Are You a Sales Seminar Enthusiast?

Last time we began to look at the need for salespeople to become more professional in their approach to selling.

Gone are the days when, as one famous commentator put it “all you had to do was show up to make a sale”.

If you do this in today’s selling environment you are not in the sales profession you are in the gambling profession and as we all know not too many of these people survive. Hence the need to up skill regularly.

I used to be a seminar junkie – anything to do with personal or business development I’d be there in the front row. The one thing I found was that these people including Michael Gerber – author of The E Myth, Mikhail Gorbachev, Al Ries, Brian Tracey etc. all seemed to be very good at increasing your motivation temporarily and giving you concepts without actually giving you the “how to”.

Zig Ziglar has a very good quote regarding motivation.

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last, well neither does bathing, that’s why we recommend it daily”

Coming back to my point – most sales seminars are of the motivational type and are usually entertaining. The down side is that you’ve forgotten most of what you heard by the time you get back to work.

Motivation comes from confidence which comes from knowledge which in turn comes from training. For those of us involved with sales, the two types of training we need to focus on are - 1. Product Knowledge 2. Selling Skills

It has been found that lack of training is one of the biggest inhibitors to increasing sales and margins.

Still on the subject of motivation the salespeople themselves need to want to improve their skills. Some believe that they are already so good at what they do that it would be a waste of their time to undergo sales training. They probably worked their way up from retail sales or landed the job by chance and view their work as a job to be done rather than a profession to develop in or they are happy for their companies to organize training as long as they aren’t required to change what they are doing now.

A study done on millionaires in the states some years ago revealed some very interesting statistics. Movie Stars, Entertainers, and Sports Stars only accounted for 1% of all the millionaires in America. More importantly over 70% of the millionaires had made it through sales careers. It would be interesting to see the results of a similar study conducted here.

I will continue with this subject and how to gain the most from developing yourself and your team through training in my next article.

Quote of the Week.

There’s no magic to it, and you don’t need a lot of natural talent. What you need is a disciplined, organized approach to selling. If you have that, you’ll understand the process every time. Selling can definitely be learned.

Steve Bostic

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Sales Impact Group Limited

How Professional Are Your Sales Team?

Over the last few months we have been looking at the importance of developing a great presentation through preparation, planning, developing a great questioning process and how to ask for the business.

All this theory sounds good however the challenge for many salespeople is they believe because they have been in sales for many years there is nothing new they need to learn, after all they have “x” number of years of sales experience. What they tend to have is one years sales experience repeated “x” times.

Steven Covey talks about the need to constantly “sharpen the saw” as one of the 7 habits of successful people. What he is talking about is taking time for personal and professional development.

Many professionals are obliged by their professional bodies to invest so many hours each year in these areas.

The definition of professional is: Member of profession. Somebody whose occupation requires extensive education or specialized training and a high standard of ethical behaviour.

Salespeople can certainly differentiate themselves by becoming professional at what they do.

I often ask teams I work with who their favourite sales author is. More often than not I am met with a stony silence – interesting.

I was reading an article by Dave Kahle a renowned sales trainer in which he states that in his experience only one in twenty salespeople he had worked with had spent $25 of their own money on their own improvement in the previous 12 months.

The point I am driving at is in today’s selling environment only the most professional salespeople will survive and do consistently well.

If we look at the most successful people in business and spot one of the commonalities they have it is they are constantly seeking perfection in their chosen field through personal and professional development and practice, practice, practice…

One of the greatest myths about the sales profession is the salespeople can learn on their own out in the field as long as they have good product knowledge. Hence the focus in many companies on product training with sales stills training tacked on the side.

You wouldn’t hire someone and immediately put them in charge of a $200,000 machine and yet many companies put reps on the road with minimal sales processes and skill sets and send them off to see prospects that could have a lifetime value of $200,000 plus.

There are very few “natural born salespeople” in this world – 95% of the most successful salespeople have been professionally trained and follow a process.

The majority of untrained field salespeople perform at a fraction of their potential because of lack of systems.

I used to be a keen shooter and one day I dismantled a gun to thoroughly clean it. When I began to reassemble it there was a spring system that wouldn’t go back in. Being the determined person I am I spent hours working on it and after days of frustration I gave up and took it to the gunsmith who reassembled it in two minutes!

The point is he was a thoroughly trained professional whereas I thought I knew what I was doing – so it is with many salespeople who have learned on the job.

I will continue with this very important topic in my next article.

Quote of the Week –

You are what you are and where you are because of what’s gone into your mind.
You can change what you are and where you are by changing what goes into your mind.
Zig Ziglar

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Sales Impact Group Limited

Brett Burgess Rebrands and Launches New Website: www.salesimpactgroup.co.nz

As most of you have read, Brett has been contributing his thought provoking and timely articles to our blog for some time now. 

He and his team have recently rebranded their company as the Sales Impact Group.  If you're looking for sales training or consulting in New Zealand, Brett and his team are the ones to call.

 

Continuous Improvement Resources

If you've not already noticed - in addition to our product offering, we also provide ongoing sales strategy articles from program developer, facilitator and author Brett Burgess. Articles are timely, extremely relevant and can help you apply profound improvements to your sales strategy.

Click here to get the RSS Feed. Articles are also posted on the home page of the Simple Sales Tracking website under Recent Blog Posts.

A sampling of his recent articles include:

A Question of Questions

What Is It Costing You Not To Have a Systemised Sales Process?

Where Are Your Questions Leading?

Do You Ask for the Business?

Whose Perception Counts Anyway?

We have been looking at why asking the right questions is so important in the sales process - well here's a question for you.

How can you tell what your prospects are actually thinking?

The answer is simple - ask them good questions and they will give you all the information you need to help them. Wasn't it Freud who said "If you ask enough questions the truth will eventually come out".

It's vitally important that you know what your prospects are thinking - what their problems and needs really are, and what's important to them - so you can tailor the best solution for them.

If you want your prospects to think about the convenience your product or service provides, ask a good, open-ended question about that topic. While the prospect is talking, you know his/her mind is focused on that topic. When you want to focus the customers mind on something else, ask a question on that new topic.

Never ask a buyer any questions about a subject you don't wish them to think about.

This may sound obvious however many salespeople ask questions about current providers and budgets. What happens in the buyers mind when they think - we have spent our budget this year?

Think of questions that will enable you to uncover your prospects' wants and needs and potentially give you the opportunity to sell him/her your solution(s).

The best sales questions to ask prospects are the ones that get your prospects talking.

Once you ask your questions you can employee your ears before you engage your mouth. Your questions put you in to an automatic listening mode. Not asking questions gets you, the wrong person, talking too much.

Being a good listener is the fastest way to increase your sales - it also happens to be the best way.

No one ever listened their way out of a sale.

Guide to Preparing Good Questions

. Be sure your questions are open-ended. You're not a lawyer. You're an explorer. You won't learn much when you ask yes/no type questions. Remember your goal is to get your prospects and customers talking.

. Be sure your questions are personalized and tailored to the person you're talking to. A good question shows interest and reveals your concern for the buyer's current situation.

. Great questions also help create trust and rapport

. Prepare your questions in writing. A really good question starts in your mind and ends up on paper. If it's not on paper you can't make it better.

. You can make every word count by eliminating all unnecessary words from the question you are crafting. Make sure every word in your question adds value to the questions.

. The right questions can demonstrate your understanding of the prospects business and build great credibility for you in the prospects eyes

. Focus on brevity. If you want to be clear, you must be concise. Less is always more when it comes to a carefully worded question. Short and sweet is better than long and sour.

. Unfortunately, what most salespeople don't get is, your choice of words during a sales call is even more important hence the need to pre-plan your questions.

. Its no use having the right answer if you aren't asking the right questions

. Remember - Never tell a buyer anything you can ask them!!!

Quote of the Week -
"If you are speaking and not getting a reaction, well you are just making a speech"
Author Unknown

Have a successful week!

Brett

BRETT BURGESS is a sales trainer and programme developer for Moss and Associates International.

Questioning To Build Trust

Following on from last time we are looking at the importance of developing questions.

Many of us feel the need to build credibility and trust through telling the prospect all about what we have done and what great companies we work for however asking the right questions achieves the same goal. It is most important to spend time planning the questions as more sales are lost through asking the wrong questions than are lost because of not having the best price.

There are two more key areas that relate to asking good questions -

3. Good questions build relationships

The act of asking good questions shows that you care about the person and his/her problems. The more questions you ask about your customer, the more he/she feels your interest.

The law of reciprocity indicates that the more interest you show in a customer, the more likely that customer will be interested in you.

Did you ever attend a reception or party and meet someone who was very interested in you? Asked you question after question about yourself? When you parted, you thought to yourself "What a great person". Why did you think that? Because of what he/she said? Probably not. You thought the person was wonderful because he/she expressed interest in you! And you formed that impression because of the questions they asked of you.

You can make use of this principle by asking good personal questions of your customers and thereby building strong relationships.

I also recommend you take good notes.

4. Good questions convey the perception of your competence

In other words, your customer sees you as competent and trustworthy - not necessarily by what you say - but rather by what you ask.

Here's an illustration. Suppose you have a problem with your car. You take it into the mechanic down the street and say to him - "My car is making a funny sound" and he says to you "OK, leave it here and pick it up at five".

You're not reassured by his approach so you take it to the mechanic across the street. You say the same thing to him and he says to you "What kind of sound? You reply "A strange thumping sound". And he says "Is it coming from the front or the back of the car?". And you say, "It's coming from the front." And he asks, "Is it a metallic kind of sound or a rubber kind of sound?" And you reply, "It's definitely metallic" And he says, "Does it go faster when you go faster and slower when you go slower, or is it the same speed all the time?" You respond, "It definitely speeds up as I do." Then he says "OK leave it here and pick it up at five".

Which mechanic seems to be the more competent? That's easy. Obviously, the one who asked more questions. Questions show you understand your prospects problems which in turn builds your credibility.

Got the idea? The focus and precision of your questions does more to give your customer the perception of your competence than anything else.

Every one of your customers wants to feel that the salesperson he/she is dealing with is competent. You convey that perception by asking good questions about the details of your customer's needs and applications.

Mastering the use of good questions is the salespersons single most powerful interpersonal tool - in every aspect of your sales interactions will dramatically improve your results.

A word of caution, remember what I said at the start - just as the right questions build your credibility asking the wrong questions can just as easily destroy it hence the need to plan your questions - do you homework - do your pre-planning before you ever make the call.

Quote of the Week -

"Price is always an issue if you look and sound like every other salesperson"

In my next article I will look at mistakes to avoid in your sales presentations.

Have a successful week!

BRETT BURGESS is a sales trainer and programme developer for Moss and Associates International.

A Question of Questions

This week's article brings us back to the subject of questioning.

Did you enjoy the last dinner you had out with friends?

You are probably wondering what that question has to do with sales. Bear with me a moment, and answer the question.

Now, pause a moment and think about what you did when you read that question. Your mind probably flashed back and you saw a picture in your mind's eye of what you had for dinner. Then you recalled your response to the dinner, and made a judgment that you did or didn't enjoy it.

Here's the point. I was able to direct your thinking by asking you a question. You thought about what I wanted you to think about, and you thought about it in the way I wanted. That's an illustration of the power of a question. It directs an individual's thinking.

That's what makes asking a good question the single most effective thing you can do with a customer. A well-phrased, appropriately timed question is your most powerful sales tool.

This is why we need to plan our questions in advance.

Here's what good questions will do for you -

1.Good questions direct your customers thinking

When you use a good question, or a series of good questions, you penetrate your prospect's mind and direct his/her thinking.

There is something in human beings that makes it almost impossible not to think of the answer when we are asked a question. I'm not sure whether it's something genetic, or whether we're conditioned from birth to always think of the answer to a question. Here's an illustration. I'll ask you a question, but I want you to not think of the answer. How old are you? If you're like most of us, you thought of the answer, even after I indicated you shouldn't.

Now, consider where the decision to buy your products or services takes place. It happens in the mind of your customer. A good question from you helps focus and shape the direction in which your customers mind works.

For example, suppose you're shopping for a new car. The salesperson asks you, "Which is more important to you, good fuel economy, or quick pickup?" Until asked, you haven't really thought of it that way. The salesperson's question helps you understand what you really think, and directs your mind along a certain course. You're thinking along that line, the conversation naturally proceeds based on the answer.

Similarly, you perform a service for your customers when you ask them good questions. Your questions direct their minds along certain paths, and help them clarify their thinking.

Clients often ask if this is manipulative selling. My answer is your goal is not to manipulate anyone. Your goal is to channel their thinking into areas that are a concern for them and establish if you can offer a solution.

2. A good question is your best means of collecting the information that will help you construct a sale.

How do you know what a customer thinks, or what his or her situation is, unless you ask a question? If you're selling a new surgical glove, for example, you first ask questions to discover the surgeons concerns so that you are able to point out the specific features of the glove that meet those needs. Without first asking questions, you're reduced to working on assumptions about the needs and interests of your customers.

You will do a far better job of selling your products and services if you first use good questions to understand your customer's needs and interests. Good questions help you to see into the mind and heart of your customers, and equip you with the knowledge necessary to present the best possible solution for the client.

I will continue with the balance of the ideas on why good questions advance the sale in my next article.

Quote of the Week:
"Every sale has five basic obstacles
no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, no trust."
Zig Ziglar

Brett Burgess

BRETT BURGESS is a programme developer and facilitator for Sales Impact Group Ltd.

What Is It Costing You Not To Have a Systemised Sales Process?

Last time we were looking at why we need to develop good questioning processes. I want to explore this subject more, however let's look at why it is so important to follow a questioning process in your sales presentation.

We know that following a process will increase your closing ratio and will therefore reduce the overall cost of making sales.

The cost of making a face to face sales call can range from $90 - $500 depending on the location and time.

What many of us fail to take into account when working out these costs are the hidden cost such as technical support, administration support, ongoing training - the list goes on.

Using $150/hr as an example lets look at what goes into making a sale

Preparation and getting the appointment - 1 hour
Face to Face presentation (including travel) - 2 hours
Preparing Proposal - 2 hours
Follow-up appointment to present/discuss proposal - 1.5 hours
Miscellaneous - phoning, research etc - 1.5 hours

The equation is 8 hours x 150 = $1200

This is assuming that you make the sale however there are very few companies in the world who have a 100% closing ratio. Most companies average 35%. This relates to proactive selling (you approach the prospect) as opposed to reactive selling (the prospects approach you)

A company I spoke with recently that actually measures its closing ratio admitted it was 23%.

For our example let's work on 50% - this means that the cost of making a sale is around $2400. Even if it was only half this figure, it is still a huge cost.

Certainly makes you think about the skills of your sales team in relation to asking for the sale.

Studies have shown that in 62% of presentations the buyer is never asked to buy.

There can be a number of factors that cause low ratios including lack of process, poor prospects, failing to qualify, failing to establish a need or return on investment. Many of these issues can be rectified with training.

Businesses spend thousands of dollars on marketing and advertising to generate leads but are reluctant to invest in training their salespeople to maximise the rate at which they convert these leads into sales.

This in turn results in the very high cost of making each sale which brings me back to the importance of good questioning which I will come back to in my next article.

Quote of the Week -
Success is 20% skills and 80% attitude
Sales are 20% questioning and 80% listening

Brett Burgess

BRETT BURGESS is a programme developer and facilitator for Sales Impact Group Ltd.

Where Are Your Questions Leading?

We have been looking at developing a questioning process for our presentations and how most salespeople are so desperate to talk about their products and services and all the solutions they can provide they end up talking too much and presenting solutions too soon therefore losing potential sales.

The trouble is the salesperson has seen the prospects problem many times before and therefore knows which solution would work best for them so jumps from problem straight to solution without helping the buyer to understand how big an issue they have.

There is only one perception that counts in a sales presentation - the buyers! We have to help them understand through our questions the need to take action. Asking the right questions will uncover the real issues and more importantly uncover the true buying motives of the prospect.

When I ask participants in my sales training workshops why they don't ask more structured questions typical replies are -

"I don't feel confident"
"I've never been trained"
"It takes too long"
"Prospects may be reluctant to answer"
"I'd be embarrassed"

The real result of a lack of structure in questioning is lost sales and increased costs of making sales.

Great questions require your prospects to think, they demonstrate your understanding of their needs, and they give you a clear picture of your prospects exact needs which in turn positions you to present the best possible solution.

Old sales training used to focus on only using open questions - questions that require a greater response answer as opposed to closed questions - questions that only require a yes or no answer.

Project Sigma sponsored by IBM and other corporations and conducted by Neil Rackham and his team observed over 35,000 sales calls in 23 countries found that calls high in closed questions were just as likely to lead to orders and advances. This is not so strange as it may at first appear. In theory, open questions result in open answers, while closed questions produce one-word answers. But in practice, this is not always the case. In the context of a sales call, 60 percent of all closed questions receive an answer that is longer than one word. In other words, closed questions very often get open answers. And about 10 percent of all open questions get a closed answer. The important thing is to ask skillful questions that move the call forward. "If you are worrying about things like how many open questions you're asking", Neil says, "You're rearranging the deck chairs on a sinking ship. What you should be worrying about is: Are your questions focused on issues that are important to the customer?"

If you only ever buy one book on selling I would recommend that book be SPIN Selling by Neil Rackham. Neil has lead the revolution in selling. The key of course is to then read it and take action.

Structured questions channel the buyers thinking and help THEM tick off their own buying signals in their mind as the interview progresses.

I'll deal more with the question of questions in the next article.

Quote of the Week:
"Generally speaking you aren't learning much if your lips are moving"

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Moss and Associates International.

Attention Developers: Web API Now Available!

June6, 2008

We're pleased to announce the immediate availability of the Simple Sales Tracking Web API.

The API, Application Programming Interface, gives you the ability to extend and access the functionality of the application and your data stored in it.

While the API was built using Microsoft's new WCF technology, the API can be used on many different platforms and different software languages. Keep in mind leveraging the API requires a good understanding of software development knowledge and practices.

As an example, the API was used to tie together the new Outlook 2007 Plugin to the Simple Sales Tracking application. There are many ways and reasons why you may want to look at doing this.
Not only is accessing the API at the transport level secure using 128bit SSL encryption, each message is also individually secured using mesage level certificate security.

As always, if you have any questions or feedback on this new availability, don't hesitate to get in touch.

Please keep in mind the API is available only to Full (Paid) Account Customers.

Outlook 2007 Plugin Now Available!

Over the past few days we've updated Simple Sales Tracking with a number of enhancements.

Two that you'll notice straight away are (1) the ability to re-assign ownership of a Task to another user and (2) the sales Follow Up Box on the Start Page now includes all sales (no longer just the top 10) and text shadding when the follow up dates start to slip.

Our major announcement today is the release of the Simple Sales Tracking Outlook 2007 Plugin. This initial plugin has been built for the 2007 edition of Outlook. A plugin for the 2003 edition of Outlook is in development.

Initially we will be making the plugin available by request. If you're interested in using the plugin, please contact support and we will send you the install file. Installation is simple and takes less than one minute.

Please keep in mind the plugin is available only to Full (Paid) Account Customers.

Are You Asking the Right Questions?

By Brett Burgess

As we have discussed in previous articles closing or in our process confirming the sale should be the easiest part of your sales process if you have indeed followed a process to understand your buyer's explicit needs.

The process I am talking about is all about asking a list of pre-prepared questions to get a full understanding of whether or not the person you are talking to has a real need for any solutions you may have to offer.

Most of us as salespeople ask plenty of questions anyway but they are usually self-serving to help us quickly find some sort of need so we can get on with "selling" our solution. Unfortunately the buyer recognizes these questions for what they are as they have heard them all before from 100 different salespeople and are therefore prepared with their stock standard objections.

The trouble with these types of questions is they do nothing to help you uncover buying motives which in turn inhibits your ability to progress the sale. They make you look like every other salesperson selling a similar product or service and if you look like everyone else then the buyer's only determining point will be price and in this competition the most desperate salesperson usually gets the sale.

Another key issue is we don't get the important information from the buyer to be able to adapt our solution specifically to our buyers needs. What we end up doing is prescribing before we have actually diagnosed the real problem or opportunity for the buyer. Imagine if you went to your Doctor and he asked you a few basic questions and then wrote a prescription without delving into the real symptoms of your problem. How confident would you be in his prescription?

Some of the more common questions you shouldn't be asking include -

How long have you been in business?
Who are your key markets?
How many staff do you have?
Who is your current supplier?
What is your budget for.?

And some of the dumbest questions which you should never ask -

"Have you ever heard of us?" or "What do you know about our company?"

If you have to ask this question, it means you're probably trying to make certain that your prospect has not had a bad experience with your company prior to your arrival. It's not important whether they have heard of you before - you are not there to talk about yourself - you are there to identify their needs and talk about solutions. You can gain more credibility by asking intelligent questions than talking about what a great company you belong to and how long you have been in the industry or profession.

"Can you tell me a little bit about your company?"

This question shows your buyer that you were too lazy to bother doing any research on them. Don't ask any questions that you could have researched prior to the meeting. When you ask buyers historical questions about themselves and their business there is no value to them and they see this as a waste of their time.

The key is to do your research, plan your questions and then follow your plan.

Quote of the Week:
It is better to choose what you say than say what you choose
Anonymous

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Moss and Associates International.

Do You Use Manipulative Closing?

We have been looking at the closing phase of the sales presentation and last time I touched briefly on objections.

Sales trainers in the past would spend a large proportion of their time teaching methods of overcoming objections. Indeed a common myth propagated by these trainers was that objections were in fact strong buying signals, however studies by Huthwaite have shown where there are a number of objections that closing ratios go down correspondingly.

Our goal as professionals is not to learn 100 objection handling techniques but rather to answer all questions in the buyers mind before we present our solutions.

To achieve this you need to follow a process with your questioning. It is not about firing 101 questions at the buyer. It is about having prepared questions that follow in logical sequence.

Once you have a process for your sales they cease to be a problem. If you don't systemize your sales they will continue to frustrate and give you inconsistent results. Look at other business models - Ray Kroc of McDonalds is a great example - he developed processes for everything. In 1989 McDonalds were making 10 million dollars a day worldwide by asking one question - you guessed it - "would you like fries with that?". This shows you the value of processes and also asking the right question. I will be looking at questions in my next article.

Very few salespeople follow a planned sales presentation and so very few are truly successful. It has been my experience that in today's selling environment the most successful people I see coming through our programmes are the ones who have developed the key elements of the sales process into systems and preplan their interviews.

If we don't have a system for uncovering buyer needs then we must rely on the old "show and tell" which invariably leads us to the most ineffective way of closing the sales known as manipulative closing and unfortunately these are still taught today.

Some examples (they even have names!)

Distraction Close - catch them in a weak moment Embarrassment Close - make not buying embarrassing Hurry Close - go fast to stop them thinking too much Now-or-never Close - to hurry things up Ultimatum Close - show negative consequences of not buying

And a real oldie of interest is the "Ben Franklin Close -

The Ben Franklin Close -

This "close" uses logic to get the closer's point across to the customer. It is a good "close" to use on a customer who is a thinker or who is reserved and overly cautious when buying a product.

How the Ben Franklin Close is Used -

"Mr Customer, in America everybody has always regarded Ben Franklin as a pretty smart fellow. When Ben Franklin had a problem to solve or something important to figure out and make a decision on, he would take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle of it. On the left side of the paper he would write the word "Yes" and on the right half he would write the word "No". In the "Yes" column Ben would make a list of all the positive and beneficial factors that would favour his decision to pursue or purchase something. And in the "No" column he would list all of the reasons for not doing or not buying something. When Ben was finished with this "Yes" and "No" process, he could simply look at the list and his decision would already be made for him. He would either have more yes's or more no's. It was that simple. Mr Customer, why don't we try that and see what happens, it sure can't hurt?"

Note: The closer should hand the customer a sheet of paper and a pen and have the customer fill out the "Yes" and "No" column. The closer should tactfully assist the customer on the "Yes" side by giving out suggestions, but on the "No' side keep quiet and not say a thing. The "Yes" side will always, with the closer's help, win. When this process is finished the closer should look the customer straight in the eye and ask him to give the product a try.)

It's a fundamental truth in sales that pressure causes objections and ultimately rejection of your solution.

In today's market buyers have seen it all and heard it all and are well aware of when salespeople are using manipulative sales techniques on them.

Why would you bother?

Quote of the Week -

I once heard a car salesman say, "I peddle metal."
Well I disagree. To the extent I do "peddle" anything.
I sell helpfulness and solutions. That to me is the heart of the sales experience.
That's what a good salesperson really does - identifies a need and fills it.

Marion Luna Brem

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Moss and Associates International.

Do You Ask For The Business?

This week I will look at what some consider the most critical phase of the sales process - asking for the business.

In a well planned presentation this should be the easiest phase however for the majority of salespeople this in fact is the scariest part.

Statistics consistently show that in 62% of presentations the salesperson does not ask for the business. There is an old saying - "If you don't ask of the business then you are working for the opposition!"

You research the company, gain a referral, get the appointment, do your presentation, uncover a real need, create the awareness of the problem - but then you don't ask for the business. You then sit there waiting for the buyer to say they are just dying to get their hands on your solution - in reality you can wait forever with some buyers.

The next salesperson that visits your prospect, who now is fully aware of their needs and is ready to buy and indeed does - gets the business!

Human behavioral studies have revealed we are 5 times more likely to say yes if we are asked so why wouldn't we ask?

When it comes to confirming the business you as the seller should know exactly which way the buyer is leaning in their decision to buy.

The reason so many salespeople have such a problem with asking for the business is they have no sales process to help understand firstly the needs of the buyer and next the importance of those needs.

What we tend to see in most presentations is what I call 'show & tell". We show up, introduce ourselves, engage in some chitchat and then proceed to tell the buyer everything about ourselves and our company. We then ask a few questions and identify some potential needs and launch into the solution phase of the presentation by telling the buyer what he or she needs and all the benefits they will derive from buying this solution.

Because we do most of the talking there is little opportunity for the buyer to draw any conclusions and express any positive buying signals and in fact it gives them more opportunities to raise objections.

Objections generally are raised in the sales process when the seller makes statement the buyer disagrees with or when solutions are presented before the real need is uncovered.

There are a number of questions that need to be answered in the buyers mind before they make the buying decision. These are -

1. Exactly what are you offering?
2. Why do I need (or want) it?
3. How can I believe your claims?
4. Why should I get if from you?
5. How fast can I get it?
6. What if I don't like it after I get it?
7. What do I need to do to get it?

The buyers may not consciously think of these questions but they will not buy until all seven are answered in their minds. It is important to note that the sale is made in the buyers mind before we ask for confirmation of the business.

As usual I will be continuing with the topic of asking for the business in my next article.

Quote of the Week:
In the words of the famous Zig Ziglar
"You miss 100% of the sales you don't ask for"

Have a successful week!

Brett

Brett Burgess is a Sales Trainer and Programme Developer for Moss and Associates International.

Getting Started Video Tuturial Series - Now Available On The Website!

March 17, 2008

Based on a number of requests we've received for a "getting started" style video tutorial series, we've published a series of 5 videos, which cover the following areas:

• Video 1: SignUp & Login (6:10 minutes)
• Video 2: Creating Your First Contact & Lead (5:29 minutes)
• Video 3: Upgrading a Lead to an Opportunity (7:39 minutes)
• Video 4: Overview of the Start and List Pages. Upgrading an Opportunity to an Account. (10:28 minutes)
• Video 5: Settings and Admin Pages (2:23 minutes)

To view the videos online, visit the website or click here.