By: Barrett Riddleberger

You can develop bad habits over time. Use this list to find opportunities to improve your sales performance.

Shared: From your friends TechAutoCareers.com® the online resource for the  Automotive Sales Consultant

When it comes to bad sales habits, I've had them all and still struggle to have mastery over them. In fact, this list was compiled from the things I've done wrong and my personal observations of thousands of salespeople. It's fascinating that everyone has a tendency to fall into similar patterns of behavior given certain circumstances.

Here's the list of 50 bad sales habits. See which ones you might have:

1. Insufficient or non-existent qualifying (stop chasing unqualified buyers who can't or won't buy)
2. Possessing a poverty~consciousness (replace it with a prosperity~consciousness)
3. Attempting to sell to "off-target" buyers (these are low-probability opportunities)
4. Prospecting procrastination (lead generation is the lifeblood of your business)
5. Leading off a sales call with your product or service (it's all about the buyer)
6. Relying exclusively on "company-generated leads" (self-generated leads)
7. Failure to establish sufficient trust and rapport (trust is a premium qualifier)
8. Wasting time constantly checking your email (and FB and Twitter, etc.)
9. Talking about non-relevant issues with the buyer (know what he or she is thinking)
10. Interrupting the buyer (be patient to allow the person to finish his or her thought)
11. Not practicing your selling skills (don't just wing it on sales calls)
12. Relying on landing a big sale to achieve your quota (fish in the ocean and the pond)
13. Lack of product knowledge (read the manual, take a class, bring an expert)
14. Failure to fire bad customers (not all business is good business)
15. Mistaking any activity for productivity (align activities to your goals)
16. Skipping steps in your sales process (especially the first few)
17. Talking more than listening (ask, listen, repeat)
18. Assuming sales is purely a numbers game (quality counts)
19. Failure to translate features and benefits into "buyer value" (what this means to you is ...)
20. Avoiding customer concerns (listening to customer concerns means you learn something new)
21. Getting tied down with excessive administrative tasks (limit your time to only your priorities)
22. Failure to develop an ideal customer profile (knowing whom to sell to is priority one)
23. Presenting your offering too soon (how will you know unless you ask questions first?)
24. Presenting price too soon (hello ... it's $50)
25. Selling past the close (focus on delivery and what happens next)
26. Not asking enough questions (prepare a set of well-crafted questions prior to your call)
27. Failure to clarify using follow-up questions (why? how so? what do you mean by that?)
28. Focusing sales conversations on product and price instead of value (people buy value)
29. Failure to educate yourself about your prospect (LinkedIn? company website?)
30. Not asking the right types of questions (closed-ended, open-ended, needs-based)
31. Giving a standard presentation (failure to customize)
32. No follow-up or follow-through during the sales process (nurturing is a skill unto itself)
33. Using poor grammar (speaking and writing)
34. Not spell-checking (failure to spell rite (right) can be a problem)
35. Using trial closes (If I could show you a way to save money ...)
36. Opening with presumptive solutions (I can save you money!)
37. Using industry buzzwords (don't do it--it alienates the buyer)
38. Guessing what the customer wants (maybe you could just ask)
39. Using product brochures as sales collateral (commercial printers love you; receptionists don't)
40. Panicking about quota at the end of the month (buyers will know you're desperate)
41. Mismatching your rate of speech with the buyers (too fast or too slow)
42. Selective hearing (be present and in the moment with buyers--check your ADHD)
43. Being late to appointments (sorry, but I knocked myself out in the shower this morning)
44. Being disorganized (being organized improves productivity and confidence)
45. Prospecting without credible collateral or purpose statements (take me to your leader!)
46. Never apologizing (fess up to your mistakes--people like honesty and humility)
47. Always apologizing (this indicates a lack of confidence and breeds distrust from buyers)
48. Allowing external factors to steal your motivation (compartmentalize personal issues)
49. Overexplaining failure (keep explanations to a minimum and focus on resolutions)
50. Selling exclusively on price (some buy on price, but most buy on value)

Bonus:

Failure to recognize bad sales habits (solicit feedback from those you trust)

What do you think?

Now it's your turn. Is this something you can benefit from or do you have a few tricks up your sleeve that are just as powerful?

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About I.C. Collins
Author, Educator, Trainer and President: Has One Simple Goal:  I believe it is my mission and purpose to remind you, that you are meant to have the best life possible! You were created with intention and purpose and I am here to simply help guide you through your life’s journey.

He is the founder of TechAutoCareers.com®,  Author ~ How to Succeed in the Automotive Sales Industry since 1994 the online resource for the *Automotive Sales Fraternity™* a strategy consulting firm that helps the *Automotive Sales Fraternity™* gain and keep more customers through the smart intersection of technology, social media, and customer service.

A bottom-line guy, Collins doesn't shy away from telling the truth in ways that cut through the noise to deliver streetwise advice from someone who's been there and done that, many times over. 

I wanted to take a minute and THANK all the people that comment, like, and share my posts daily. I appreciate you all!