Amongst the struggle of the various voices and opinions offering different advice everywhere you turn, it seems difficult for Sales Professionals to actually pinpoint the areas that can have the biggest impact on their bottom line results.
So, based on 100’s of successful training assignments here’s the 4 key areas that we believe will have the greatest impact on your results and some practical advice to get you started. Focus on developing your skills in these areas and get your sales performance ahead of the curve in no time.
#1 – Be More Persuasive
You will never be a great Salesperson if you don’t learn to persuade. If you’re not actively trying to persuade prospects on every interaction, you’re playing a massive numbers game – waiting for the guy that says ‘I’m glad you called, I want to buy” who just doesn’t exist.
Expect a little resistance now and again and prepare yourself for it rather than giving up the ghost at the very first indication of resistance.
Empathy is key here, so bear that in mind and give yourself a fighting chance by pre-preparing your responses to common objections you can use where appropriate.
Make sure you’re communicating at a sufficiently high level to confidently get through any turbulence you may encounter at the start line.
#2 – Be Easier to Communicate With
The phone is undoubtedly your most effective tool. Being effective with your e-mails however is another area that will impact your results.
An e-mail that is quick and easy to read is quick and easy to respond to so you should be working on the assumption that any more than an intro line, 3 sentences of body text and finishing with a question is too much. If it doesn’t finish with a question, or at the minimum a clearly defined next action, I wouldn’t bother sending it.
You need to make yourself as easy to communicate with as possible.
Define your sole objective for each communication and get used to being direct.
#3 – Qualify Earlier
Think about the reasons you can’t close deals. Cost, Timing and loads of other likely excuses I’m sure will flood to mind. The fact is though you’re probably thinking about it all wrong.
If these specific areas are stopping you closing at the end of the process, you need to address them as early on as you can in order to clear the resistance in your path to the finish line.
This also avoids false hope and spending valuable time on deals that aren’t coming in this month.
#4 – Listen Better
What is interesting is that salespeople seem to show little or no regard for the language that is used by their prospects. They listen to what they say but not how they say it.
How to Listen Better
Make a list of vague words/terms (could, should, maybe, in the future, soon, probably, possibly etc) and next time you have a sales conversation with a new prospect, tally down how many woolly terms they actually use; but do nothing at this stage.
This serves as a massive eye opener. When you start really paying attention, you can pick up on these cues and use them to explore these areas further, develop need and get a better understanding of your prospects position.
You may need some help but if you can work on improving your skills in these key areas, you’ll see results. I guarantee it.
