February 2006 Sales Success Newsletter

In this month’s issue . . .
 
Rapport. It's something every salesperson seeks to establish with a new prospect on the first meeting. But how do you achieve this often elusive goal? My article this month provides you with a different approach than you might be used to, but one I think you'll find works well and that you will find even feels more natural than some of the other ways you've been taught before.

Brian Jeffrey helps us to understand the importance of having goals for what you want to accomplish on your sales calls and knowing what you want the next step to be at the conclusion of each call. Sales call mistakes, or "accidents" if you will, are something we've made at some time or another. Brian also provides us with some insight on the mistakes many salespeople make and valuable tips on how to avoid them in the future.

As salespeople we're all looking for ways that will help us win more sales. Unfortunately, often times we're taught useless manipulative techniques to try to influence the outcome of sales calls. However it is possible to achieve the influence we disire with non-manipulative and honest methods that help us close more sales. In an article by Jim Domanski we'll learn of one very simple, yet highly effective, way to achieve influence in a straightforward manner that also maintains your integrity and honesty.

We welcome your questions, comments, and success stories - just e-mail us at info@kosa-consulting.com.
 
Here’s to your sales success!

Kent Howell

"Real" Rapport Building
By Kent Howell

We've all heard it...people buy from people they like and trust. It's true...would you buy something from someone you didn't like and trust? Only if you had to, and unless your product or service is very different from mine, your customers don't have to buy from you. But how do you get people to like and trust you, especially since you're not typically getting to know them in a relaxed setting.

Let's face it, a sales call is a somewhat awkward situation if you haven't met the prospect before. It's kind of like a date. Will she like me? Will she trust me? The prospect knows you're there to sell them, and you know you're there to sell them, but we can't just walk in and start selling.

I guess you could walk in and start "pitching" but that's not very effective, is it? The fact is that most of us can't wait to get to the part where we begin presenting. The truth is most of us wish we could skip all the preliminaries. Wouldn't it be great if you could walk in, present and get the order? Well, while it might be great, it isn't what works. (if it works in your world, please e-mail me and let me know what color the sun is on your planet)

Most salespeople use cheesy, canned "lines" in order to establish rapport. Lines like, "Nice weather we're having," "How 'bout those Mets," or "You golf? I golf!" Supposedly these result in a warm fuzzy feeling between you and your prospect. Do they? I suggest they don't. The prospect knows what you're doing and it's typically uncomfortable for both of you. Lines like these result in the prospect looking at his watch and wondering when you're going to get to the point. Don't get me wrong, if all you have in your arsenal are lines like those above, use them. You can't just walk into someone's office and start pitching so that kind of small talk is better than none.

I think there's a better way to begin a sales call and I think that better way is to have a conversation about everyone's favorite subject. (and we all have the same favorite subject) No, it's not sports, not money, not food. It's themselves. Everyone's favorite subject is ME! Even people who say they don't like to talk about themselves, like to talk about themselves.

So how do you get your prospects talking about themselves? Here's how I do it: "Steve, I'm just curious...before we get started,how'd you get to be the VP of Sales here at ReallyBigCo?" I say it exactly that way for a reason. When you say, "I'm just curious, before we get started," it's kind of like you're off the record and people tend to open up more freely. I usually wind up with my prospect telling me about their resume, background and history for somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes. While they're talking about themselves I'm listening attentively. Now that's easy for me to do because I'm genuinely interested in people. If you're not really interested, fake it. Did you ever notice that when someone is interested in you, they seem more interesting to you? That's why this technique works so well. When you ask someone about themselves and actively listen you give them the gift of being listened to, and most of us don't get listened to in life. Our spouses, kids, co-workers and most others don't listen to us most of the time. When you ask someone about themselves, and listen, they start to like and trust you. Will you be best friends after that? Nope, but you're on the way to establishing real rapport.

Try this method on your next sales call and see how it works for you.

Avoiding Sales Call Accidents
By Brian Jeffrey

A sales call shouldn't be something that happens by accident; it should be a planned event. When sales calls aren't planned, they often result in wasted time and effort, resulting in a no sale. No matter how hard you try, you can't make a sale on every call but, as a minimum, you should be either starting a sale, moving a sale along, or trying to close one.

I'm talking about sales calls here, not social calls where you drop in to chat with someone you like and who likes you. Those are called comfort calls, not sales calls. They're usually unproductive but comforting.

• Get the name of key contact(s)
• Qualify an opportunity
• Make a presentation
• Get an order for…
• Get a decision regarding…
• Determine a close date
• Negotiate a sales contract
• Close an opportunity
• Get a purchase order

On multi-call sales, finish the call by setting mutual goals or expectations for the next call. In essence, you're setting an agenda for the next call. Whenever possible, you want to get a commitment on the part of the prospect to do something, and you want to leave the call knowing exactly what you need to do for the next meeting.

Ending a call with, "I'll send out the literature for you to review. If you have any questions, just give me a call. If I don't hear back from you, I'll give you a call." is all right but it could be better. You've left the prospect with no clear commitment for a next step. Ending a call with the following would be even better:

"Let me send you the literature so you can review it and make notes of any additional information you want. I'll give you a call next Tuesday to answer your questions and see what the next steps are. Will that be okay?"

This approach attempts to get the prospect to commit to read the literature as well as accept a call from the salesperson.

Sometimes simply asking the prospect what he wants to have happen next is enough to set next-call expectations. Here are a few examples:

"Where do we go from here?"

"What's the next step?"

"How do you want to proceed?"

"What do you want me to do next?"

Whenever possible, put a timeline on these action items:

"When should we get together again?"

"Can we set a time for our next meeting?"

"When do you want me to get back to you on this?"

The advantage of setting next-call goals or expectations is that it makes the next call much easier to start and gives you an opportunity to service the prospect in a personal value-added manner.

Commercial Visitor or Valued Resource
How do your prospects and customers perceive you? Are you someone to pass some time with (a visitor), or do they welcome you because you bring something of value (a resource)?

Most people are simply too busy these days to just spend time chatting with you whenever you happen to drop by or call them on the telephone. If you have something of value for your customer when you call, you become a valued resource instead of just another commercial visitor.

I call this concept never selling empty handed (or empty headed!). Always try to bring something along with you on the sales call that you feel might be of value or interest to the customer.

Typical value-added items might be:

• Reprints (technical article, industry news, etc)
• Trade journal articles
• Industry-specific, general information
• New product information with items highlighted for the particular customer
• Something, anything, that would be of value to the customer

The idea is to make your prospect feel special. If you know your prospect is interested in a particular subject, topic, or hobby, almost anything pertaining to these areas will receive favorable attention and make you a welcomed resource. In other words, do what you can to ensure that customers look forward to your visits and calls.

Calls to Avoid
Avoid these calls at all costs. They're guaranteed to annoy your prospect and make you sound like a self-serving salesperson.

The Post-Office-Check-Up Call
"Hi, I'm just calling to see if you got the literature I sent."

The What's-Happening Call
"I'm just calling to see what's happening with the proposal we sent you."

The Pick-Up-An-Order Call
"I'm just calling to see if you have anything for me this month."

The General-State-of-the-Union Call
"I'm just calling to see how things are going."

The I-Don't-Know-What-to-do-With-My-Time-so-I-Thought-I'd-Bother-You Call
"Hi. I'm just calling to see how things are going and…" (a telephone call) -or- "Hi. I just happened to be in area so I thought I'd drop in and…" (a drop-in visit)

Doesn't this last approach make the prospect feel real special? You just happened to be in the area? Even if this is true, don't insult a prospect by saying it.

Prevent Accidents
These simple rules can substantially improve your call effectiveness so start planning your calls today and prevent sales call accidents.

Brian Jeffrey is a Certified Sales Professional (CSP) and president of SalesForce Training & Consulting Inc. www.SalesForceTraining.com. He is a sales trainer, sales management consultant, columnist, and author of The Sales Wizard's Secrets of Sales Management.

Pull Their Trigger
By Jim Domanski

Just suppose for one brief minute that you could simply pull a trigger or a lever and then…BAM… your customer would automatically buy.

Would you like that?

Well, you can…to some degree…if you understand a bit about the art and science of persuasion. Sound farfetched? You might be surprised. We're going to take a look at a “trigger” that you can use to influence your customers and to get them to take action and/or buy.

Understanding Influence

First and foremost, if you haven’t bought “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion” by Robert. B. Cialdini, then drop everything and do so now. If you’re even remotely involved in marketing or sales, this book is a must. Cialdini, a psychologist, looks at why some people are remarkably persuasive and the six secrets behind our powerful influence to comply.

The “Because” Trigger

By way of an example, Cialdini refers to a set of experiments conducted by Harvard professor Ellen Langer concerning the use of the “because” trigger. The “because” trigger is based on a well know principle of human behavior which says that if we ask someone to do us a favor, we’ll be more successful if we provide a reason.

Langer tested this in three experiments. In the first experiment, Langer asked a small favor of people waiting in line to use a copying machine. “Excuse me,” she said, I have five pages. May I use this Xerox machine because I am in rush?” Ninety-Four percent of those asked let her skip ahead to the front of the line.

In the second experiment, she said, “Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine?” The rate of compliance dropped to 60%. It would seem fairly evident why this might happen. In the first case, those waiting in line were given additional information (“I’m in a rush.”) or a reason.

But Langer conducted a final experiment to reveal that additional information was not the reason for compliance. In the third experiment, Langer asked “Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine because I have to make some copies?” Incredibly, 93% of those asked allow her to step to the front of the line and make copies. It appears that it was not the ‘reason’ behind the request that led to compliance but rather the use of the word “because”.

Cialdini explains that the word “because” triggers an automatic compliance response from people even when they were not given a subsequent reason to comply. In our crazy, complex and hectic world human beings have learned to make life a little easier and a little more manageable by disseminating information into manageable packets. These are “triggers”. Triggers refer to those things that elicit a response in our behavior. Hence, many of us have been conditioned when we hear the word ‘because.’ We accept that whatever follows is legitimate and rational…whether it is or not.

Skeptical?

So was I. But I conducted my own set of “because” experiments with my wife and kids over several weeks. The requests focused on making coffee and getting a back rub. While hardly as noteworthy and scientific as the study from Harvard, the use of “because” was decidedly more effective and successful regardless of the reason I attached to it. (They still haven’t caught on…much to my benefit!)

I tell you: I’m not so skeptical now.

Applying it to the Sales World

So what does that mean to those of you in sales? How can we apply this? There appears to be two ways you can use this.

1. Tactical

When explaining how your product works, how it functions or how it can benefit the client, use “because.” Sprinkle it liberally in your message. For instance:

• “…because our posters arrive weekly, the look and the message changes constantly so that it catches your employees attention, and because it catches their attention, the awareness level of safety increases significantly. This means a safer work environment and less worker comp claims.”
• “…I recommend our TENS program because we do all the paperwork for you which means less hassle and headache…”
• “…I recommend you try our brand toner because it is of equal quality and value and because it will yield a better margin for you and your store.”

It’s not rocket science. It’s simple and straightforward.

2. Strategic.

Use because to explain a special offer or the reason for a sale. For example:

• “Because our buyer over purchased, we can offer these items at a reduced cost…”
• “Because of the recent political events and because of the recent economic turn down, we are offering our program at a 20% discount…”
• “Because there is no middleman, we can offer the same products to you at less price than your current supplier…”

Easy isn’t it?

Summary

I don’t precisely know the precise impact “because” has on the selling process. Obviously, it doesn’t guarantee a sale but I know that there is evidence that supports its use. I know I have tested it in an ad hoc manner and found it works. I do know that it makes sense. I do know it can’t hurt. And I do know that it just might give me (and you) that ‘edge’ in selling that we’re all looking for.

And because it is so simple to use, I recommend you get started now and see what it does for your sales.

Jim Domanski is the President Teleconcepts Consulting www.teleconceptsconsulting.com and is considered one of the leading experts in business to business tele-sales consulting and training.