More than 2,000 years ago, the brilliant Chinese general, Sun Tzu, recorded his thoughts on how to wage war and win. Even today, The Art of War remains one of the most valuable sources of military strategy ever written.

Many top military professionals keep a copy of Sun Tzu’s work on a nearby bookshelf. Salespeople should do likewise. Why? Take the following excerpt from his work as an example, and then allow me some journalistic license.

“Now, the general who wins a battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to victory and few calculations to defeat. It is by attention to this calculation that I can foresee who is likely to win or lose.

Now with respect to Sun Tzu, let me say his words another way, as related to sales.

The salesperson who wins a sale makes many pre-planning decisions in his/her head before the sales presentation is conducted. The salesperson who loses a sale makes but a few pre-planning decisions beforehand. Thus, many pre-call planning activities lead to sales and few pre-call planning activities lead to no sales. It is by attention to pre-call planning that I can foresee who is likely to win or lose the sale.

Sun Tzu teaches us that going into battle with a comprehensive plan is a key to victory, while a weak plan leads to defeat. Thus, it’s the same in selling. The salesperson who meets his/her prospect with a well thought out plan is more likely to win the sale than the salesperson who shows up unprepared.

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