Sales Training Advice » Sales Techniques

Sales Strategy: Engage Your Prospect’s Learning Style By John Boe

Josh Hinds — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 09:33:32 +0000

The successful outcome of your next sales presentation will be determined largely by your ability to do two things very well; develop rapport with your prospect and adapt your sales message to engage his or her preferred “learning style.” The “learning style” theory was developed back in the early 1970s and has proven to be an extremely powerful communication model that every school teacher, parent, manager, and sales rep should have in his or her toolbox.

Simply stated, the “learning style” theory promotes the concept that people have a natural preference, based upon their dominate sense, in how they choose to learn and process information; visual / seeing, auditory / hearing, or kinesthetic / touching.

Unfortunately, far too many sales reps unknowing undercut their sales effectiveness by failing to recognize the need to engage their prospects’ learning styles. For example, if a sales rep determines that his or her prospect is a visually-based learner, it’s up to the sales rep to make the adjustment and incorporate more colorful graphs/charts, brochures, and other visual aids throughout the presentation.

It’s easy to quickly and accurately determine your prospect’s preferred learning style by simply paying attention to his or her most commonly used words and phrases.

Visual-based learners might say:

“I can certainly see your point.”
“That looks good to me.”
“Do I make my point clear to you?”

Visual-based learners like pictures and prefer to get their information in writing. Use colorful charts, graphs, and other visual learning tools to help them make a buying decision.

Auditory-based learners might say:

“That sounds good to me.”
“I hear what you’re saying.”
“That rings true to me.”

Auditory-based learners tend to hang on every word that you say. This type of prospect learns best through group discussion and tends to talk things out when making a buying decision.

Kinesthetic-based learners might say:

“I can get my arms around that concept.”
“This point really grabbed my attention.”
“Let me get a grip on what you’re saying.”

Kinesthetic-based learners prefer to learn by physically touching and doing. Keep this type of prospect actively evolved throughout the selling process by using demonstrations and other “hands on” learning tools whenever possible.

If you want your prospects to get the most benefit from your website information, sales presentations, brochures, and related marketing materials, you need to present the information in the most engaging way possible. Multiple forms of information delivery will give you the best possible chance of appealing to each of these different learning styles.

“To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” — Tony Robbins
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John Boe presents a variety of sales training and motivational programs for meetings and conventions. John brings over twenty years of experience as an award-winning sales trainer to the platform. To have John speak at your next event, visit www.JohnBoe.com

-what was your biggest take-away lesson from the article above?

On Value, Selling, and the Social Media Sales Revolution By Landy Chase

Josh Hinds — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:48:00 +0000

Although your business card may identify you as a sales person, in the Selling Revolution your job is not so much to “sell” as it is to provide consistent, ongoing value to your customers. You already know that the reason any business exists is to fill needs and solve the problems of its market.

In your traditional role as a sales person, you have accomplished this goal by providing goods and services to your customer based on their needs for what you sell. This is also how customers have traditionally defined the value proposition of a sales person.

The problem inherent with the traditional selling model is that the benefit to the customer from working with you is largely limited to what occurs during the transaction process. In other words, your value to the marketplace in the past has been largely limited to those times in which a buyer, or prospective buyer, has an immediate need for what you sell. (Yes, ‘farming’, or client relationship management, may be considered a part of your adding value, but let’s face it – a lot of that post-transaction face-time is of little real value to most customers, right?) Your opportunity to provide value has historically revolved around these purchasing episodes, and in each case, when each transaction is completed, your ability to provide personal value largely evaporates once the purchase order is signed or the contract is finalized.

In the social media selling revolution, that restriction on sales people no longer applies. The technological phenomenon of social media as it pertains to adding value is this: it allows you to expand the fundamental purpose of a sales person – to solve the needs and problems of his or her customers – far beyond the traditional, transactional model.

It allows you to deliver personal value outside the bounds of simple business transactions. It gives you the means to efficiently provide value to potential customers when they are not in the market for what you sell. Also, it affords you the opportunity to brand yourself as a Value Generator within the business circles that you serve.

Why? Because, while your prospects and customers do not always have a need for the products or services that you offer, they do have a continuous, never-ending need for useful information. In today’s world, of course, the vast majority of these people get that information via the Internet.

That information is procured in one of two fundamental ways: either they search for it themselves, or the information comes to them through resources that they follow with social media. If you can position yourself as one of those resources that they follow – specifically, an individual within your industry who provides useful information that solves their needs and problems – your market will follow you online, and you will accomplish three fundamentally important objectives as a Value Generator:

1) You will establish high-value relationships with both prospects and existing customers within the market(s) that you sell to;

2) You will eliminate transactional events as a prerequisite for delivering value to those whom you wish to do business with, and instead, will do so consistently;

3) You will reverse the relationship between seller and buyer. No longer will you be preoccupied with ‘pursuing’ prospective customers. Instead, they will follow you.

Social media marketing is the vehicle that allows you to provide value to your market on a continual basis, even when you aren’t involved in a transaction. This value is delivered in the form of content. Your role in this new selling environment is therefore to provide ongoing value to your prospects and customers by providing information (content) that solves their problems and addresses their needs.

By making sure that you communicate and add value online as much as possible, you build influence. Everything you write essentially lives online somewhere forever. Even if only a small number of people find your information somehow, every little bit adds up. Once you get the hang of this, creating offline content in some ways almost seems obsolete.
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Landy Chase, author of Competitive Selling: Out-Plan, Out-Think, and Out-Sell to Win Every Time, founded his own sales training and consulting firm in 1993 and has clients in more than sixty industries on five different continents. Visit him at www.LandyChase.com

-What was the key lesson you learned? How can you implement it into your daily work routine?

Sales Skills: Active Listening By Joe Miller and Matt Dahlstrom

Josh Hinds — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 10:13:00 +0000

People love to be heard. Everyone has a soap box stashed away, waiting for their moment. That’s why one of the greatest compliments you can give a person is to listen to them. It validates them as a person. So work at giving it to them. It sounds easy, but it’s one of the hardest things we can get people to learn, because all people have their soapbox, including you. Your job is to keep your soapbox stashed away.

Active listening is easy. It is as simple as taking a seat in front of your customer, opening your eyes and ears and paying attention to what the customer says and does. Through active listening, a salesperson can build a relationship faster, prod the customer to expand on what they are saying, show empathy, and gain greater memory recall after the conversation, if they listen.

For a quick sales training course we are going to share two similar techniques named parroting or paraphrasing. These are powerful tools in your active listening strategy. Both involve repeating back to the customer what the customer just said. Parroting is repeated word for word, while paraphrasing is a fusion of what they said and what you understood, reframed in your context. Parroting is a photocopy, while paraphrasing is a summarization. The first works best if you are going to repeat something short. It’s easy to remember and therefore easy to repeat. The second works best if you are repeating back a long-winded statement or a more complicated idea.

If you can repeat a statement with a questioning tone, you will entice the customer to expound upon what they have already stated. If you use a statement tone of voice, it signifies to the customer that the statement was heard and registered. You are telling them you understand, or asking them to verify and confirm what you think you understand.

The confirmation technique shows the customer you are actively listening. Wait for the customer to say something important. When the customer pauses, make a comment confirming that you heard the customer. Comments such as, “I hear you,” “I understand,” or “I see,” show empathy and lead you to a state of active listening. This is not the end all, be all, however, which we will discuss in a minute.

There are pitfalls to this technique, and there is one you should avoid at all costs. A salesperson should never interrupt, talk over, or finish their customer’s sentences for them. Go to any store and take interest in a product. Does the salesperson interrupt, talk over you, or finish your sentences for you? Does your waiter move on to the next person before you’ve had a chance to order your full meal? Doesn’t it make you angry? Now imagine how your customer feels. If you can’t empathize with this situation, you’re dead in the water, because you’ll never actively listen.

It’s OK. You’re not alone. We all do it. We learned it when we were kids and our parents made us wait five minutes to ask a simple question while they talked about the wonders of Ovaltine and the evils of Castor Oil with Aunt Agnes. That’s where we learned the old, “Yeah, but.” As kids, we learned we had to fight to be heard and fight to be respected. Great. Now you must unlearn it. Sales is not a fight. They don’t have to respect you. They just have to give you the sale and buy from you. Keep it simple. Keep it easy. Follow thee simple principles from our sales training course, “Selling is Easy” and you will listen, learn and sell.
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Joe Miller and Matt Dahlstrom have been training sales people in some of America’s largest and most successful companies for over ten years. They are dedicated to helping every salesperson learn how to make selling easy, make more sales and earn more money. Visit them at www.salesmonkeys.com or call at 1-866-966-1066.

Sponsor: Secrets of Closing The Sale By Zig Ziglar … Whether you’re a seasoned sales veteran or just now beginning your first sales position, this program provides you with practical advice and effective questioning techniques that you can use to transform prospects into clients… Learn more about Zig Ziglar’s Secrets of Closing The Sale.

Sales Tips: Get In and Get Started Adding Value to Your Sales System By Joanne Black

Josh Hinds — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 10:38:00 +0000

You’ve heard it all before: Sales experts talk and talk about creating value. If we just create enough value for our clients, they will buy-whatever the price and whatever the economy. What’s new about that?

Yes, the economy is lagging and budgets are cut. Yes, we have competition. Yes, clients are postponing decisions. So now what?

Offer New Ideas to Woo New Clients …

Sales experts have always talked value. Now we need to put ourselves in our clients’ shoes and become creative. We must get in and get started. Think smart, not big.

It’s always smarter to have a smaller piece of something than a big piece of nothing. Begin with a smaller project, a reduced order, or a regional-rather than global-implementation. Get in, and get to know the client. Let them get to know you. Get to know their business.

Create Metrics to Breed Referrals …

Sit on the same side of the table as your client. Work together to determine the best way to get started. Always, always, always create metrics with your client. How do you, together, define success?

Get agreement that once the current project is successful-according to the metrics you’ve agreed upon-the client will work with you to identify other opportunities within his or her organization. A successful project breeds a successful relationship … and successful referrals.

Negotiation as a Sales Strategy …

Price. Aha! This is the big hurdle. Yes, the client will want to negotiate on price. That’s her job-to build business while watching the bottom line. How many times have you submitted a proposed price to a client and had her say right off the bat, “Great! Where do I sign.”? It doesn’t happen. We always want to get the best deal, so why wouldn’t our clients?

If you must adjust your price, adjust the scale of your project or the deliverables as well. Always get something in return for a reduced rate and write it into your agreement. Maybe the client agrees to write a testimonial or promises a referral to another business unit in his organization or to someone they know at a different company.

Maybe you barter some of your services. Bartering is an age-old way of doing business, and it makes sense in many cases if you want what your client has and he needs what you have. Perhaps the client has software that your company needs, or a consulting methodology that could propel your business. You get the picture. Work it out.

If you can’t work things out, be willing to walk away. It’s a tough decision, but it may be your best decision. You’ll be off to the next client who values what you offer and is willing to pay for it. And offer those valuable referrals!
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America’s leading authority on referral selling, professional speaker, and author of No More Cold Calling™, Joanne Black helps sales teams get more referrals and attract more business fast without increasing costs. Discover how to turn prospects into clients more than 50 percent of the time. Visit www.nomorecoldcalling.com. Follow Joanne on Twitter @ReferralSales.

-Do you have any additional suggestions for creating value that you would like to share?

Sales Tips: Why Your Customer Doesn’t Like Your Price By Mark Hunter

Josh Hinds — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:06:04 +0000

You’ve had what you think is a great sales call. You feel you’ve done everything correct, and you are certain the customer will soon say “yes” to your offer.

Just as quickly as you think the customer will buy, they say something along the lines of, “I like what you’re offering, but your price is way too much.” Without missing a beat, you begin to shudder at the thought of losing the sale.

Let’s look at why your customer doesn’t like your price.

It comes down to one reason. The one and only reason your customer doesn’t like your price is because they have failed to see enough value in what you are offering to warrant paying the price.

Don’t believe for a moment it’s because a competitor might be offering a lower price. Certainly don’t allow yourself to believe the customer would be better off waiting for a better deal. Finally, don’t even entertain the thought that your price might really be too high.

The correct answer is the customer simply has not seen enough value in what you’re offering.

The easiest way to correct this problem is to get the customer’s input. Don’t wait to do this after they’ve rejected your offer, but rather do it at the beginning. At the start of the sales call is when the customer’s input is the most valuable. The reason I say this is because the first half of the sales call is when the customer is going to be the most forthcoming with information.

It’s not unusual during a sales call for the customer to begin sensing the salesperson may try to ask for the order. If the customer begins to believe this and they are the least bit hesitant, they may very well start throwing out false information. The customer may start talking about objections that are really irrelevant to their real need. They will do this purely to disarm the salesperson.

This is the reason why it is so important to engage the customer early in the sales call and to get them to begin sharing with you their wants and needs. The earlier they share with you this type of information, the better job you can do later in the call in following up on this information.

You can then drill down deeper to get even more specific information. Your objective is to get the customer to really see that the issues they’re facing are significant – and the only solution available is the one you are offering.

Some of you might think this is manipulative selling or arm-twisting, but it’s not that at all. If you, the salesperson, are merely asking questions and getting the customer to do the majority of the talking, then how could it be called arm-twisting?

Your objective as the salesperson is to get the customer to share with you at least three reasons they need what you’re offering. One of the three should be time sensitive. The customer’s time-sensitive need will allow you to close the sale now. It’s the other two that will allow the customer to see why they need to buy.

I use three benefits as the minimum, but the more the customer shares with you, the higher the probability you will be able to close the sale. I use the number three because more often than not, if you try to close before the customer has shared three of their wants or needs, you won’t be as successful. Of course, this excludes the overwhelming benefit or need they share with you that is so big and time-sensitive that it invites an immediate close.

When the customer shares with you a time-sensitive need, this is a perfect opportunity to first validate the time need. You validate it by asking them a question to get them to share more about why time is an issue. By getting the customer to explain this further, you will discover that the customer usually becomes even more conscientious about why they need to buy from you right now.

When you feel as if a customer doesn’t like your price, you simply need to remember they only fail to see the value of what you are offering. As long as you remember it is your job to help them see the value, you will increase your odds of success dramatically. I’m not going to say you’ll be 100% successful with this approach, but I know the more you use it, the less often you will hear the “price” excuse when a customer doesn’t buy.
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Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter”, is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. For more information, visit him at TheSalesHunter.com.

-what are your thoughts on the ideas above? Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Sponsor Message: Secrets of Closing The Sale By Zig Ziglar … Zig shares tips and techniques from his vast wealth of sales experience. Learn more about Zig Ziglar’s Secrets of Closing The Sale.

Sales Strategies: Help – My Sales are Slumping and I don’t Know Why! By Mary Gardner

Josh Hinds — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:36:00 +0000

Have you ever taken a look around your company and wondered what in the heck the other people were doing to bring in so much business to the company? You may feel that you’re on equal ground with the other sales person or people, but for some reason they are way ahead of you in the numbers in sales. What is it? Do they drink a magic potion every morning? Do they have a better territory or do they just have better customers?

Here are some questions to ask yourself to see where the gap is:

Are you a master at your craft? Consider the length of time that you’ve been with the company. Do you know everything that you can about your product and your service? How are your relationships with those within the company? Are there people who can do you favors, even for your clients, that you should get to know better? What about your competition? Do you know them inside and out? Do you know their weaknesses and their strengths? Do you know how to get a sell away from them in a tactful manner by emphasizing your strengths where they are weak?

What time of day do you get in the office versus your co-workers? Are you wondering in the office at 8:30 or 9am and settling in to have your coffee? Are they at the office at 7:30 and getting coffee and catching up on the news an hour before you even get into the office? Are they on the phones already when you’re just getting ready to look at the paper? Consider getting in earlier or planning your day the night before so you can get into the office and start communicating with your clients the second you get to the office.

How much is email taking you away from your work? Are you spending part of your day reading jokes, and watching YOUTUBE videos that are entertaining, but are keeping you away from your work? Did you know that even if you DON’T read your emails, just having to delete them is taking valuable time away from your work and making a profit for your company? Consider putting everything in the JUNK file that doesn’t pertain to business and put a sign on your desk that you’ll only check email 1x an hour or late in the day. See if this addiction that has hit most people in America can free up some of your time.

Have you had instability in your life this past year? Have you had major stress or changes in your life? Has anyone closed to you died? Have you changed jobs? Have you moved? Have you gone through a major life transition like a divorce or become and empty nester? Has anyone close to you been relying on you emotionally and you feel drained? Sometimes, our emotions can be dragging us down and we don’t even know it.

If this happens to be you, consider getting in a therapy group or counseling, or finding a support group to help you process these changes and the emotions that follow. You can be doing everything you’re supposed to be doing in business, but the sadness you feel might be leaking through your attitude. Get support where you need it. None of us is an island and no one expects anyone to go through traumatic times completely alone.

How is your attitude? Are you depressed that your sales are sagging and you get down about that? Are you angry about something at work or do you have problem clients that you’re trying to avoid? How is your relationship with your boss and those in the office? Your attitude may be negative if you’re going through a slump and it’s going to take dramatic measures to get your attitude back in a place that is positive and care free.

Consider listening to motivational tapes every morning on the way to work , in your car or when you get up in the morning. If you’ve got the news on, you’re probably getting more negative messages than you are getting positive messages, so you need to take control. This tiny step can change your sales figures literally overnight.

Are you a gabber or a closer? How much time are you spending socializing and reading or doing busy work versus spending time with your top customers or reading about sales or learning about your product? Start putting a clock by your desk to monitor your phone conversations and evaluate where your spending your time throughout the day. If you’re socializing more than your making calls to customers or working, then it’s time to alter some of your habits. If you need to connect with others emotionally, schedule 15 minutes a day to make your personal calls and keep them short and sweet. Time management is one huge area to be constantly on top of for long term success.

What are you listening to? What are you reading? If you spent 1 hour a day listening to a motivational tape or reading a book to enhance your learning, in one year, you’d probably triple your income by learning success secrets of the superstars. Go to the library and check out books and tapes. Turn off the radio and TV and start educating yourself every day. Trade great books with others, and keep a book with you at all times so when you find yourself standing in line or waiting for someone, then you can use the time wisely. You can become an expert in your field and 5 others in one years time!

Are you getting enough sleep? Often times we might get into bed in plenty of time to get a good nights sleep, but spending time with Jay Leno is often more enticing than turning off the lights. Eating well, exercising and sleeping enough are basic self care items but if one of these is unbalanced, then your body isn’t going to have the energy to keep it going when things get slow. The body will slow down and stop and then it takes 2x as much effort to get it going. Make sure you get at least 7-9 hours of sleep, drink plenty of water, take your vitamins and exercise at least 3 days a week.

I’m Unorganized but I know where everything is. Organized Chaos? That’s just an excuse for those of us who don’t have great organizational skills. And when you’re not organized, you spend precious time looking for things and trying to GET organized. What you need is a good system. So sit down with someone who can help you get a system in place, and then do your best to implement it and use it every week. Some sales people have an administrative person come in weekly to file, or to throw away things that aren’t useful any more. But they keep on top of things and it helps them throughout the week. This precious time saver can not only save time, but loads of frustration.

Are you in the wrong field? Is there a chance that you stand on the sidelines longing to do something different and feeling jealous that you’re in the wrong field? If this is you, no matter how organized you get, you might never have the heart, soul and passion for your job.

This might take some time for you to discover your true passion, but it can be done in mini steps by talking with others in other professions or at other companies, going to the bookstore to see what subjects intrigue you, and by searching the internet for other careers and jobs that might suit your personality better.

Try things out first… read about them, and study about them and then talk to people who are doing them. Perhaps you might have to take a salary cut to start a new career, but in the long run, you’ll be happier with doing what you truly WANT to do, rather than just working to bring home a pay check.
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Mary Gardner, The Charisma Coach! is an Executive Communications Consultant and Trainer. She works with, coaches and trains individuals, sales teams, executives, and celebrities. For information contact: mary@marygardner.com or Web: www.marygardner.com.

-what was your biggest takeaway from the ideas above? What can you implement that would make an impact on your sales results?

Sales Tips: Presenting to Donald Trump By Robert Terson

Josh Hinds — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 13:38:00 +0000

“Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back in the same box.” – Italian Proverb

Architect Barry Thalden, hotel and casino designer and one of my dearest friends for the past 50 years, tells of presenting a proposal to Donald Trump: “I managed to arrange a meeting with Donald Trump.

We met in what later became the infamous Board Room on his TV show The Apprentice. My presentation was on slides. As I started to set up my projector, he immediately objected. Undaunted, I told him it would only take a few minutes and would fully explain the opportunity I’d come to show him.

Once the presentation began he interrupted me several times, trying to rush me along; each time I told him I was just getting to the part he wanted to know about. I’d come all the way to New York to see him; I was going to do it my way, come hell or high water. I wasn’t going to chicken out, be intimidated because he was Donald Trump.

When the presentation was over he said, ‘I can’t believe you got me to sit through your entire presentation—my rule for meetings is 12 minutes and out.’ As you know, I got the job.” If Thalden can stand his ground with an egomaniac like Trump, you can do the same with anyone—if, like Thalden, you’re fearless.

The question you must face first, though, is Why do people of wealth and status intimidate you, in a way “normal” prospects don’t? (Remember, we’re being honest with ourselves, folks.)

Why is achieving equality with them more difficult for you? Is the difference rooted in how they perceive you or how you perceive them? The answer is within you, of course. Your perspective filter subconsciously tells you that their wealth and status makes you subservient to them and you act accordingly.

You surrender your power to them almost instinctively, for no good reason. A master salesperson will not make that foolish “choice”; he will demand—yes, “demand” is the perfect word—equality, and will use that equality to win over and serve that prospect to the best of his ability. If you want to be a top-tier professional, you must do the same.

Make a point of this: surrender your power to no-one.
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Robert Terson spent 40 years fearlessly selling advertising to small businesspeople; his passionate purpose as an author and speaker is to enlighten and inspire you to be a far better salesperson than you are now. Visit him at SellingFearlessly.com

-what advice, if any, would you recommend when it comes setting appointments & preparing to deliver successful sales proposals?

Sales Tip: The Best Information Comes From Short Questions By Mark Hunter

Josh Hinds — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 13:33:42 +0000

There’s no better way to improve the quality of information you receive from a potential customer than by asking short questions.

We all can recall far too many times when we’ve sat across the table from a customer we’re trying to help – and we know we can help, if they would just provide us information about their needs and goals.

The problem is that no matter what question we ask, we get the same response: a big fat “I don’t know” (or something along that line). Then, almost without thinking, we put on our super salesperson cape and start telling the person everything they need. Unfortunately, when it comes to agreeing to the sale, the person turns cold.

Our problem in dealing with this type of customer is we need to find a better way to engage them and to get them to think about what they want and need – and then share that information with us.

The answer to this dilemma? Short questions. I believe that short questions get you long answers (while long questions get you short answers). What too often happens is we are talking to a customer and asking them what we believe are simple questions, but in reality, those questions are simple only to us. To someone unfamiliar with our product and services, the questions are complex.

For example, we ask a question that has a couple of facts wrapped up in it. As a result, it winds up being more of a statement for which we are simply looking for feedback or agreement. No wonder customers can give us the cold shoulder and the blank stare.

What we want to do is ask short questions. In their simplest form, they are questions like “why” and “how.” Or possibly they look like this: Could you give me an example? Could you explain that again to me?

The shorter the question, the more likely we are to get a long answer. The next step is to ask them another short question, following up on what they just said. The beauty about this is it allows the customer to do all the talking. By doing the talking, they’ll tell you their needs and desired benefits. They’ll tell you their goals and will reveal a level of information you need to determine how to best serve them.

When using the short question approach, there are only two things you need to remember. First, ask the customer a soft easy question to which you know they’ll respond. Then after they have given you a response, continue with the short questioning approach by asking, “Could you give me another example?” You then pause and allow the client to give you more information, upon which you follow up again with another short question such as, “How?” or “Why?” Basically, you want to do whatever you can to get them talking more.

The second rule to remember is to not keep asking the same short questions. If you do, you’ll come across as an inquisitive 3-year-old rather than the professional salesperson you know you are. You can avoid this best by picking up on a single item they shared with you and drilling down on just that one item.

When you drill down on a single item, you demonstrate your listening skills and your ability to truly discern information. The beauty of this approach is when it works, the customer will many times share with you exactly what they want and will begin asking you questions about features and benefits.

Short questions get you long answers. Long questions get you short answers. It is up to you as to the approach you want to take, but if you want to actually learn something about the customer’s needs, you will get there quicker by asking short questions.
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Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter”, is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. For more information, visit him at TheSalesHunter.com.

- Have you had any experience asking “short questions” as explained in the article above? What additional advice, if any would you give? Use the comments below to share.

Sponsor: Secrets of Closing The Sale By Zig Ziglar … Zig shares tips and techniques from his vast wealth of sales experience. Learn more about Zig Ziglar’s Secrets of Closing The Sale.

What Does Your Customer Really Value? By Mark Hunter

Josh Hinds — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 14:33:12 +0000

Sell to the customer’s value expectations, not to your value propositions.

We’ve all heard the rule of listening to what the customer has to say, and there’s not a salesperson who thinks they don’t listen to the customer. Reality, however, is quite the opposite. I find time after time when I’m working with salespeople across any number of industries that the failure to listen is a huge issue.

Too many salespeople believe because they know the products they represent much better than the client, they know exactly what the customer will see as real value. Yes, you as the agent are going to have a general indication of what a typical customer wants. However, when it comes to interacting with a specific customer, you can’t rely on a “general indication” of value.

The only way you are going to know what a customer will place value in is by asking them and getting them to tell you what they’re looking for. Sounds simple enough, and yet so many salespeople don’t do it.

If you don’t believe what I am saying, then let me share about the situation my wife found herself in while buying a car. The car she was looking at was an SUV with all the amenities of what people expect when looking for an SUV (4-wheel drive, ability to handle rugged winter driving, etc).

The salesperson continued to press my wife on the value of these features of the SUV. The problem was that my wife wasn’t particularly interested in those features. Yes, we wanted an SUV, but my wife — the primary driver of the vehicle — was looking for an amazing sound system and heated, comfortable seats.

I can’t tell you the number of salespeople who lost the sale because they failed to understand what my wife’s value expectations were with regard to the car. We could easily have been sold on an SUV other than the one we bought, had the salesperson listened and put aside their pre-conceived notions of what a “typical buyer” of an SUV might be most interested in.

I share this example so that you can see that it’s not just about “understanding” this dynamic; it’s about learning from it and changing how you interact with customers.

The learning is simple: Listen to what the customer is saying. They will tell you what their needs are when you ask them the right questions. This means not only do you need to ask the right questions, but you also need to hear what the customer is telling you and then ask them a follow-up question on what they just told you.

Asking the follow-up question is key, because the vast majority of time, the customer will share with you much better insights when you show interest and involvement in what they’re telling you.

Once a person feels the other person is truly listening, it’s only natural for the quality of the conversation to become more real and engaging. By asking the follow-up questions, the salesperson will learn what the customer’s value expectations are.

The salesperson can then finally work to close the sale to the customer’s expectations. When that happens, they will do more than just close the sale. There is a significant likelihood the sale will be closed at a higher profit, because the customer sees more value in what they’re buying.
___________
Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter”, is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. For more information, visit him at TheSalesHunter.com.

Key Points: Two key things that were touched on in the article above were:

1) don’t assume you know what’s most important to the potential buyer. As familiar as you are with the product or service, you may be quite surprised to know what your prospects motives are in deciding to either buy or not.

2) Ask questions to help determine what the person you are dealing with is actually looking for. Don’t guess on this. It’s a simple point to keep in mind, but it could very well be the difference between making the sale or not!

Selling to Purchasing Departments By Mark Hunter

Josh Hinds — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 14:24:34 +0000

One of the most difficult parts of a salesperson’s job is dealing with purchasing departments. Whether you are a new salesperson or a seasoned veteran, you likely will agree that dealing with a purchasing department can create a tremendous amount of stress for a salesperson. Unless you are truly unprepared, there’s no reason for anyone to fear dealing with a purchasing department.

A purchasing department is nothing more than a group of individuals assembled for the sole purpose of trying to save money for their company. The key for you as the salesperson to remember is that even though the purchasing department’s number one objective is to save money, this doesn’t mean they are out to attack you on price.

Purchasing departments view their role as the supply-chain managers. It is their job to ensure the company does what it is supposed to do in an efficient manner that requires as little capital as possible. What this means is very simple: The purchasing department’s job is much more than beating up salespeople. Granted, many purchasing agents do enjoy the thrill of securing a lower price, but that’s no different than you. As a salesperson, you enjoy the thrill of securing a new sale. Accept the fact that the purchasing agent is doing nothing more than what they are supposed to do.

A few vital points to keep in mind when dealing with a purchasing department:

* Low price may appear to be what they are after, but if they buy something that’s cheap but doesn’t work, then it’s suddenly anything but a “cheap” item. If it doesn’t work, they now have to replace it. In doing so, they are stuck with a double-cost. Low price is really secondary to the performance of the item they are buying.

- Rarely does the purchasing department have huge amounts of power in a company. This means they’re not at the top of the food-chain. As a result, they can’t afford to upset those above them. Although they may harass you to lower your price, the last thing they want to do is be harassed by others in the company for not buying what those people wanted them to buy in the first place.

In other words, purchasing agents will put up a good fight on the surface, but in the end, they can’t afford to upset anyone in the company – regardless of how much money they think they can save.

- Purchasing agents may say they must have a lower price, but in reality their goal is really to save “x” amount of money – and it doesn’t necessarily have to come from you. Purchasing agents will always pick on the salespeople who appear to be the weakest and most vulnerable.

This only makes sense, as they are simply trying to manage their time. Therefore, they will secure the savings they need from whomever they believe will give it to them with the least amount of hassle.

Don’t hesitate to call a purchasing agent’s bluff. Purchasing agents love to posture themselves with salespeople as if they control the salesperson’s career. All they are really doing is seeing how far they can push you. Until you stand up to them and push back, they’ll keep pushing you to get additional benefits and lower prices.

When a purchasing agent demands a lower price, the only thing they’re doing is going with the demand they know works the best since they know there is almost always flexibility in pricing. It’s the strength and confidence of you the salesperson that is going to be the best indicator as to whether or not they’ll be successful in pushing you to lower your price.

Purchasing agents love to bluff people by saying they will buy from one of your competitors if you don’t lower your price. This actually happens far less than salespeople realize. Upon hearing the threat of going to another supplier, most salespeople will cower and give the purchasing agent what they are after.

Too bad the only thing the salesperson has done is give up profit. It’s this type of a response that gives salespeople a bad reputation. The entire time the purchasing manager is demanding you lower the price or they will switch, they know full well how expensive switching to a new supplier can be.
_____________
Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter”, is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. For more information, to receive a free weekly email sales tip, or to read his Sales Motivation Blog, visit TheSalesHunter.com.

-Do you have any ideas that would be helpful when it comes to selling to purchasing departments? Please use the comments section below to share your thoughts.

PS. If you found the article above helpful be sure to join our FREE Sales and Motivation Newsletter!

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