Is there anything more annoying than listening to someone use non-words in their speech? Well, there probably is, but this speech habit is a real pet peeve of mine. Saleshq.com provides a great article that calls out different sloppy speech habits. The article focuses on interview etiquette, but these patterns are applicable to all sales situations. One of the suggestions: 3. Grammatical Errors: The interviewer may question your education when you use incorrect grammar or slang. Expressions such as “ain’t” “she don’t,” “me and my friend” and “so I goes to him” aren’t appropriate. Be sure you speak in complete sentences and that tenses agree. The interview is not the… Read More
Continue ReadingLame Buzzwords
JustSell.com has a fantastic list of lame buzzwords to avoid when selling (or speaking in general as far as I am concerned). Here is the setup straight from the article: A buzzword is “an important-sounding usually technical word or phrase often of little meaning used chiefly to impress laymen.” –Merriam-Webster Think about it… do statements full of buzzwords communicate anything specific to your prospects and customers? Do you like hearing buzzwords? Amen. And now for just a partial list of the buzzwords: benchmark best in class best practices change agent core competency cross-functional dynamic empower growth initiative interface metrics optimize paradigm shift partner proactive streamline synergy user-friendly Metrics? Now… Read More
Continue ReadingProspecting Via Email
Salespeopel are always looking for better ways to find new prospects. You don’t have to look far to find articles giving advice about this subject. Some common examples: trying to make phone calls and undoubtedly leaving voice mails are futile, call at different times of the day or develop an email marketing campaign to push traffic to your website. Eyes on Sales has a very good article that gives tips on how to use email for prospecting. However, it doesn’t just write off making calls, as some do, but reinforces the fact that a salesperson needs to use both. Here is a quote from the article by author Craig James: What should we not do… Read More
Continue ReadingUmmm, Verbal Tics
I am back after a refreshing break so now it is time for the home stretch of 2008. I have to start with something light from JustSell.com – sales words: uh, verbal tics can be annoying, so… The article is a provides a great insight into a common problem (my editing): Verbal tics are words and phrases we use habitually, and sometimes, unconsciously. They’re the clutter in our speech that makes us sound less attentive, prepared, and intelligent than we want to sound. JustSell’s top 7 most aggravating verbal tics… uh um like you know I mean so (especially when used at the end of an unfinished sentence) well We… Read More
Continue ReadingStereotypical Features And Benefits
I am not fan of features and benefits selling. I don’t even think that approach belongs in a retail sales environment. The better approach is to qualify the prospect for need – What are they looking for? What is it they need to have/do? What is their time frame? You get the idea. Unfortunately, many features/benefits salespeople exist in the marketplace and they seem to be everywhere. This approach leads to the negative stereotype salespeople – pushy, talkative, bad listener, etc. Managesmarter.com provides an excellent tip within an article titled Transcend the Negative Stereotypes of Sales: Tip No. 3: Understand how your customers market services and generate profit. Don’t assume… Read More
Continue ReadingSeparation Clarity
Good article here from Salesopedia.com titled Reject Me, Please. Handling rejection just may be the most important trait of any strong salesperson. Rejection is the key differentiation between sales and all other positions. Salespeople have to be able to handle this topic well. Excellent sales people realize it’s about the products and service, and not them. They may have represented the product poorly and answered questions about the services ineptly, but nonetheless, the opposition is about what’s being sold, not the seller. This ability to distinguish between the purveyor and the purveyed I call Separation Clarity. Well stated and I am now a fan of the phrase “separation clarity.” I… Read More
Continue ReadingBuilding Rapport
Saleshq.com provides a simple list of suggestions for building rapport and connecting with others at networking events. I’m not certain the list is all that remarkable, but I was struck by a couple of tips: 5. Show interest in your conversational partner by actively listening and giving verbal feedback. Maintain eye contact. Never glance around the room while they are talking to you. 6. Listen more than you talk. Clearly you have to talk to build rapport, but the actual bonding occurs when your mouth is closed. I especially enjoyed the suggestion to “never” look around the room when someone is speaking to you. I have a friend who does… Read More
Continue ReadingSimple Sales Skill – Attentiveness
Justsell.com offers up a reminder about a critical sales skill that is often overlooked – attentiveness. This skill is less frequent in salespeople who lack empathetic abilities or are overly task-oriented. I have seen this first-hand on a number of occasions. What happens is the salesperson tends to something else during a discussion. Typically, the actions seems fairly innocuous – a cell phone alarm, looking through some notes, checking a text message, even adjusting the height of an office chair. All of these tasks seem inconspicuous, but they are an immediate tell that you are not fully attentive to the speaker. The better approach is to ignore the task if… Read More
Continue ReadingJust 5 Minutes
Something to make you think, from today’s JustSell.com enewsletter (sorry, no link): Just five minutes a day… What if you came to work five minutes early and left five minutes late every day for a year? (5) x (twice a day) x (roughly 250 sales days in the year) = 41.6 hours a year. That’s a whole extra work week. And possibly… Another project successfully completed Another deal closed Another prospect turned into a customer.
Continue Reading“Technology has destroyed time and space boundaries.”
The Wall Street Journal offers up an interesting read about work/life balance from Dr. Henry Cloud. Every time I receive a call from one of our customers at 8:30pm I think of this topic. Here is the full text of the quote referenced in the title: I think the first thing is to be aware that you basically have two things available to you to create your vision — in work and in life. First, you’ve got your time. Second, your energy. The second thing, energy, you might not be aware of because of people and activities getting the best of your energy, or the wrong people and wrong activities… Read More
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