I run into this topic often and it is one worth defining. Many companies value quotes as strong sales activity. Now don’t get me wrong, quotes are a step in the sales process and typically one that occurs before a close. However, companies that have under-defined sales processes often choose to substitute quotes for qualifying. Here is what I mean – just because a suspect asks for a quote does not mean that they are a prospect. This applies to customers too. First, let’s define suspects and prospects. A suspect is a company that shows some interest in your product or service but you are not sure of the level… Read More
Continue ReadingProbing For Pain
Saleshq.com has an excellent article for any salesperson in any market – Do You Probe For Pain? We use the term “pain” in our discussions though it sounds a bit dramatic. Even so, it is the most descriptive word for qualifying. The article explains why: People are fundamentally motivated in two main ways: 1. What problem or pain they can avoid and move away from 2. What pleasure or benefit they can move towards That is absolutely true. The key here is that people move away from pain faster than they move towards pleasure. As described later in the article: If a prospect feels content with their current supplier or… 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 ReadingGood Selling Is Subtle
Have you noticed that the best salespeople are usually subtle? They have a way of moving through a discussion that is conversational in tone, but focused in purpose. Some are so good at it that you don’t even notice if you are involved in the discussion. ManageSmarter.com offers up an article with a direct analogy of sales questioning – comparing it to dating. What I appreciate is the author’s description of how salespeople are trained to ask leading questions. This is not a subtle approach as you will see from his example in the article. The primary issue here is that you lose rapport quickly when you go down this… Read More
Continue ReadingA Quick Questioning Tip
This tip comes from the Selling Power archives: Never ask a question without first explaining why you’re asking. Nirenberg says, “Just asking a question puts the listener on the spot. However, if you let him know why you’re asking, it makes him a partner,” Nirenberg goes on to explain, “People with sales backgrounds often avoid asking questions because they think that the talker controls the conversation. That’s not true because the listener can always tune you out. In fact, you’d be surprised how often you’re talking to yourself during a sales call.” That is a good tip. Asking good qualifying questions is crucial for successful selling. However, most people have… Read More
Continue ReadingWhen To Close
This topic comes up often in sales discussions – when should I go for the close? Or hiring managers often ask, “Is he a closer?” Or articles state that most salespeople fail because they don’t ask for the order (i.e. close). So what are we to make of this topic? Selling Power offers a bit of an enigmatic article titled Knowing When to Close. The responses are from a sales meeting from 1929 (I don’t know why). The pull quote: A still smaller minority expressed the opinion which I believe to be the correct one, that while there is undoubtedly one moment that is the best time to close any… Read More
Continue ReadingAvoid Posting Job Descriptions
Part of what I do every day is hunt through the local sales position ads. There are always some ads that contain more words than a doctoral thesis. Posting an internal job description for a sales position is the wrong move. One aspect of sourcing that we observer is the salesperson’s ability to qualify, in this case, the opportunity. If we post all the information about the position, the salesperson doesn’t have to work to find specific information. I’ve said this before, it is amazing how much you can learn during an initial 10 min. phone screen. An overwritten ad negates this fact to some extent. One other item we… Read More
Continue ReadingToughest Sales Objection – Indifference
Clayton has a post on his Salesopedia blog that references some recent survey results from their highly-visited site. One result jumps off the screen: What’s the toughest objection? Indifference …….. 64.7% Price …………….. 26.5% Timing …………… 8.8% Isn’t that the truth? We used to work for a sales trainer who always stressed that indifference is the worst outcome of a sales call. Salespeople know what to do with a yes (after writing that, I wondered if there are salespeople who don’t know what to do with a yes…), they know what to do with a no, but no one is certain of what to do with a maybe. As a… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Pain Of Change
We’re big fans of Jeff Thull here at The Hire Sense and we always try to keep up with his articles. This one from Inc.com – Three Keys to a Successful New Year – is well worth the read. Ok, we might be a bit late getting to this one since it’s theme is for the new year. I have always appreciated a doctor analogy for selling and I think Thull lays out a good example here: Like an experienced doctor who continually diagnoses for problems and recognizes symptoms, you see the issues your solutions address far more frequently than your customers do. You know the business drivers that your… Read More
Continue ReadingDeal-Killing CEOs
ManageSmarter.com offers an article I could have penned – The CEO as Salesperson. I can relate to this sales call: After initial introductions, the CEO took over the meeting and, ignoring the agenda, began a detailed demo and discussion of the product. He set about to demonstrate the superiority of the product and his own knowledge of the industry. He argued with the prospect, dismissed their questions and points of view, and then couldn’t understand why they didn’t buy immediately. It took the regional manager nine months to recover and get the sale. My experience with the CEO in a sales call most often followed a similar form with even… Read More
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