by Art Waskey | Jun 2, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
How important is perspective to your success in sales? Consider this. A shoe salesman finds himself on a remote island among a tribe of people who do not wear shoes. He sends a message, “Come get me. There is no market for shoes on this island.” Another shoe salesman lands on the same island. He sends a different message, “Please send a load of shoes as everyone on this island needs a pair.”
What is your perspective? How prepared are you to seize the moment? Here are four questions that check your readiness.
- Do you love your job? Do you look forward to getting up in the morning to start the new day? Enjoying your work enables success.
- Is your energy contagious? In his book, The Ideal Team Player, Patrick Lencioni, asks the question, “Are you hungry?” Hungry people are always looking for more things to do, more responsibilities to take on. They are self-motivated and can sense a new opportunity. Their enthusiasm is contagious.
- Are you surrounded by people who motivate you? Zig Ziglar’s most quoted axiom is, “You can get anything out of life if you just help enough other people get what they want out of life.” What motivates you each day? Is it centered on others or yourself?
- Do you find your work exciting? I have a motivational speech titled, “I can’t believe they pay me to do this job!” I have thoroughly enjoyed almost 50 years of rewarding work in sales and as a motivational speaker. You should be excited each time you take the next step in your career.
Life is short. Success is not a destination, it is a journey. It is the direction in which you are traveling that really matters. On your island, do you have the proper perspective to see the opportunities in front of you?
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by Art Waskey | May 25, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
An upset customer is every sales person’s worst scenario, but have you ever considered how placating that angry individual could become an opportunity? When you are able to find a satisfactory solution for a displeased client, you have the potential to build a better relationship, even a stronger one if you play your cards right.
As an example, I was recently in the field with one of our reps when he got a call from an enraged client. The customer claimed that the new product we sold him was defective. Operating on the truism, “You can get to the top by getting to the bottom of things,” our rep did not hesitate to make this a priority and agreed to head right over. We were at his place of business within a half hour.
Turning Rage into Reward
The first thing we did was to listen. The customer ranted and raved for a bit before he began to calm down. Eventually, he smiled and apologized for being so upset. It was then that my astute sales associate offered his solution. By listening, our rep had discerned the problem was not with the product but with how it was being used. He retrained the customer on the proper use of the equipment and in the process strengthened his relationship with him.
Consider this plan for dealing with an upset customer:
- Respond as quickly as you can. Frustration builds with time.
- Apologize and assume responsibility even if it is not really your fault.
- Listen intently. Ask questions. Empathize with the customer.
- Wait until the customer has fully vented his concerns before offering a solution.
The sales rep in this scenario turned what could have been a negative sales experience into a positive one. He did so by allowing the customer to voice his frustrations fully before suggesting a remedy. Remember, “We have two ears, but only one mouth, so we should listen twice as much as we talk.” This is good advice when trying to convert rage into reward.
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Want to read a little more about listening with purpose? Check out this Simon Sinek article, How to Listen.
by Art Waskey | May 19, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
Do you consider yourself a person with “too much to do, and not enough time to do it?” If so, here are some fundamentals of time management for you to consider.
- Create a daily journal. I prefer to use a basic, single subject, paper notebook to record anything that I have to get done each day. (Electronic notebooks are also available.) Each day I start a new section by drawing a horizontal line across the page, dating the new entry, and bringing forward yesterday’s unfinished business. I create columns and put the names of all personal requests on the left. When a task is completed, I check it off the list. You will be amazed at the great sense of accomplishment you get from reviewing your completed list.
- Build an automated phone number and address system. Enter all key contacts including the subject’s company, title, email, website, company phone, mobile phone, and physical address in Outlook Contacts or an equivalent tool. Be sure to include in the Note section the contact’s type of business or other identifying remarks for quick reference. You can also add an app like CamCard to your smart phone, which gives you the ability to copy business cards and upload information to your phone’s contact database. These types of systems enable you to see your contact’s name on incoming cell calls and provide addresses for you to use for electronic messages (email, text, etc.).
- Use an electronic calendar system. We have all seen the sign, “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up somewhere else.” Outlook and other equivalent software provide you with the ability to manage your calendar on your mobile devices and on your computer, so you always know when and where you are headed. Make sure you use these tools when setting face-to-face appointments as well as video calls on social media platforms, like Zoom. With today’s technology it is possible to plan as much as 75% of your workday.
- Allocate 15 minutes per day for debriefing. Take time to recap, process the day’s activities, and plan for tomorrow. I recommend doing it mid- to late-afternoon, so it doesn’t extend your day.
- Develop clear guidelines for your communications. With your associates, establish mutually agreed upon procedures and protocols to use when calling, texting, emailing, leaving voicemail, and engaging in other social media communications with clients.
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by Art Waskey | May 12, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
You try and try to get a potential client you know needs you to call back, or email, or whatever. Check out this story and couple tips to convert that prospect into a client…or at least get a response.
The Silent Treatment
One of our new reps recently came to me with a common complaint— he could not get a prospect, one he had visited several times, to return his calls. In fact, he was unable to get past the receptionist, who continued to say that the purchasing agent was too busy to see him.
Try This Scheduling Tactic
I decided to try another tactic. I called the purchasing agent’s direct line and using the rep’s name, left this voicemail: “Hi Jack, this is Mark with [company]. I have tried several times to see you but with our busy schedules, we have not connected. I will be in your area next Thursday and would like to send you an appointment for a 10:00 AM meeting. I hope to see you then. Thanks.” Then I emailed him an appointment.
The purchasing agent called back within an hour. Why? When you specify a time and date with a calendar appointment the recipient needs to take some type of action. Sometimes the response is positive. In this case, the purchasing agent advised that he was happy with his current supplier and declined our company’s invitation. So while we were able to get a response, it remained a “brush-off” and a lost opportunity.
The purchasing agent had used a quick and familiar excuse, “I am happy with my current supplier.” Another popular sales blocker is, “Just send me your information and I’ll get back to you.” And we have all heard, “Can you send me a quote on the following items?” A successful salesperson knows that these comments are all defensive actions.
Memorize this Golden Response to Get the Call Back
So how do you get a face-to-face appointment (call back) with someone and avoid these brush- offs? One suggestion is to add a next step. Ignore the negative comments and respond with a more positive suggestion, such as, “I can understand that you are very busy, and I will only take a few minutes of your time to introduce myself and our products. Should your current supplier backorder an urgent product, please keep me in mind. I’d be glad to bring it to you right away.” Memorize this response. Seldom will it fail to get you an appointment.
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by Art Waskey | May 5, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
Is virtual sales the future? The most outgoing professionals in business, salespeople, are now required to stay home due to pandemic quarantines. As a result, I have been fielding lots of calls from sales managers asking for help with the shift to selling via social media. Companies are searching for methods that enable their sales reps to stay in touch with their customers remotely and need help training employees on these platforms.
Virtual Sales Calls Are More Efficient
Virtual sales calls actually save time and expense. The average person-to-person sales call can be from 2-4 hours when you include transportation, waiting in the lobby, etc. On the other hand, a salesperson in his home office is able to make at least one call per hour via online technology without leaving his desk. By using new types of video communication it is possible to build a level of trust and rapport with a client in thirty minutes, whereas using more traditional sales call techniques may require weeks or months of your time.
Over cups of coffee, one at his home and one at mine, I recently demonstrated to a company manager how to use ZOOM, a video platform currently enjoying wide popularity. We spoke via audio and video for over an hour on various business issues. After that call, he asked me to train his sales reps on how to make and use ZOOM appointments effectively with their top customers.
What choice will you make in this new normal?
In his book The Tipping Point, Malcom Gladwell suggests that times of rapid change, like the one we are experiencing, have a “stickiness factor” that is likely to create a new normal. We are being influenced radically by changes in our surroundings. If you view this pandemic as simply a period of random dissociated adversity, and don’t look for solutions, the consequences of not taking advantage of the changes that are occurring will leave you left behind in an altered world. You can either be part of a future that is better than the past, or you will be left in the past. The choice is yours. Start making face-to-face sales calls using social media today.
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by Art Waskey | Apr 27, 2020 | Art of Sales Weekly
Understanding your customer’s goals is critical to success in sales. If you don’t know what the customers goals or needs are, you may be left perplexed with how to land the deal. And you most certainly won’t help them know how your product is their solution.
Get Real with the Customer
In his best seller, Let’s Get Real, or Let’s Not Play, author Mahan Khalsa reminds us,
“If our intent is to help clients succeed, we have both the right and the obligation not to guess about the key elements of that success.”
Four Principles to Prevent Guessing
To prevent guessing situations Khalsa suggests using four principles.
- Ask the person what he or she means. When customers make a request, do you assume you clearly understand what they mean? The reality is both you and the customer may be unclear as to the true request. It is critical to listen carefully to key words or phrases used by the client and ask for clarification on what specific words mean.
- What assumptions went unchallenged? Assumptions are a form of guessing. Assumptions can be particularly insidious because they often happen unconsciously; you may not even realize your assumptions are “guesses”.
- Don’t hesitate to ask a question. If a question concerning a client forms in your mind … ask it!
- Do I really understand the criteria on which I am being judged? Never make a presentation or proposal to clients until you understand the criteria they will use to judge your presentation. Build a relationship based on mutual understanding before you agree to present your solution to the client’s problems.
Become a Discerning Leader
In his work, John Maxwell on Leadership, Maxwell states, “Discerning leaders [and sales professionals] are usually good listeners, flexible, intuitive, optimistic, well-networked, [and] perceptive.” These attributes are all indicative of someone who seeks to thoroughly understand the client’s needs before ever considering a solution. In other words, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
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