QUIZ: Are You a STRATEGIC Sales Pro?

Most sales professionals believe their products and services are strategic to their customers, but that's usually not the case. To discover whether you -- and what you're selling -- is truly strategic to your customers, take this quick quiz.

Instructions: I'll present you with six statements about your interactions with your customers. Read each statement and then rate how much you agree that the statement describes your relationships.

Click HERE to start »
(BTW, the definition of a strategic sales pro is based on a conversation with Sam Reese, CEO of the giant sales training firm Miller Heiman.)
STATEMENT #1: The customer looks to you, personally, to solve problems and to consult with them. The customer asks you for advice about other products and services. If you switched employers, you'd have no problem maintaining a long-term relationship with this customer.

Click HERE to continue »STATEMENT #2: The customer regards you as crucial to their own success. Your contacts feel "beholden" to you personally for helping to make them more successful. They believe your are "on their side" and that you can be counted upon to represent their interests, both inside your own firm, and in any situation that might occur within another department in the customer's firm.

Click HERE to continue »STATEMENT #3: You, personally, are adding significant value to your customer's profitability. You are certain that what you are doing for the customer is actually helping the customer's firm to be successful and better able to fulfill their goals. You understand their needs and are truly helping to fulfill them.

Click HERE to continue »STATEMENT #4: You have extensive expertise outside of your own firm's products and services. You frequently show the ability to "think outside the box" -- the customer's box, that is. You look at the world through the eyes of the customer and (more importantly) the customer's customer. You have a broad understanding of business issues and general business acumen.

Click HERE to continue »STATEMENT #5: You have sufficient sales skills to close a complex sale when required. You know when to charge for your advice and when to use it in order to sell chargeable products and services.

Click HERE to continue »STATEMENT #6: You have clear and measurable goals for all of your strategic accounts. You have the support of your own organization and are able to convince the rest of your organization to "go the extra mile" for your account.

Click HERE for SCORING »SCORING: Your response are shown in the polls below in boldface. (Ignore the percentages and totals for scoring purposes.) Click down and add the total of your ratings (i.e. "1" for each "1" answer, "2" for each "2", etc.) Then click at the bottom of the page of your rating.

NOTE: Add the total of your responses above (your responses are shown in boldface. Then click the link below:

Click HERE for your STRATEGIC rating! » Your aptitude for strategic selling on the following scale:

• 6-12: YOU ARE A STRATEGIC SALES PRO: You have the both the attitude and the skill set to sell strategically.
• 13-18: YOU ARE A BALANCED SALES PRO: With some development of weak areas, you could sell strategically.
• 19-24: YOU ARE A TACTICAL SALES PRO: You'll face challenges selling strategically, but might do will with consumer products.
• 25 +: YOU ARE A HOPELESS SALES PRO: You must have taken this test as a lark, because you're probably not in sales. Or won't be for long...