Tag: sales

On selling

Confidence is key to selling. If you lack confidence and are meek, it doesn’t matter if you have the best product and it’s at a great price. If you leave any doubt or confusion in the buyer’s mind, you’ll lose them to more confident competitors.

When you lack confidence in your own product, people will find reasons (real or made up) as to why it’s not a good purchase.

Know your product inside and out. Know the competition’s product. Understand the market in general. Be positive, talk clearly and concisely, and be energetic (but not annoyingly so). Dress according to what is expected of the product you’re selling and the people you’re selling to. When in doubt, slightly overdress as opposed to being underdressed for the occasion.

Free flowing conversations to build trust and establish rapport

Sales scripts don’t work because they are too structured, and the customer does not feel listened to. It’s best to let a natural conversation flow while still getting the information you need from the customer, rather than sounding robotic and reading off a list of questions or looking at a scripted “conversation.”

You should have certain questions you want answered so you can determine how to best help the customer, if you’re a good fit for them (and if they’re a good fit for you), etc. But really, you should be listening and responding authentically to establish the best rapport with the customer.

No means no (for now)

No doesn’t mean no forever. It means no for now. It means not yet. It means that your current offer hasn’t enticed them enough or that they are not motivated enough to accept your offer. No isn’t the end of the discussion, it’s the beginning of the negotiation. If you really want to make a deal, don’t stop at no. Dig deeper and see what relatively minor concessions you could give to the other party (which may be of little value to you, but greatly valued by them) to sweeten the deal.

Empathy as a starting point for negotiation

Listening shows empathy. When people feel listened to and understood, they are more likely to work with you. You can work in tandem towards a common goal (or at least a compromise) much easier if you start out by showing that you are listening to them.

When you truly listen to somebody and they can feel you are listening to them, it’s a sign of respect. That’s why you have to start out with empathy and active listening to obtain the best results in any negotiation or sales process. It’s important to use both empathy and active listening throughout any conversation, but especially at the start, because first impressions really do count for something. Don’t dig yourself into a hole before you really get started by disrespecting the other person/party.

You have to understand what it is that the other side wants. What is the issue they want solved in order to provide the best response. What is their pain point and how we can alleviate their pain?

If you go in with the same sales pitch every single time, it may work in certain situations, but your solution may be completely wrong for them in other situations. Listen, dig deeper, and empathize with what they are feeling to show respect and to get further in negotiations.

Go into every negotiation or sales pitch with one thing in mind: How can we make this a win-win situation so both sides leave happy, nobody leaves holding a grudge over the other side, and you don’t hurt yourself in future business with that person or their friends?

Conversation – A Work In Progress

I’m introverted and generally very goal-oriented. I enjoy working hard and always staying busy. And with that, I feel that my conversational skills are often lacking. I am not big on small talk. I usually feel like I want to move onto the next thing on my checklist and that stopping to make casual conversation is unproductive. But it’s those conversations about “nothing” that help to build relationships and establish feelings of trust. It’s actually very productive (indirectly) if you can take the time to connect with others, as long as you’re still leaving time to complete other tasks (you can’t sit around and gossip all day). This has been one of my biggest social flaws ad is something I’m working to improve…

The key to improving in anything in life is first to be aware that you are deficient in an area. I’ve done that here. With conversational skills being the deficiency, I delve a little deeper into what I think makes up a good/great conversationalist. Basically, there are three parts to being a great conversationalist.

1. Asking the right questions

The first part is knowing what questions to ask. If you don’t know a person, their interests, etc., sometimes it can be difficult to strike up a conversation. But if you have a general understanding of how to start conversations (asking open-ended questions, usually about the person or a topic that the person has an opinion on) and you also have a vast knowledge of current events or miscellaneous information, this is a helpful start.

2. Be curious

After knowing what questions to ask, you have to actually ask those questions and be interested in the person’s response. You need to listen to what they’re saying and respond accordingly. If you’re interested and curious in what they are saying, this will naturally lead to more questions on your part. Give verbal or physical cues showing your interest. Don’t be over dramatic on this and don’t be fake about it, but if you’re actually interested in what they’re saying, encourage them to talk more.

3. Contribute to the conversation

The third part to be in a great conversationalist is to have interesting things to say and to be willing to share stories with others. If you have great stories to tell, but you are only giving people one word answers and not making it appear as if you’re open to have a conversation, they will shut down and try to look elsewhere. Or if you are asking them questions, but not adding to the conversation, it will seem more like an interrogation.