OK, so you’re not a great sales person. Maybe you don’t even like it. But if your business is becoming more dependent on being “that sales person”, here are a couple of quick ideas, tiny changes if you will, to becoming more successful at sales.
In fact, you might even find it easier to sell, especially when you make these three changes in your approach.
So here’s a 30 second lesson to help you capitalize on those big opportunities and even some smaller ones too!
Ready?
• CHANGE #1: Describe what you’re selling as a “verb” rather than a “noun.” For example, you’re selling bowling. That’s a “noun” Stop! Sell a “verb” (entertaining, team-building, socializing, and partying). If you think that your job is to sell “bowling” (a noun), you’ll talk to the customer about product features. If you think your job is to sell “team-building” (a verb), you will tend to uncover your customer’s team-building needs. Then you can show him/her how your offering can fulfill that need.
• CHANGE #2: Think about selling as helping the customer rather than making a sale. To do this, you simply stop thinking of the sales process as “persuading”, “convincing”, “cajoling”, “B.S.ing”, etc. Wipe these terms out of your mind and start thinking about how you can visualize, with the customer, how (if they had your product) their problems might be solved and their goals achieved.
• CHANGE #3. Consider a sales call successful even when you don’t make a sale. It’s not always about making the sale. It’s not even about “winning”. If you sell something that somebody really doesn’t want, only two (2) things can happen and both of them are bad. One, the customer will gives it back to you and ask for his money back and two; the customer will never buy from you again. Make it clear to yourself and the customer, on your very first contact, that your offering may not be for him/her and, if you really can’t help him solve his problem, you are more than willing to leave.
• And the most important change. You will make more sales…and maybe even get to like it!
What do you think?
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Excellent suggestions, now we simply need to "sell" our own staff on how helpful this is to him/her. We need to help them solve their problems. Wood
ReplyDeleteGreat coaching, Fred!
ReplyDeleteI just ordered heart shaped pizza pans. We're going to "sell" a Sunday afternoon with your sweetheart.
Peppe