Seven habits a good sales representative should inculcate ie. being proactive, setting goals, prioritising, interdependence, effective listening, synergising and sharpening inter-personal skills, said guest lecture Parag Agarwal, Head, Ad Sales Strategy, Hindustan Times while addressing students at IIM Raipur on Tuesday.
On the occasion he elaborated the application of these concepts through various real life examples. Agarwal, an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, has been working with HT Media for past 7 years.
He states that, Being proactive is essential for a successful sales manager. The transition of becoming proactive from reactive is a continuous process. It is important that one sets short term and long term goals. Agarwal explained the importance of having a mission statement. It helps to focus on what is ahead so that one doesn’t get deviated from one’s path.
Prioritisation of work is one of the crucial steps to excel in one’s professional career. He stressed upon proper planning which is important for meeting deadlines. Interdependence among people and within organisations is of key importance. Rich, enduring and productive relationships help in achieving the common goals of the organisation.
If effective listening is not carried out, assessing the situation becomes difficult and thus analyzing a problem gets problematic.” Being collaborative rather than individualistic will always yield better results. The only way to succeed is to enhance and regularly update one’s skill set, He added.