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99 Can't Miss Sales Tips From The Pros (Part 4)

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81. Never forget that a person will always be in charge of the purchasing decision. Despite all of the technology changes, don't forget that ultimately, people are in charge.

82. Teach customers that the price of a product is not the same as the cost of a product. Newton says as customers become more aware of their true costs of doing business, they don't knowingly buy low priced products that are costly to own and utilize. Distributor salespeople need to understand price is not cost. “Those sophisticated customers that appreciate the value of these services are very likely skilled negotiators. They won't accept just any price without a spirited round or two of negotiations,” he says. “Be prepared.”

83. Always remind customers about the basic role the electrical distributor plays in the market. Newton says the old saying, “You can do without the distributor, but you can't do without their services,” still rings true. Services such as product selection, inventory, delivery and education have to be performed by the manufacturer, the customer or the distributor. The party that can execute them most efficiently should do so and be compensated for it, Newton says.

“Distribution as an industry provides an incredible array of services,” he says. “It's not likely any individual could, or would need to, perform all these services for their customer base. Each distributor needs to develop a profile of their strengths.”

The Web can help you unearth more selling tips than you could ever imagine. Sales and Marketing Management and SellingPower magazines offer terrific online resources for salespeople on their Web sites, www.salesandmarketing.com and www.sellingpower.com. You may also want to check out some of the Web blogs for salespeople. One interesting blog run by Bill Snyder at www.37signals.com includes several sales tips. Here are a few of the postings on Snyder's blog.

84. Get your “elevator speech” down pat. You should be able to explain your unique selling proposition (USP) for the customer in the time it takes to ride five floors on an elevator. Always practice your USP in front of the mirror before you leave your home for the sales call or in front of a willing family member, friend or co-worker.

85. Don't be an ass. This may sound obvious, but people like doing business with nice people. If you're friendly and kind, it's way more likely people will become repeat customers (not to mention the fact it's just a better way to live).

86. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Put yourself in your customer's shoes. Treat your customers like you want to be treated.

87. Use a CRM tool. A great way to keep in touch with your customers and encourage repeat business is to use a customer relationship manager (CRM) tool. If you want to give a customer a call and can't remember what you spoke about during your most recent visit, a CRM tool is invaluable.

88. Set realistic goals. There's nothing worse than making crazy optimistic goals and then crashing back down to reality when you don't achieve them. Start off with realistic, achievable sales goals. When you hit them, congratulate yourself and increase them.

89. Get the hard stuff done first. If you know you hate a certain task, get it done first. After it's completed, you'll feel exhilarated the rest of the day. If you put it off until the end of the day, you'll spend the whole day dreading it.

90. Don't take rejection personally. A large percentage of potential customers will say no. Some will even be nasty about it. Just remind yourself that it's totally normal and that they're not rejecting you personally.

Other Sales Basics

91. Learn from the best. List two or three salespeople you admire for their excellent sales skills. Now write down one thing you can adapt from their sales approach that will enhance yours.

92. Know a customer's birthday and special occasions. Does this sound too simple? It is. But it will make a difference for some customers.

93. Ask about someone's family members by name. Long before ACT databases and other contact-management software came into vogue, savvy salespeople would make handwritten notes in their Rolodexes about a customer's hobbies, names of their family members and other personal data. When this interest is genuine, your customers will appreciate the extra attention.

94. Don't underestimate the power of a handwritten note. E-mails, voice mails and text messages have all but replaced the simple handwritten note. That's a shame. Whenever you want to break through all of this electronic clutter, a handwritten note always works best.

95. Let the customer spew. When things go wrong on a sale, let the customer vent. After he or she gets out their aggravation, start correcting the mistake and rebuilding the relationship.

96. Tell the truth about what really happened. Salespeople have no moral or productive alternative but to tell the truth when they or their companies screwed up.

97. Work together with the customer to develop a plan so the problem does not occur again. Once the customer calms down, work with him or her to remedy the situation.

98. Learn from the Boy Scout Law. The Boy Scout Law was written 99 years ago, but it still applies to everyday life. It's amazing how much salespeople can learn from it if they take it to heart. A Boy Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.

99. Rate yourself on EW's “10 traits that make a great salesperson.” It all boils down to the basics. Do you and your company's salespeople possess these traits?

Integrity. A core belief that honesty is the foundation of all relationships.
Outgoing personality. A 24-hours-a-day love of people.
Leadership. The ability to lead, inspire and motivate people.
Energy. The energy to make that extra sales call.
Confidence. A belief that you have what it takes to get the order.
Interpersonal skills. The ability to listen to customers' needs and to communicate your ability to provide the solutions that best meets these needs.
Self-discipline. The inner drive to motivate yourself to do the job right.
Open-mindedness. The ability to accept new ideas.
Optimism. A core perspective that allows you to see problems as challenges, not as insurmountable obstacles.
Competitiveness. The competitive edge that hates to lose an order.

Jim Lucy
16 Feb 2007

Do you have the 100th Sales Tip? Did we forget any surefire sales strategies? Electrical Wholesaling is offering a $100 American Express check for the best 100th sales tip that's submitted. Send it by e-mail to Jim Lucy, Electrical Wholesaling's chief editor, at jlucy@prismb2b.com. We will publish that sales tip in a future issue. www.ewweb.com

Why I Hate Closing Techniques?

"My salespeople need to get better at closing," the Vice President of Sales said to me shortly after I arrived in his office.

If I've heard that line once, I've heard it a hundred times. Despite being on an important sales call, I couldn't help but cringe. You see, I will never, ever train people on closing techniques if they sell to the corporate marketplace.

Why not? When you analyze what happens when you teach sellers how to be great closers, you'll understand my perspective.

So right now, I want you to imagine yourself as a decision maker in a large organization. Perhaps you're a manager or even an executive.

You agree to meet with a seller who's been trying to set up a meeting with you for several months. When she mentioned the business results her firm was achieving with your competitor, you decided it was time to learn more.

But you're still a bit leery. You're absolutely swamped with a workload that's so big you can't seem to get out from under it.

After a 10-minute discussion with her, you start to notice that nearly every other sentence ends with a question: "Don't you agree?" or "I'm sure you've experienced that?" or "Is that true here?"

(Because she's been trained to "always be closing," she starts using the "Constant Close Technique" right away. This method is designed to get your head bobbing up and down. The more "yeses" you say, the easier it'll be for her to get your business.)

After sharing a bit more about her offering, she begins to implement the "Little-Decision Close" by asking:

- Do you usually start out with weekly or monthly orders?
- Can you get this through purchasing fairly easily?
- Do you agree that this methodology would be helpful?
(By getting you to agree to small things first, she's warming you up for the big close.)

Inside, your head is spinning and these thoughts are racing through your mind: "I'm not ready to get started on anything right now. I'm just learning. Besides, I don't know if it's even worth it to make a change. Shoot, it could be really disruptive right now with all the new initiatives going on in our company."

But the sales rep persists. She's really good at closing. She moves into the "Assume-the-Sale Close." With a winning smile on her face, she says to you, "We can get going on this by mid-month."

If you're normal, by now you're feeling a little pushed - or maybe even a lot pushed. You're not ready to make any kind of decision on the spot like this. Who does she think she is???

Trying to politely get out of this mess, you ask, "How much money are we talking about?" No matter what she says, it will always be too much!

When you tell her that, she chimes back in with the "Better-Act- Now Close".

Petulantly, she looks at you and says, "We're really busy right now. So many people are ordering. If you don't go ahead right now, I have no idea how long it will take or even if the pricing will stay the same. I've heard it's going up."

You tell her you'll have to take your chances, because it's out of the question for you to make decisions so quickly.

Not to be deterred, she comes right back at you with her best "Referral Close." Pulling a list of testimonials out of her briefcase, she lays them in front of you one-by-one.

"Look at all the great companies who we work with," she says. "They love us. We've done great things for them."

Glancing quickly at your watch, you say, "I'm sorry. I have to run to a meeting right now. Thank you so much for your time."

"If you act now, we've got this great promotional offer," she says using her best "Last Ditch Close". "We'll throw in 20 hours of free training and a new iPod."

Enough already! At this point, all you can think about is, "Get this woman out of my office."

That's what happens when you train someone on closing skills. They close and they close. At the same time, they tick off their prospective customers royally.

Whenever someone talks to me about their salespeople needing to be trained on closing skills, I have to redirect their thinking.

The inability to close is a direct result of poor needs development. It is the symptom of the problem, not the actual problem itself.

The very best salespeople don't employ any special closing techniques at all. They simply focus on understanding their customer's business and helping them achieve their desired outcomes.

Instead of talking about their product or service, they ask a ton of questions. They keep their focus on their prospect's business challenges and the gaps that need to be closed to achieve their objectives.

Then, knowing that corporate decisions take a while to make and often involve many people, they simply suggest the logical next step.

So please, don't talk to me about your salespeople needing to improve their closing skills. I can't help you with this.

If they're selling to big companies, the more they close, the less successful they'll be.

Jill Konrath
19 Feb 2007

Feel free to use the above article on your website or in your print publication or ezine. Make sure the following credit is attached:

"Jill Konrath helps salespeople get their foot in the door and win big contracts in the corporate market. Sign up for her free e-newsletter at http://www.sellingtobigcompanies.com. You get a free "Sales Call Planning Guide" ($19.95 value) when you subscribe."