Selling is an art that you can learn if you make serious efforts. Work at it and salesmanship will work for you. It will make your customers to like you, trust you and give preference to you in all their dealings. You just keep on trying and learning the art of selling irrespective of the results. There is no
such thing as a born salesman. You can learn salesmanship by training, observing, practicing and studying.

What is common in salesmanship and swimming?
If you do not know swimming and try to cross a deep river by swimming, you will drown. So is the case with selling. Many people fail because they expect to succeed in sales without learning.

It is a part of the game of the salesmanship to hear and digest 'NO' with a smile.
A salesman must get rid of the fear of rejection. The best way to do it to expect more or less 900 to 950 people out of 1000 to say NO and you won't be hurt.
You just keep on liking all your prospects even those who say NO. But from every contact you learn something new if you keep your eyes and ears open. You hurt yourself only by your own feeling of remorse and regret. Even the best of the salesmen average success rate of hardly 10% of the people contacted.

Selecting and finding people whom you can sell is called Prospecting. The success or failure in sales depends a lot the way you do your prospecting.
Maintaining a diary, seeking appointment and obtaining introductions or referrals must a part of daily routine.

Integrity of the salesman and his willingness to provide after sales service and to work out a solution best suited to his client and his interests are among the common denominators of highly successful sales and marketing executives and other personnel.

Planning and setting goals & targets are stepping stones for the sales work

'In sales your goals must be out of reach but not of out of sight.' Ben Feldman - the greatest life insurance salesman who made millions just by selling life insurance stated this. He pursued the goals that were not achievable without extra ordinary
efforts. But he never set the goals that were foolishly high. He kept on reviewing his progress and goals. He believed that that you goals must not only for your business, but also for family as well as social and cultural life.

It is said that in sales your Altitude depends on your Attitude. This is quite correct. Somebody coined a phrase "KASH FORMULA for success in selling and defined it as follows:

1. K for knowledge of the product and familiarity with the basic
principles of selling and marketing techniques.
2. A for attitude. Perseverance and positive approach.
3. S for skills. Mastering presentation techniques, polishing up sales talk and using psychological appeal.
4. H for habits. Punctuality and prospecting, obtaining leads and
references

Here's the rule for bargains: "Do other men, for they would do you." That's the true business precept. Charles Dickens (1812–70), English novelist.