INTRODUCTION

First, thank you for investing in this book.

Second, if this is the first sales book you've ever bought, you're steps ahead of the many who have gone before you, and tried all the things, before they came here. And by ‘all the things’, I mean they have tried learning from (stereo) typical sales gurus, attended countless sales training sessions, memorised a bunch of terrible scripts, copied some self-professing expert, or even tried changing their personality … all the things!

If you happen to be someone who has already tried all the things, I'm confident that this will be the last sales book you ever need to buy, because this one aims to solve all your sales challenges once and for all.

This is what makes this book different. It is unlike any other ‘how to do sales’ book that you may have seen, or maybe already read, that still hasn't solved your problem — because now you're reading this book.

You're not alone in trying to find a process that works. One reason so many sales books are on the market is because large and small businesses all over the world are constantly trying to crack the code of sales.

I'm here to assure you, you can stop looking.

Why I wrote this book — and why you need it

Having worked in sales for 26 years now, I've seen and been involved in all sides of it — from the ‘direct sales’ (door-to-door) approach, through to leading sales teams for some of the largest companies in the world.

I've been in roles where I've either personally sold or managed teams selling a whole myriad of things — including kitchen knives (that's right, it doesn't get any more cliché than that!), hotel memberships, chocolate bars, dairy products, property, education, management services, insurance, telecommunications, lifestyle experiences, residential construction, dog treats, coaching services, sales training, and mentoring.

In addition, I've also been engaged to design and implement sales processes for companies selling marketing services, scaffolding, metal fabrication, mechanical parking stackers, software as a service (SaaS), consulting and auditing services, professional memberships, financial services, training, sticky labels, civil services, shipping and logistics, recruitment, organisational psychology, franchising, business broking, software and tech, architecture services, entertainment, crafting exhibitions, engineering, mining services, professional services, manufacturing, agricultural products, luxury camping tents, IT, interior design, healthcare and legal services.

So, it's fair to say, I've sold most things. I can even say I've sold used cars after upgrading my own vehicles over the years!

I wonder if your product or service features in, or is similar to, something in that list?

What I can share with you about all these different products and services, much to the surprise of many people, is that the baseline principles are the same. So a sales process for a company selling mechanical parking stackers is about 95 per cent the same as a sales process for a company selling marketing services. This is because a sales process is designed to engage and collaborate with another human, and most humans behave and are motivated in similar ways.

These days my company works with service and solution-based organisations, implementing my proven, holistic approach to sales. Refreshingly, this process allows people to simply be themselves, and is focused on bringing out the best in the person you're selling to. Who would have thought?!

Perhaps you are like many of my clients who, prior to working with me, invested plenty of money and countless hours working with various sales trainers and coaches or business strategists. You may have also tried all the marketing advice as well, such as investing in a new website, optimising your SEO, updating all your brochures and various social media accounts. Yet, after all these efforts, you're still not making the level of revenue you strive for.

With The Infinite Sales System®, I'm offering something different. And how I can assure you of this so confidently is because out of all the clients who have implemented this system, not one of them, to the best of my knowledge, has ever invested in another sales expert.

This system has stopped the bleeding, and these companies now have their own repeatable way of converting new business, in a way that feels right for them.

This book (and The Infinite Sales System) has been specifically designed to help professionals who either are not salespeople or, even if they recognise they are in sales, struggle to relate to the old-school tactics and tricks still being taught by some ‘experts’.

I've written this book predominantly for professionals who don't see themselves as ‘salespeople’. Perhaps your main employment role is as the technician, focused on the delivery of the services your business provides; however, you are also responsible for or tasked with bringing in or converting new clients. So you may not be in a full-time sales role, but the sales component does occupy a small (and heavily weighted) portion of your role responsibilities.

Or you might be in sales as a full-time role. While sales professionals following a traditional approach may be less likely to read this book (more on this later), if you're looking for a more modern approach, you can learn a lot here.

Warning: There is no magic ahead. Once you have read this book and familiarised yourself with The Infinite Sales System, you still need to do the work. The good news is that you will not need to change your personality type to become someone you're not — you don't need to transform into an extrovert and you won't need to learn any cheesy tactics or scripts. This book will teach you how to simply be yourself, and master sales at the same time. All in a repeatable way. How liberating.

It's time for a modern-day, holistic approach to sales.

One that is centred on humility, trust-building and human connection.

That time is now.

How to read this book

This book is not designed to be read like a novel — although the stories do promise to educate and entertain!

The best way to maximise your success from this book is to really engage with it. Grab yourself a highlighter and highlight the bits that resonate, fold the pages, get some post-it notes and stick them on, write notes directly on the pages and treat this book like a text book — this book is not designed to remain pristine! (If you're reading this as an e-book, use the bookmark, highlight and notes functions, or make notes on your phone or tablet.)

If anyone asks you to borrow this book, encourage them to buy a copy instead — not so I can make more books sales, but so they can also read the book in the same way, and add notes, highlights and page folds.

It might be considered sacrilegious to dog-ear a page in a book, but in my book (which is now your book), dog-ears are encouraged!

You may want to revisit certain chapters, as the principles become more evident as you progress. Feel free to do so! Read this book forwards, backwards, review chapters and read it from a randomly opened page. The lessons within will serve you as continual reminders, which will reward you with more sales success.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

After having worked in sales for so long, I know the kinds of questions that commonly come up. I've distilled the various questions I'm often asked — either directly by clients, or via social media — and included these as FAQs throughout this book, and especially as we get deeper into The Infinite Sales System.

As you make your way through, I'll throw in the FAQs in anticipation of helping you put your mind at ease, and solidifying your learning.

If by chance you have a question that I've not answered, I'd love nothing more than to hear it from you. You can contact me via the following:

• Email: info@juliaewert.com.
• Website: www.juliaewert.com.
• LinkedIn: Julia Ewert, MBA, FAIM.

Definitions

Throughout this book, I frequently use particular terms. So you're clear on what these terms mean in the context I use them, I've defined them here:

• Client, customer: What your prospect becomes once they have paid you money. Until such time that you actually see the money in your bank account (or, in Australia, perhaps they've raised a ‘purchase order’), they remain a prospect.
• Inbound prospect/opportunity: Where a prospect or opportunity contacts you first. They become known to you, or come inbound to you, through a website enquiry, referral, word of mouth, trade show or other means or marketing efforts.
• Outbound prospect/opportunity: Where you contact a prospect first. This can be through ‘cold calling’ (don't worry, other options are available!), networking or directly going outbound and approaching a target opportunity in a warm way.
• Prospect: An opportunity you are in conversation with, or targeting for business....