When you run your own company, being able to sell one of the most important skills you can have.
Without sales, nothing happens, and if you operate entirely for yourself you are completely dependent on getting your goods or services sold (a little depending on what you do of course).
In this post, I’m not going to go through dry topics like opening replies, reasoning, objections and closing techniques, but instead tell you the secret of any good seller! Big words maybe, but if you follow these tips over time I can guarantee you success.
There are some universal rules that apply as well face to face with the customer or over the phone. Personally, I have the most experience from door sales (many years), which is probably the most “basic” form of sales available.
Principle 1. The seller who works the most, visits the most customers and cannot be broken by all the “no” he / she encounters has the greatest chance of selling the most (as long as all other parameters are the same). So if you have 50 customer meetings a week, you have a greater chance of selling more than one who visits 25. In addition, as a bonus, you will also experience being “warmer in the jersey”, your self-confidence increases and you become better at sell when you get your sales skills trained.
Principle 2. Imagine the following scenario: You sit and relax after the end of the work day, dinner is over and you half doze on the couch. Suddenly the phone rings and you lift irritated by the handset. Almost before you say hello, a machine-like voice of a thesis fires about the benefit of subscribing to two pairs of socks once a month. You try to break in and say you’re not interested, but don’t come to the word. The machine gun voice runs on and after a long time you no longer bother. You toss the tube at the same time as you roar: “Fuck the seller!”
How big is the chance of getting a sale with this method? Microscopically, and what is even worse is that the sales become so-called “overtaking sales” where the customer buys just to avoid hearing more / or exerting pressure on it. Such sales only get you cancellations and trouble.
So what made the seller in the example wrong? Yes, he did not use principle 2, which is “before the seller can sell his product, he / she must sell the seller”. If you are unable to get the customer to like you, your chances of getting sales are very small. Especially if you have a product that the customer MUST NOT have. Getting the customer to like you is much more difficult by phone than face to face, but there are many skilled salespeople who master this as well.
We humans are screwed together so that we like those who are like ourselves. Say you’re selling a tractor to a reliable farmer who talks very slowly and is passionate about elk hunting. Here you as a seller should take your time. Decrease the speed of your voice. If he moves with quiet movements, you should do so (without making it seem unnatural). Already, you have significantly increased your chances of sales. Try to find out what the customer is interested in. If you see a huge moose antler on the wall hanging next to 3 hunting rifles then chances are that this person likes elk hunting. Then you should throw out a nonsensical question about that antler. For example, “How much did the moose weigh?”. Then you will see that no matter how trusting and unpalatable the farmer is usually, there will be a few words from him now.
The more you get customers to talk, the better. Be genuinely interested in what they’re talking about. Junting is quickly revealed and only seems negative. Stop in occasionally and ask follow-up questions about what he just said. For example: “where did you shoot it”? The little time you have spent so far without talking about the product is incredibly effective. You have now achieved that the customer likes you. In addition (maybe just as important) you have put him in a positive state of mind with all the talk about his favorite hobby. Now you can start talking about your product. If he needs / advice on a new tractor, chances are he will buy it from you, either now or at a later date.
This is starting to get a long way, but I hope you have read it all. Here are some points to consider when selling:
– Talk about the customer and his / her interests
– Be genuinely interested in the customer
– Never talk about yourself
– Ask questions
– Talk as little as possible but get the customer to talk (a good seller has big ears and a small mouth)