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Sales and Sales Training Thoughts
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About three months ago a new salesperson called me, friend of a friend, and asked about Toastmasters (public speaking - toastmasters.org), she thought it would help with her sales ability. We spoke briefly about that, then I asked some questions: how long has she been in sales, what does she need help with, etc., after all, helping salespeople is what I do.
I gave her the basics: focus on helping the other person, be honest, do more, and deliver more than you promise, have relaxed sales conversations with prospects and customers, get all the sales training you can get, and really take care of customers. I also told her about the free newsletter and other items on our website. I then e-mailed her all the information we had discussed and told her to contact me with any other sales questions. What happened? Nothing. Outside of a "thanks" e-mail, so I know she got the info.
My friend tells me that the salesperson continues to struggle, has the lowest numbers in the office, etc. Yet, I have not heard from her and she has not been to the website. My friend also tells me that, while this salesperson works hard, she thinks she knows everything and does not take part in voluntary sales training or take advice from people.
The bottom line: ALL OF US ARE ALWAYS IN THE PROCESS OF LEARNING. THERE'S ALWAYS MORE TO KNOW. Personally, I read new sales information everyday with an open mind realizing that someone may have a better way of doing things than I do in a certain area. Especially in the beginning we must be sponges, we must be coachable, we must get all the sales training we can, and we must have a strong desire to listen to and learn from others and to get better at selling.
John Chapin www.completeselling.com
Today someone asked me the most important sales tool, I barely hesitated, ATTITUDE!
You can make an argument for a lot of different characteristics but, whether it's selling or life, attitude is what separates everyone more than anything else.
We've all seen people with the odds stacked completely against them yet, they've overcome and gone on to great success. Why? Attitude. Attitude gets you up early and keeps you up late. Attitude makes you persevere in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds, and attitude makes sure you do what you should do, when you should do it, and that last one is what success really comes down to. If you do what needs to be done with the right attitude, you'll be extremely successful.
Now I know some people may say, "But what if something tragic happens along the way?" First off, you can only control certain things, so don't worry about the tragedies you can't, and second, people with the right attitude still overcome most tragic events.
The best sales training idea I, or anyone else, could ever give you: Work on developing a positive attitude. Put good things in your brain and do what you can to keep a good attitude, it will pay more dividends than anything else.
Okay, I finally reached the end of the car buying road today. Coincidentally, the salesperson I liked the most ended up having the best deal. Funny how that happens.
Now that all is done, it amazes me when I look back on everything I went through in the process. Just remember this, one of the most important sales training ideas: EVEN THE PERSON WITH THE LOWEST IQ ON THE PLANET HAS A BUILT IN BS DETECTOR. When you don't shoot people straight, they usually know it.
I heard statements such as, "This deal will be below my cost, we're actually losing money on this deal." And, "It will actually cost us more to get your car (trade-in) fixed, than it would cost you because we're a big car dealership and they'll take advantage of us." That's in addition to flat out lies such as when I had a deal on a car, then they came back and said "Hm, actually after looking over your car a second time, we have to give you $1,000 less."
The point is: The guy who eventually sold me a car was on my side and he was honest. I knew he and the dealership were making money and he didn't hide it. He pulled up all sorts of information on the web and educated me on what to look for and what I was getting. He is also the guy I had to call to tell I was buying the car somewhere else, before that deal fell through. I went back to him because he was kind, courteous, and respectful in defeat. He said, "If there's ever anything I can do to help, call me." From the moment I met him he was always professional, helpful, and treated me with respect, while being honest.
That's the lesson for today: be straight forward and honest and have the customer's best interest in mind, because if you don't, the customer will know it.
Do you sell the same way to everyone? Do you have the same presentation and same selling style regardless of the personality type of the prospect? If so, you may be leaving a lot of money on the table.
Most sales training misses this important point: If you give the same presentation to a Thinker, or Analytic Buyer Type, that you give to a Partier, or Socializer Buyer Type, you will alienate that person in a New York Minute. The Partier likes emotion, color, excitement, energy, the Thinker on the other hand, likes logic, black and white, and a slow, methodical pace. You must adjust your voice, speed, and content for the different personality types.
Here are the general rules to follow with each:
Drivers, or most leaders, tend to be very direct, down-to-business and not very interested in personal rapport. They want you to get to the bottom line without a lot of fluff and rapport building. Use a business like, fast pace with them.
Partiers like excitement, and fun. Build rapport with them before getting down to business. They love to talk about vacations, upcoming parties, etc. Use a fast, exciting, fun pace with them.
Yes People, or Amiables, want to get along with everyone. They are not very direct but are very open personally. Build lots of personal rapport and stress the relationship. Use a slow pace with the same presentation you gave to the Partier, just watch borderline humor, which is okay for the Partier but may not be for the "Yes" Person.
Thinker Buyer types want lots of information and just the hard facts. Give them lots of proof. They are indirect and slow in their approach. You can try to build some personal rapport, and should, but after a failed attempt, get straight to business. Use a slow pace, the Thinker is adding everything up in his or her head.
The fastest way to figure out who you're dealing with? Speed of verbal communication and how animated the person is. Thinkers and "Yes" People: slower speech, Thinker has more of a stern posture and movements, "Yes" Person, more of a soft, calm look, will smile when meeting you, etc. Partier and Driver, faster pace of speech, Driver more of a business look on his or her face, Partier a more excitable look.
Adjust your speed, content, and communication level based upon the personality type of your prospect and get into THEIR world in order to sell effectively.
I recently got a question from a salesperson who had just lost her largest account to a competitor. She was writing a "farewell-for-now but I'll stay in touch" sales letter and she asked me if it was appropriate to sign the letter: Love, Sandy
Now, I've always been an advocate for close customer relationships and bringing each customer to the next level, in other words, customer to good customer, good customer to loyal, great customer, and loyal, great customer to good friend and yet, I told her emphatically "no", it is not okay to sign it "love."
Had this been a birthday card, a Christmas card, or a personal letter, and this customer happened to be a great friend that you would use the word "love" with, then use it there but, this was technically a business letter about a business event, and in that case you don't use the word "love." When you deliver the letter, you may convey that feeling in telling this person how much they mean to you as both a customer and a friend, but you don't write it.
To end my random thought, keep love and business separate and also use this blog post as a reminder that you should be striving to get all prospects and customers to the next level, the final level being that of great, loyal customer and great friend, to the point where you might wonder in what cases you would and wouldn't use "love" in a note or some other form of correspondence. Wow, how's that for a run-on sentence? :I
Yesterday I went to pick up my new car. Okay, it's actually a 2006 with 12,000 miles on it, but it was going to be new for me. When I arrived, the salepserson wasn't available so I found myself speaking to the sales managers in his office. We were making small talk when completely out of the blue he said, "I love working for this dealership. Our reputation is second to none. We have no complaints from the Better Business Bureau or Attorney General's Office, well, no unresolved complaints. Yes, we really take care of our customers."
Now maybe it's just me, but I get a little paranoid when someone volunteers that seemingly random thought out of the clear blue. At the same time, I was dealing with a high-end car brand and so I chalked it up to the sales manager trying to build some trust and credibility, but just not being very tactful about how he did it.
To make a long story slightly shorter, the car had some pretty obvious problems: a window that wouldn't go down, a broken ash tray door, a cracked grill, a dent in the driver's side door, and the car was unresponsive 2 of the times in which I pressed the accelerator. To make matters worse, when I returned with the car, the sales manager told me that, upon further inspection, they couldn't give me as much for my trade as they had thought. They wanted to take off $1000 for two items that they were already aware of and that they had already told me in a previous conversation would only make a difference of $300, which they already figured in to the trade amount.
Now maybe I shouldn't have put down a deposit on the car, maybe I shouldn't have walked in with my check book, and maybe I shouldn't have let them know that I lived an hour away, and at the same time, I assumed I was dealing with a reputable outfit. Not one that would think, hm, okay, this guy really wants to get the deal done, so we can sell him a sub-par car and nickel and dime him on his trade.
They lost trust, one of the most important factors in sales and business, and frankly, I'll never do business with them and they'll get some bad press out of this. We simply must strive for the highest level of honesty and integrity when selling.
For those of you wondering, this was a Cadillac dealership in Massachusetts, and 99% of these dealerships are great organizations with reputable salespeople. If you are considering this type of car, in this area, e-mail me and I'll tell you who to watch out for.
You hear it everywhere you go: "Sales are down because of the economy. My customers simply aren't buying as much."
Most sales training out there is saying the economy doesn't matter, that it's not what's going on out there, it's what's going on in your own head that matters. While this is true, and while what's going on in your own brain is always more important than outside circumstances, the economy is affecting many businesses. If yours is one of them, what can you do to keep sales up or even increase them? Here are three ideas.
First, don't let the economy be your excuse. There are some people out there who will use this excuse to "take it easy" and not work as hard. Don't make that mistake, it will be like a domino effect and your situation will go down hill quickly. What you should do instead is resolve to work harder and smarter. Come up with ideas to increase business. Sit down in the morning and jot down as many ideas as you can and then start putting them to work. If you work harder and smarter, business will improve.
Second, get some sales training. When there aren't as many sales and/or prospects, we must do better with the ones we have. The way to do this is to get better at selling. Books, tapes, CDs, DVDs, take in anything you can get your hands on. Some people have improved so much that they actually sold more in a so-called down economy than they had ever sold in the past when times were good.
Third, keep a good attitude. Your attitude is your most important sales tool in your arsenal, you have to keep it sharp. Put lots of good things in your head and decide that, no matter what, there is a way to colossal success. As you did with the training material, read, listen to, and watch as much as you can to stay positive and focused. Be persistent.
Can the economy affect your sales business? Sure, but when you put the three sales training ideas above into practice, you'll find that the effect on you will be minimal, and in fact, you may notice no change or even a positive one.
