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| Sales Training Information |
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Closing The Sale
So -- you've just gotten off of the phone with a potential client. You've explained what you do and how you can help them -- and they still did not end up hiring you. Where did you go wrong? You are EXPERIENCED, you are professional -- and yet you seem to have a hard time turning those leads into paying clients. Perhaps you are approaching the situation from the wrong perspective. Maybe you are focusing too much on the sale and not enough on the potential for a RELATIONSHIP with this person. Your goal during the "selling" phase is not to show off how wonderful you are -- it's to develop a rapport with the other person, to express some EMPATHY for their situation, and to help find a SOLUTION to the problem at hand. And along the way, you will need to educate the client about the benefits you have to offer if you ever hope to make a sale. So let's focus on a few tricks for making yourself seem valuable to the client (the only way I've found to really "sell" yourself). I'd like to share some of the techniques I use to close a sale, from the perspective of professional organizing: PRACTICE TELLING PEOPLE WHAT YOU DO When I first started talking to clients, I was TENTATIVE and hesitant about my abilities -- I came across as unsure about what I had to offer. But I joined a networking group and found that I was expected to give a short speech each Friday morning describing what I do and how it helps people. I also hosted booths at a couple of business expos, which allowed me to INTRODUCE myself and my services over and over again to a number of different people. The more comfortable you can get with saying, "This is what I do and here's how you will benefit and here's why I'm different than the rest," the more you sound like you know what you are doing. Start out with a one-minute "elevator speech" -- what you would say to someone in an elevator when they ask, "so, what do you do for a living?" Say it over and over again until it's second nature. And then work on a second one that focuses in on a different aspect of what you do. And another. And another. Keep going until you can stand up in front of any potential client and comfortably spout off why they should hire you. GIVE A FREE IN-HOME / IN-OFFICE CONSULTATION I don't know if you do this -- but as a service provider, I found it essential to building up my client base. Some people will tell you to CHARGE for a consultation -- but why would I pay you to find out if you are worth hiring? Some people will tell you to do a PHONE consultation -- this is fine for some potential clients, but other folks want the reassurance of meeting you face to face. As a professional organizer, I've found that some people want to show me their stacks and piles and have me say that it's not the worst I've ever seen. I think of a consultation not as a time when I can plan out what I'm going to do for the client -- because honestly, I've seen their problems a million times before and it's not that different from client to client. But it's a time when I can AUDITION for the client -- build some rapport, show off my fabulous personality (!!), dazzle them with my expertise and professionalism, and explain the way I work. But most importantly, it's a time when I can sit in front of them, pen and contract and calendar in hand, and say, "When do you want to get started?" Much harder to turn me away, then. And you've made a personal connection like you just can't do over the phone. DON'T BE IN A HURRY TO TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DO Get the client to talk first. If you immediately start telling the client all of the great things that you do in your business, you will lose them in the first 5 minutes. You have to let them begin by telling you where the PAIN is. I encourage my clients to tell me how badly life sucks because they are disorganized. I empathize, saying things like, "that must be frustrating," I rephrase their pain (when they say ,"I feel so overwhelmed," I say "It can be hard to stay on top of it all"), and I share stories of other clients who have gone through the same thing -- but I don't solve their problem yet. You want to do two things here -- first, let them know that you REALLY understand; and second, you want them to FEEL the reality of their situation so much that you will look like a superhero when you tell them how you can take that pain away. Once you've gotten them to pour it all out, talk about how their lives will be better once they hire you. Don't talk entirely about techniques and systems -- talk about feelings. I find myself saying things like, "And once we get your filing system straightened out, you'll be able to find anything you need in 3 minutes or less -- won't that take a lot of stress off of your shoulders?" -- and the answer is always a grateful "Yes!" BE PERSISTENT Some clients need a lot of FOLLOWING UP before they are ready to hire you -- especially if you offer a service that deals with a difficult or overwhelming problem like disorganization. I've contacted clients for a year and a half before all of the planets aligned -- and their calendar, wallet, and willingness to change matched up -- and we started working together. When a client says he/she wants to work with you but doesn't have time right now, say, "Well that's no problem. I certainly understand when your schedule gets overloaded. How about if I call you at the end of February to see how things are going?" Not, "I'll call sometime down the road," but I'll call at a SPECIFIC time during a particular month. Many times they'll say, "Well actually, you can call me in a week and I should be ready then" -- or they might say February is too soon, call me in June. But you have done two things -- you've kept the line open and you've taken the RESPONSIBILITY for initiating action off of them (which most clients really appreciate). Many times, I'll do this over and over again, calling every few months ("Hi, you had asked me to check back with you about doing some organizing in February, so I'm just giving you a call. How's everything going?") until they are ready. Persistence is the key. ASSUME THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE THE SALE When you finish your spiel with a client, don't ever say "do you want to set up an appointment?" -- instead say "WHEN do you want to get started?" Don't give them the OPTION to say no. I always ask people, "So what's your time frame for getting started?" That makes them think a little differently than saying, "When do you want to set up an appointment?" Or say, "Well, I've got Tuesday afternoon and Friday morning free next week -- which works for you?" Be in charge of the situation and you'll see a lot more leads become clients. These techniques will in no way guarantee that every potential client who crosses your doorstep will become a paying customer. And remember, marketing and running a small business is a numbers game. The more people you contact, the more people will turn into clients. But you increase your odds greatly when you give each person the full and complete attention he or she deserves -- and when you use every weapon in your arsenal to convince them of your professional value. Ramona Creel is a Professional Organizer and the founder of OnlineOrganizing.com -- a web-based one-stop shop offering everything that you need to get organized at home or at work. At OnlineOrganizing.com, you may get a referral to an organizer near you, shop for the latest organizing products, get tons of free tips, and even learn how to become a professional organizer or build your existing organizing business. And if you would like to read more articles about organizing your life or building your business, get a free subscription to the "Get Organized" and "Organized For A Living" newsletters. Please visit http://www.OnlineOrganizing.com or contact Ramona directly at ramona@onlineorganizing.com for more information.
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Coaching Finding the Need is Only Part of the Sale Many of us in sales are taught to believe that the most important job of the salesperson is to 'find the need' of our prospects. If we can uncover 'needs' then our job is easy; we just need to show our prospect how our product or service fills that need. Right? The Canned Sales Pitch Myth Canned or scripted sales approaches are rarely successful, because one size does not fit all in selling. The Five Most Common Mistakes Salespeople Make Over the decades that I've been involved in sales, I've worked with tens of thousands of salespeople. Certain negative tendencies -- mistakes that salespeople make -- keep surfacing. Here are my top five. See to what degree you (or your sales force) may be guilty of them. How To Stop Chasing Prospects Forever! Perhaps the biggest challenge faced by salespeople is the problem of chasing prospects. In this article I'll explain exactly why that happens, and how you can avoid it entirely and make prospects chase you instead. A Simple Sales Strategy: Talk to Yourself! You are about to speak to a potential client, go to a networking meeting or give a presentation. What should you be saying to yourself in those few minutes beforehand? If you spend that time saying what I propose below, you will effortlessly and naturally become very attractive to your potential clients. This approach is very powerful, I promise you. Prospecting: Not A Wild Goose Chase... Its A HUNT Prospecting for future customers can be fun if you approach it the right way. It is not a wild goose chase; it is a wild goose HUNT. What You Can Learn From The Movie Business Maybe everything you need to know you can learn from the movies. A friend of mine is a screenwriter in Los Angeles. Over a glass of wine, we were discussing his business and the nature of the beast in Hollywood. He's a boy from Canada who gave up his much-loved Honda, his life savings, and his broadcasting career to move to Los Angeles to attend the American Film Institute. Not an easy feat in your mid-30s. After 8 years of hard work he is now becoming the new discovery of LA. He said the most difficult thing to adjust to was all the talking. Grrr! Why Arent I Making SALES?! Selling online can be very difficult, more difficult than in the 3D world because you do not get any personal contact with your customer. People cannot just browse like they do in a store, they cannot offer feedback, and it is hard to build and maintain trust throughout the entire online sales process. What compounds this difficulty is the fact that most online marketers have absolutely no experience in the field of advertising and sales. Why Sales People Are Creating Their Own Objections I'm about to reveal the biggest secret to growing any small business rapidly. This secret will also increase virtually all sales people's results almost instantly when you learn it and live by it. Attitude Insurance Everyone knows the importance of having a positive attitude, especially in the health insurance industry. Even negative people say that they have a positive attitude. Keep Sales Simple For those of us working in the exciting world of sales, we are all too familiar with the pressures of meeting our daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly goals. This pressure can sometimes cause us to loose focus on the simple things that made us successful to begin with. How To Get Clients To Take Immediate Action Are you tired of excuses? Looking for a persuasion technique to get people to take immediate action? Are prospects saying things to you like: "I'll think it over and get back to you?" "I need to talk it over with my wife." "Call me next week and we'll set up an appointment." Then create a sense of urgency and get your clients to want what you have now! Customers For Life Who's talking to your customers? Is it your competition? Why or why not? When you stop to think about it, these are valid questions. Most people rely on some sort of clientele for their business, and can improve on customer relations. A more holistic approach to this process incorporates the more global question: Training for Trade Shows - 5 FAQs Trade shows are so obvious. You go. You hand out brochures. You come back to the office. It's just a glitch in your work week. Well, it's much more than that. Your bottom line can float on when you make - or lose - a sale at a trade show. Your Business Approach Can Make or Break a Business Deal Every sales presentation should start with the approach, or introduction. Your approach should be a well-defined statement that can be easily adjusted for any situation. Although getting the prospect's attention brings fear into the hearts of some people, generally, it is not a difficult thing to do. But it can be easily lost with drawn-out, unnecessary chitchat. Dont Close Your Eyes Or Let Deaf Ears Fall Upon You To listen to your customer is important, and to hear your customer is critical. But, to see what actions they take is the lifeline to your business. Really WINNING Over Customers Three qualities are needed to sell anything in life. They are: Selling More Effectively as a Trusted Sales Professional - Thirteen Tips Do you want to sell more successfully using an honorable and straightforward approach? Read these thirteen sales tips to help you be perceived as a trusted sales professional by buyers. Incorporating these sales tips into your selling process will differentiate you from the rest and help you sell more successfully. Are You Missing Out On Sales Through Fear of Pain? Improve the Persuasive Power of Your Words! Education plus Motivation is a powerful formula. But how do you ensure the motivation level in your prospective customers or yourself, for that matter, is really as high as it could be? Easy. You make sure to build pain into your motivation strategy. Our basic survival instincts mean that given a choice between finding pleasure or avoiding pain - we'll usually opt to avoid pain. The Biggest Mistake in Sales Prospecting Recently I received a prospecting voice mail message from a salesperson. The salesperson explained his company was "the leader in Microsoft hosted Exchange solutions" and he encouraged me to visit his company's website. That was it - that was the "meat" of the voice mail message.
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