What comes to mind when you hear the word sales?
Most people associate it with in your face, hard sell tactics used by sleazy sales people. That’s because at some point they’ve had experience of a pushy sales person who just wouldn’t take no for an answer. That experience has probably been confounded even further by similar stories told by friends or family.
Although people love to buy, they hate being sold to. And this is so very true. What do you do if someone tries to sell you something in a pushy way? If you’re anything like me then you will go in the opposite direction. Think back to when you were little and your mum or dad told you not to do something. You most likely did it anyway! When people are pushed they almost always go in the opposite direction. Remember that.
As a business owner you know for your business to be successful, you have to sell your product or service. But there’s one problem; you don’t like selling. You don’t want people to see you as that pushy, salsey person they’ve experienced in the past. At the same time though, you need to make sales to keep your business afloat.
If you think about it you sell all the time, but you probably never even realised it:
All the time you’re selling reasons why the other person should do something. Just take a moment to think about what you say and the way you ‘sell’ the idea to others.
When you sell with integrity you sell from a place of honesty and openness. You always do the right thing because it’s the right thing to do. So if your product or service isn’t right for someone, you are open and honest about that. You tell them. If you try to hide this, that is when you become the sleazy sales person no one likes. To sell with integrity you also need to do what you say you will do. They are investing their time and their money in you and your product or service. Therefore, they deserve you to serve them at the highest level. Give them the value and the solution you promised them before they paid you.
It is why they wanted to speak to you in the first place. There was something about you that they liked and they wanted to learn more. Celebrate who you are, you are amazing. Don’t try to be someone you’re not. People can see straight through it and it’s almost impossible to keep it up. Align all that you do with your values and never chase a sale at the expense of who you are. Otherwise, you may as well sell your soul to the devil!
It is why we have two ears and one mouth; to listen more and talk less! The person who speaks less has the most leverage. I’m a chatterbox by nature. Ever since I was a little girl, I have ‘talked for England’. I’m friendly and confident when I speak. So you would think I would automatically be brilliant at sales. No. In order for me to become successful in sales I had to learn to shut up!
When you’re a natural talker, you never really listen to what the other person is saying. You’re too busy working out what you’re going to say once they finish talking. This results in the other person not feeling listened to or understood. And that’s the point I’m making. You have to listen to understand what’s going on, what they’ve tried in the past and what they want to achieve. If you don’t then you’ve lost the sale before you’ve even started.
Don’t forget, if someone has agreed to a call with you it means they need your help. So you don’t need to sell to them. You just need to ask questions to understand their problem and their pain points. Then show them how your product or service can solve these. Paint the picture of how things will look once they no longer have that problem.
If you do it right then you shouldn’t get any objections. You will have answered all of their concerns before they even realised they had any. Then the close should be easy. There won’t be any need for you to try and push them into a sale. It will be the next obvious step.
Just think of it as a conversation and not a sales call. But also remember to ask for the sale. There is no point spending all that time asking lots of questions, positioning your offer as the solution to then end the call without asking that question!
When people trust you and they can see the value you bring to the table, they will be more likely to buy. So go and close those sales, help more people and grow your business. You deserve it just as much as your prospects deserve your solution.
If you need help to get more sales then join my Sales Success Group for Women Entrepreneurs HERE.
I would love to welcome you into the group.