Where do sales come from?

First, I am kicking myself for my lack of posts the past 30 days. I have been working double time at my "real job" and combined with a short family vacation, have had a hectic past few weeks.

During a recent sales review, I was asked, "Where do your sales come from?". The answer can apply to any field of sales; in the workplace or for your own personal marketing endeavors.

Networked referrals - Probably 50% of my sales come from here. These sales referrals come from professional contacts and partners in my industry. These do not come easy. I had to prove myself and my products and gain other's trust and sales. It took about 12 months to build a reliable and profitable sales pipeline with networked referrals.

Customer referrals - Another 20% of monthly sales on average. Again, trust and reliability determine customer referrals. But remember, the customer who has invested in your product is more likely going to tell others about their good experience! Also, you can't get the sale or the referral unless you ask for them. Prepare an email, letter and phone call ahead of time in which you ask your customers for referrals.

Front door leads - Often sales leads come to your company from interested parties. Grab these low hanging fruits and run with them! These count for 5% of my new sales monthly.

Personal Marketing - I use LinkedIn, Plaxo and others for building my brand and product reputation for new sales. Sometimes I see 5 or more leads per month this way. Also, consider building a website touting you and your company products. I like to use my personal website and Squidoo for this type of sales activity.

Events - Trade shows, conferences, and any other get together of professionals and decision makers can open new sales doors. Take advantage of anything your company has access too.

Sales is not easy, but new sales leads can be made more easy with a diverse lead strategy. Find yours today.