One of the toughest jobs out there is sales. In most organizations, unlike other departments, the sales team’s individual successes and failures are on a scorecard for all to see and the “atta boys” are often few and far between.
Fortunately, it’s also one of the most rewarding jobs out there - if you approach it the way all successful sales professionals do. And that starts with attitude. An attitude of giving instead of getting. An attitude of solving your customers’ problems. An attitude of improving the business performance and personal position of all your clients.
It sounds easy, however it’s not. The natural and understandable default sales thinking is: “We want to get the sale. We want to win the deal. We want to earn commission.”
We get caught up in what WE want.
The truth is that you’ll get those things if you focus on the customer needs first. To help you do that, here are 4 things that all successful sales people are able to convey during the sales process. Make this your habit and you will not only win more clients, your prospects will feel that if they don’t choose you, they will probably regret it.
1. I understand you.
We call this being in the customer’s operating reality. Ensure your conversations and questions are designed to understand your prospects current situation and how they feel about it. Where do they see opportunity for things to be better? You must see the problems and opportunities that exist for your prospect through their eyes, not yours.
2. You are the reason I exist.
It’s true. There is no need for a sales person to take an order. There is no need for a sales person to push a product... there’s the Internet for that. A sales person exists purely to add value, to solve problems, to create unique solutions that improve outcomes and lives. Keep that in mind and communicate that so your prospect can feel it. That’s the way to build trust and trust is necessary to advance relationships and ultimately a client.
3. I am going to make you a hero.
During the buying process, the work is on the sales person for the most part (uncover opportunities, create solutions that match, ensure the decision criteria is met, etc.) However, once the prospect decides to “buy” something, the work shifts to the them. Changes take place. Processes and relationships change, the old way of doing things become the old way of doing things and the new way is not proven. That can often be scary for a prospect – as they wonder “What if this doesn’t work? What if it’s the wrong choice? What if people think I am a fool?" That is often why deals just stall out (see our blog "We Came in Nothing Again!"). You must find ways to convey that this is going to be good for them personally as well as professionally. Be sure you know their fears and give them proof, references and comfort that "you’ve got this"!
4. I’ll guide you through an easy-to-follow plan to make this happen.
What’s also scary with change is the amount of work it might take. If you’ve conveyed the first three goals, yet the prospect thinks it’s going to be hard or confusing to implement your solution, they may prefer the status quo. Share an easy to follow implementation plan that will get them to their goal. We all like easy. We all like getting to our goals. We just don’t like it when it’s hard. Make it easy to choose you.
At Butler Street, our Become the Only Choice Sales Effectiveness programs are all designed to help the sales professional win more clients by providing more value. We can help you and your people grow with an easy to follow plan and system of reinforcing activities. Contact us…