Business Mantras for Your Sales Team

What are business mantras?

In Hindu or Buddhist culture, a mantra is something sacred that you repeat to yourself. It’s a way of focusing your energy. Often, it’s only syllable. Literally, the word is sanskrit for “Sacred utterance.” But when we say mantra, we mean something a little different.

In sales, business mantras are a phrase that we keep close. We repeat it when we need to. Like traditional mantras, they can be a way of focusing our intention. They can also be empowering.

Why do you need a business mantra?

Sales is hard. And sometimes it’s important to remind yourself of the big picture and your ultimate goal.

For those tough calls or slow times of day, having a sales mantra either memorized or taped to your computer can help you stay focused. It’s a reminder of what it’s all about, and a confidence booster. It’s also a great habit to repeat your mantras to yourself before completing an action. Allow yourself to take a moment and use your mantra to set an intention for your day.

Now that you know you need a sales mantra, here are DemandZEN’s favorites to get you through the day, and totally kill it on your next sales call.

“Let it go”

Idina Menzel’s performance of “Let it Go,” unforgettably featured in Frozen, was a hit for a reason. And not just because little kids couldn’t stop singing it. Besides being catchy, it was empowering. Trying to let something go is something that everyone can relate to. Unfortunately, letting things go is really difficult.

But you need to move onto the next task. A bad call? Move on. Didn’t make your monthly quota? Focus on the next month. A co-worker bothering you? Don’t let it bother you.

It’s so important not to dwell on the negative and “let it go.” Don’t waste your mental energy on things you can’t change, or spending time on imagining how you could have done something differently. It’s in the past. Focus on the future. So, if you feel yourself distracted by things you can’t change, take a deep breath and make your 12-year-old cousin proud with a solid “Let it go.”

“Be practical, be meaningful”

No, your customers will not remember you for being meaningful or practical. But just like manners, they don’t remember when you have them but they remember when you don’t. Proving to your customers you know what you’re talking about and can practically speak to their needs is crucial in closing a deal.

Don’t beat around the bush or sell the fluff of a product when the customer is asking to hear about functionality. Be practical, and respond to what’s being asked. And be meaningful when you do it. This is also important to keep in mind in follow-up email when responding to questions or including additional info. Give them what they need. Don’t overwhelm them with all of their information that you have at your fingertips. If you get this part right, they’ll be in contact again.

“Don’t create problems”

It’s easy to get wrapped up in drama and create problems. This is something that might be more applicable to interpersonal relationships within the office rather than with your customers. However, this mantra can apply to a lot of different situations.

There are plenty of times where a simple question or idea can be blown out of proportion. Instead of reacting strongly to everything that could conceivably be an issue, stay calm. Pick your battles. Wait for something to become a problem before you start treating it as one. In the meantime, keep your cool.

A lot of would-be problems resolve themselves before they ever escalate to a full-blown complication. Overreacting to things can spiral into a larger, and even unrelated, issues. When you have “Don’t create problems” as your mantra, you’ll learn to recognize the difference between problems that warrant strong reactions and those that don’t.

Creating a company mantra

Often, companies will create a mantra to share with their employees. Google’s “Don’t be evil” mantra is tongue-in-cheek and easy to remember. Apple’s “Think different” represents the way they innovate as a company. Both of these are great examples that can be reiterated by any employee at either Google or Apple. It doesn’t matter what their personal goals are within those companies. They just need to think differently and not be evil.

If you do plan on creating a company mantra, consider your company’s core values and incorporate them. The mantra needs to reflect who you are as a business and your goals. It should also be pithy and easy to remember. And, if you think it’s exceptionally clever, it might be worth sharing with your customers. Your company values represent how your employees perceive your company, so why can’t your customers view you in that light, too? If you can repurpose your business mantras into branding, you’ve created something doubly valuable.

DemandZEN is a cold calling company with years of experience in the software industry. Need help crafting business mantras that fit your company goals? We would love to discuss how you plan to grow in the future.