by Vanessa Cobb

Created on: January 28, 2009

Standing timidly at the door, I knocked. Would my knees buckle beneath me? Could I hold my nerve? This was my first sales appointment and I was petrified.

Only three months later, I made number one in the company for weekly sales revenue. I sold more in that single week than I'd earned for a whole year in my previous job.

What happened to the shy intruder? Where had my astonishing confidence come from?

We all feel nervous at times in our lives and most often when we're consciously stepping out on a limb.
After all, confidence comes with experience. Without it, when there's something at stake, we can only resort to raw courage.

Essentially, closing a deal with confidence is a matter of practice. Unpredictable variables crop up and each result brings its own valuable lesson. Experience builds confidence, not when we get a perfect result, but when we embrace failure with enthusiasm.

But to add to your experience along the way, perhaps you'll allow me to share some of mine. Here are my seven steps to success.

1. Know your product.

The first and most important thing to learn in your sale is precisely what you are offering. Once you have a clear idea about how your product can make a difference to someone, you're ready to take it to market. But be warned: there's only one way to deal with questions you may not be able to answer. Tell the truth. Your prospect won't be convinced that your offer is valuable unless you are. If you make something up just to get out of admitting you're unprepared, you've lost and may as well pack up and go. If you acknowledge that they've asked you a really good question and you want to make a note of it so you can give them an answer just as soon as you find it, you'll probably get a second chance.

Remember also that unless they're dedicated aficionados, they'll be less interested in the features than the benefits. You may know that the motherboard on your X950 houses a triple interface video converter (and yes, I just made that up) but what they want to know is that BBC i-player will run without stopping for three hours and show up flawlessly on the whole screen.

2. Get active

Who will close more sales the untrained caller who knocks on every door and asks: Would you like a home jewellery party?' or the over-rehearsed professional who just isn't quite ready to leave the office?

Nothing can beat activity for achieving a result. There is always time to improve upon a poor performance and the greatest secrets to success for most of us are the

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