learn. But for those who have been in the industry for a while, it is time to upgrade and add on to the knowledge and skills that you have already obtained and mastered. It’s like getting a better boat with better equipment, like sonar, to find the fish. When you learn to manage yourself, maintain your levels of passion and energy, understand the modern day customer and impact people’s lives in a meaningful way, great things will happen. With such great equipment comes a great responsibility to share it with others, and help them out along the way. Unfortunately many people flaunt their success and run over the poor guy in the canoe, sinking his chances for greater success. I find great satisfaction in helping others find the same or greater success than I have. Give it a try and see how it feels to impact someone’s life in a meaningful way.

In closing I encourage you to take a close look at the quality of the equipment that you are using. Is your product knowledge up to date, or old and rusty? Could you find greater success with an upgrade? If the answer is yes, I encourage you to explore the benefits of Modern Day Selling.

In our next installment, we will close out this series by focusing on the bait that you are using, or your selling style.

Modern Day Selling offers the freshest new insight in jewelry sales training designed to help sales associatse achieve greater success. As a yearly million-dollar-plus sales associate for the past eight years, Brian Barfield practices what he preaches on finding success based on the core principles of trust, honest and integrity. He is a two time published author whose insight is being recognized around the world. For more information or in-store training, visit his website or email brian@moderndayselling.com.