#065: Sales Improvement Plan

Read time: 4 minutes

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The truth is, great sales reps don’t just wing it. They don’t rely on natural talent or luck. They work on their craft—daily, consistently, with purpose. And here’s the thing: sales is a skill you can always get better at. But the best reps? They don’t wait for a magical “perfect time” to start. They make time.

It’s like this: imagine you’re training to become a top-level soccer player (or football, for my international friends). You wouldn’t just practice kicking a ball into a net all day, would you? No. You’d work on dribbling, passing, shooting, speed, conditioning, positioning, and decision-making. If your passing game is weak, it impacts everything else. If you’re not in shape, it doesn’t matter how good your dribbling is—you’ll burn out. Sales is exactly the same. It’s not just about one thing. To be great, you’ve got to stack your skills.

So if you’re waiting for January 1 to start working on your sales skills, I have to ask—why wait? The best reps improve every day, not just when it’s convenient.

Why Investing in Your Sales Skills is Non-Negotiable

1. Skill Stacking is Your Superpower
   Each skill you add builds on the others. Get better at asking discovery questions, and you’ll uncover more client needs. Improve your ability to handle objections, and you’ll close more deals. Nail your follow-up game, and you’ll increase conversions. It’s like compound interest for your career—the earlier you start, the more it grows over time.

2. Weak Links Hurt the Whole Chain
   Just like a soccer player who can’t pass, a sales rep with weak discovery skills or poor closing techniques will struggle no matter how great they are at other things. Addressing these weak spots is the fastest way to level up.

3. The Competition Isn’t Waiting
   Your competitors are learning new techniques, experimenting with better tools, and figuring out ways to be more effective. If you’re standing still, you’re falling behind.

4. More Skills = More Money
   Let’s not dance around it—better skills equal better results, which equals more income. Want to hit quota consistently or earn that next promotion? Skill up.

Your 5-Step Plan to Start Improving Today

The key to becoming great is focus. You don’t need to overhaul everything at once—just start small and build momentum. Here’s how:

1. Define Your Goals

Without clear goals, you’re just wandering. Think about where you want to improve:

• Do you want to book more meetings?

• Increase your close rate?

• Handle objections more effectively?

Be specific. For example:

• Instead of “I want to improve closing,” say, “I want to increase my close rate from 20% to 30% over the next three months.”

2. Assess Yourself Honestly

Take a hard look at your current skills. Where are you strong? Where are you falling short?

• Look at your numbers: Are your discovery calls leading to proposals? Are you closing at industry benchmarks?

• Get feedback: Ask your manager or a trusted peer, “If I could get better at one thing, what would it be?”

3. Choose ONE Focus Area

Resist the urge to tackle everything at once. Pick one skill that will have the biggest impact and go all-in.

• If you’re struggling to generate leads, focus on prospecting.

• If your deals keep stalling, work on creating urgency.

• If you’re losing deals at the negotiation stage, master objection handling.

Pro Tip: Improving one skill often creates a ripple effect. For example, getting better at discovery calls leads to better proposals, which leads to higher close rates.

4. Invest in the Right Resources

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to figure it out alone. There are plenty of tools to help you get better, faster:

• Succession Membership: Our platform is built for life science sales reps who want actionable, real-world training. It’s like having a coach, a playbook, and a team cheering you on—all in one.

• SalesDNA Podcast: Dive deep into tactical strategies, hear from industry experts, and pick up tips you can apply immediately.

• Books, Courses, Mentorship: Whether it’s “The Challenger Sale” or a session with a seasoned rep, find what resonates with you and dive in.

5. Build a Plan and Stick to It

This is where the magic happens. A plan turns good intentions into results. Here’s a simple way to structure it:

• Step 1: Block 30 minutes a day or 2 hours a week for focused skill development. Put it on your calendar.

• Step 2: Break your learning into small, actionable steps. For example, if you’re working on objection handling, spend one day identifying common objections, another writing out responses, and another role-playing with a peer.

• Step 3: Track your progress. Keep a journal or spreadsheet to log what you’ve learned and how you’ve applied it.

• Step 4: Get accountability. Share your goals with a colleague, manager, or the Succession community to keep you on track.

Remember: Consistency beats intensity. It’s better to practice for 15 minutes a day than cram once a week.

Why Wait? Start Now

Starting in 2025, Succession will move to annual-only membership plans. If you want the flexibility of a month-to-month option, you want to get in before the year ends.

Sign up at www.succession.bio/join.

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Special Offer: If you’ve made it this far, you can use the coupon code NEWSLETTER to get 20% off an individual Succession membership.

Recommended Products & Tools: We’ve used every one of these products and can highly recommend them to you. Everything from CRMs to AI tools.

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