…is to hear what isn’t being said.
-Peter Drucker
We have assessed hundreds if not thousands of salespeople and the vast majority of them are extroverted in some form (High I being the most common). We have also assessed a handful of purchasing/financial employees who tend to have introverted tendencies (High S or High C being the most common).
I mention this because selling, at its most basic level, involves good communication. Yet there is a natural problem that surfaces when a High I salesperson attempts to sell a High C purchasing/financial/operations person — their 2 styles are the worst possible communication match there is.
The High I salesperson wants to build rapport, be personal and discuss business at some point. The High C buyer wants to jump straight into business, gather volumes of data and go through an extended question and answer session (they question, salesperson answers).
The High I salesperson is trusting and can be emotional. The High C buyer is skeptical and remains analytical.
I could go on, but you get the point. This example provides an extreme mismatch of styles, but each style has its own selling triggers that the salesperson can incorporate into their sales process to clarify their communication. Clearer communication leads to better qualifying and, typically, shorter sales cycles.
As part of our evaluation process, we provide your salespeople with a 1 page Selling Style sheet to assist them in reading and adjusting their style to their prospect’s preferred method of communicating.