What's Keeping you from the Basics?

I hear many veteran sales professionals tell me things like "back in the day, I used to really get after it and make follow up calls" or “when I first started in sales, I always wrote thank you notes." Perhaps they believe these “war stories” will help inspire the sales up-and-comers. But what the grizzled old sales veterans are really saying is “I used to be on my game, I’m lazy now.” They are simply living on past success.
Here’s a real simple piece for getting back on track in the sales world. Go back to what you used to do when you were really good at sales. I constantly hear football coaches tell me after a loss they will take players back to the basics of blocking in tackling. Leaders of great teams always tell me “we work on the basics every day and we execute those little things so we can win every time--we're prepared for everything.”
For a sales rep, the x’s and o’s should be having the potential customer map out on paper where they might place the purchase. This assumes they are going to buy your product and gets the customer to the next step of where they will actually place it in their life, home, business plan, etc. Ask questions like “how far it is from the doorway?” or “how can we get power to your location?” or “what color is your room?”
One sales person I suggested this tactic to actually told me “you know, back in the day I used to do that all the time." So my obvious question is why would you stop doing something that used to earn you twice the money you’re making now?
For newer sales professional who hear the ‘war stories’ of how it used to be ‘back in the day’, ask your boss or manager if they were successful. If the answer is ‘yes’, then follow up by asking them why they quit doing things that way. Better yet ask them to take you out and show you how to sell!
If you don't remember what you used to do to be successful in the sales world, call the top ten customers that you lost during the recession. Ask them why they bought from you and why they stuck with you so long.
Trust me. The answer will have to do with the little things that you used to do, but because of laziness and the excuse of the bad economy you've quit doing.