Expectations vs Reality Battles in Sales

When I started my career in sales, the expectations set by theory were different, to say the least, from what I encountered. Eventually I realised that I was not alone.

The foundation of this article was set years ago and I thought of rolling it out since our expectations of almost everything went for a toss last year when the pandemic hit.

Here are some Expectation vs Reality battles that we Salestors go through in our professional lives.

I have been hired by a well-established MNC for a great product. I will be ahead of my targets!

Getting hired by your dream company is like marrying for love. Everything is hunky-dory until you realise you have a mother-in-law to deal with too. Besides, if Sales was that easy, companies won’t need Salestors for the purpose.

Targets are meant to be difficult to achieve. For if they weren’t, the manager will be at fault.

I am an XYZ college pass out! I will close a deal in the blink of an eye!

That was the thought process fresh out of college, but corporate life is a killer. In B2B sales, for instance, connecting with the right person and making him listen to you takes months if not weeks, let alone convincing him to buy from you.

This product is so much better than my last company’s and easier to sell. Clients are going to love me!

Fingers crossed for that! Every company has a mix of clients, people who like and dislike the product, or the post-sales service. The ratio might differ for every company. Be prepared in case your clients don’t happen to agree with you and take it with a pinch of salt.

My boss knows how difficult the market scenario is right now for Sales

A time like the pandemic can trigger this thought process, but it is never accepted as a reason for not getting close to targets. Market scenarios are never perfect, we Salestors are expected to find a solution around it to make a sale.

No one cares about rules if I am achieving the targets

Well, you are up for a surprise. Achieving targets is the primary job, but bending the rules to suit the client’s needs does not work all the time.

Know some more expectations vs reality? Please share in comments below!