Selling’s bum rap
Posted on August 13, 2013
By Gary Jaffer
I love being sold – really!
I love being in a situation where a great sales person has hooked me. They usually have spent some time listening and asking a few pertinent questions, clarified a few points and then thrown me the bait. Even though I can see the process and I know exactly what is going on, I can’t help but be taken in and snap up the opportunity and happily part with my money. It happens in good restaurants, retailers and even in banks. Just last week I had a coffee with an ex-senior banking executive who was a perfect role model for any sales person – he was always on the alert, if the conversation drifted into any area regarding money he was always there, with his card, and a sincere and open invitation to give him a call if there was anything at all he could do to help. He didn’t have to, it wasn’t really his job and he always passed on any leads to appropriate people, always made sure the job was done and always followed up with a personal phone call. That’s what I call constantly, quietly selling!
I often hear business owners and senior execs lament, “why can’t my people think about selling the business the same way I do?” The fact is most owners and senior execs have been around for a while and are very tuned in to what their business has to offer and when a prospective customer is making the right noises. They are quick to step in and clarify the situation and don’t hesitate to offer a solution around their product or service. All too often I find myself in a situation where I leave a sales scenario underwhelmed by what was on offer and then head off looking for the same solution, product or service elsewhere. I have even had situations where I’ve been oversold, especially in one on one selling situations. “Yes, I love the idea, let’s go for it!” and still the sales person wants to finish their sales presentation. Aaaagh! If they go on for a minute longer I might just change my mind!!
What is even more unfortunate is those incidents where I find myself standing before a front line person in an organization who has no idea how to sell or the concept that nothing happens until something is sold. Often the attitude is uncaring and off hand. Not all their fault mind you! Somewhere, someone has failed to provide the appropriate training. Every front line person in an organization should have some form of sales training, and there is plenty of argument that ALL personnel, even those in accounts and far removed from the front line should be regularly exposed the principles of selling.
More often than not, it’s a simple lack of understanding of the fundamentals of the sales process. I am constantly stunned when I come across sales teams who haven’t had a refresher on selling principles for more than a couple of years. The problem is bad habits creep in, short cuts prevail and the simple fundamentals are lost in the morass. Good sales people eat, drink and sleep the sales process, they can pick it up at any point and run with it and they are always practicing and refining it.
Those that practice the constant quiet selling I mentioned earlier make the process part of their DNA which is exactly what the equilibrium9 Advocacy performance module is all about. This program was created for all the reasons outlined here. It is a great way to inject existing sales people with enthusiasm for the process as well as introduce front line and non sales staff to the concept of being alert for the possibility of a sale.
Check it out: http://equilibrium9.com.au/services/standard-professional-development-programs/ There is a module starting on September 24.
All equilibrium9 programs are over 3 months and involve 3 half day workshops combined with 3 personal consultations to ensure the connection between mind and heart, knowledge and action is established.