By Bill Farquharson, Sales Vault. Read Bill’s tip below or watch Bill here.

Good morning!

There are a few dates on the yearly calendar where sales takes a back seat to preparation. This Friday, May 24, is one of them.

Friday is the day before the Memorial Day weekend. I typically discourage assumptions, but if you are thinking this will be a quiet day, you are probably right. I live south of Boston near Cape Cod and the highways will be filled Thursday night with people trying to beat the rush.

But as far as Friday goes the question is, what is the best use of your time?

If you are going to take the day off to turn a 3 day weekend into a 4 day weekend, good on you! Have at it! Exhale and enjoy life for a change.

However, if you will be at your desk Friday May 24, you have a rare opportunity to “sharpen the saw,” as Steven Covey would say. That is, if you are not going engage in traditional sales activities, what other options are there?

What do I mean? Here are some ideas for how best to use a non-selling workday:

• Compile a list of prospects and do some research. It would be great to have a pool of potential clients all ready to call on;
• Watch videos on how to improve your LinkedIn profile;
• Learn more about your CRM;
• Don’t have a CRM? Learn why you need a CRM;
• Create a stockpile of LinkedIn entries (success stories, interesting points, etc.);
• Solicit testimonials from clients;
• Remove everything from your desk, clean it, then put it all back, making a to do list as you go;

The point is to use this day as a chance to get better. Whether it’s improving on an existing skill, learning more about current software or equipment, or getting organized and even ahead of the sales game, don’t overlook this opportunity.

One final thought: I encourage you to make a list of activities you can do on “down days” like these. Coming up is a week where the Fourth of July is on a Thursday. Then there is the Friday before Labor Day weekend. And in the distance you’ve got Thanksgiving week and the days around Christmas and Holidays.

It’s never a bad idea to prepare.

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Are YOU prepared for sales growth? The Sales Vault is the largest and most successful training resource for sales people and selling owners in the graphic arts. Be a part of it at SalesVault.pro or call Bill Farquharson at 781-934-7036 and he can convince you himself.