Did you know that studies have shown that people who are meeting us for the first time form an opinion about us in the first seven to seventeen seconds after they set eyes on us? I found that awe inspiring. It just goes to show you how vital the first few moments are when you are meeting potential new clients. If you are in marketing you need to use those seconds to your advantage.
By Steve King
Did you know that studies have shown that people who are meeting us for the first time form an opinion about us in the first seven to seventeen seconds after they set eyes on us? I found that awe inspiring. It just goes to show you how vital the first few moments are when you are meeting potential new clients. If you are in marketing you need to use those seconds to your advantage.
So how can you tip the odds of those first seventeen seconds giving out a good impression, in your favour? I reckon I have learnt a bit about that over the years.
First of all most people respond very well to knowing that they are the centre of your undivided attention. Even if they claim not to be the type of person who likes to be the centre of attention they will subconsciously form a more favorable impression of you if you make it clear that you are far more interested in their needs than your own.
Make it all about the client form the start. We all know people who never stop talking about themselves. Think about it, do you ever like them?
The second thing I have realized is that it is not enough to just sit there and appear to be listening you have to actively show that you are engaged in what they are saying. I have a friend (clearly not a close one) who is forever scanning the room with his eyes while you are talking to him, it is very disconcerting and I now find myself trying to avoid social situations with him. I just don’t feel like he is interested in what I am saying. This is the last thing you want your client to think about you. Look at them and give appropriate verbal responses. Let’s face it if you can’t do that much you are probably not going to make the sale.
A lot of people say you should use the name of the new person frequently. While it is undoubtedly a good idea to let the person know that you are interested enough in them to remember their name I have a warning to sound about this one. Whenever I meet someone who throws my name into every second sentence I immediately think they are trying to charm me, I then question why that would be. Use the persons name by all means but not so much that they question your motives or doubt your sincerity. That is clearly not the result you are looking for. In the sales game it is probably a disaster.
It is important to make all these important opening moments in any relationship work for you and convincing someone that you are genuine and sincere person is vital but you probably are anyway, you are just giving them a chance to realise that as quickly as possible.
Lastly, I would say that if this first meeting does not get across the impression you were hoping for don’t despair. Though it is true that we never get another chance at a first impression human relationships are complex and built up over time. A follow up second and third can change the conclusions they came to in those first seventeen seconds. I firmly believe this. Surely we all have friends that for what ever reason we did not like when we first met them?
If you're interested in learning more about the art of selling, be sure to check out http://www.beginnersguidetosales.com/ where Steve will take you on a step-by-step journey through an easy to follow sales process. You can also visit Steve at Marketing Matters by clicking http://www.steveking.biz
Showing posts with label sales skills. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sales skills. Show all posts
Friday, April 16, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Repetition is the Key to Sales Success
Don't wait for your boss to put you on a sales training program. Don't wait for your sales results to fall off a cliff. Don't wait until it's nearly too late to start. Start now and make regular sales training practice of your selling skills part of your daily habits. You'll be amazed what you can achieve from a mere 15 minutes a day practicing your basic sales skills.
By Gavin Ingham
Copyright (c) 2009 Gavin Ingham
“Repetition is the mother of all skill.” ~ Tony Robbins, author of Unlimited Power
In sales seminars and sales training programs I often talk about the difference between sales skills and sales techniques…
Sales techniques are something external to you, they are something that you hear or that you know. Sales skills are something that you own, they are yours through hard work and practice. And, what’s more, they won’t abandon you in even the toughest of markets.
When I speak at sales conferences many salespeople sit back, cross their arms and ask for “the advanced stuff”. They tell their boss that they don’t need sales training because they already know it, they’ve heard it all before…
Take open questions as an example. Any salesperson with more than about 5 minutes selling experience knows what an open question is - a question that requires more than a “yes” or “no” answer. We all know that open questions start with the words what, where, when, why, how, who which. But how many salespeople put undue sales pressure onto their clients by asking (self-centred) closed questions when they should be asking (well constructed) open questions?
“Most salespeople” is the correct answer.
The ability to ask great questions is one of the critical skills for being a sales superstar yet most salespeople fair badly at best in this area. Think back to the first time you were taught about open questions. Did you understand it? I’m guessing that you did. Let’s face it, it really isn’t that complicated is it? Most salespeople hear it, think that it makes sense and move on. They hear it, they acknowledge it but they never practice it. They get it intellectually but because they never practiced it, it never becomes a skill for them. It never becomes something that they own.
Put under pressure in a sales meeting or in a cold call, and with the adrenaline flowing, they revert to type asking controlling closed questions and “forgetting” to ask carefully constructed open ones.
As Robbins says, “Repetition is the mother of all skill.”
* If you want to be a great golfer you need to practice your swing, over and over.
* If you want to be a great pianist you need to practice your scales, over and over.
* If you want to be a great at anything you need to practice it, over and over.
* If you want to be a great salesperson you need to practice your sales skills, over and over.
If you are a salesperson and you want to outsell your competition and win more clients fast, you need to create an ongoing sales development program for yourself that includes regular practice of all of the sales training basics.
Don’t wait for your boss to put you on a sales training program. Don’t wait for your sales results to fall off a cliff. Don’t wait until it’s nearly too late to start. Start now and make regular sales training practice of your selling skills part of your daily habits. You’ll be amazed what you can achieve from a mere 15 minutes a day practicing your basic sales skills.
If you’re a sales manager, sales leader or business owner then you need to think about how you can help your sales team to practice their core sales skills regularly. One-off training is not enough by itself. You need to create ongoing sessions and exercises for them to participate in, both individually and as a team.
Not convinced it’s worth the effort? Not convinced you can get the same results? Not convinced that you buy into this whole practice argument? What would Tiger Woods, David Beckham and Johnny Wilkinson tell you to do?
I rest my case.
For more sales training tips, tricks and strategies visit http://www.gaviningham.com now. Blogs, articles, podcasts, videos and a free sales newsletter.
By Gavin Ingham
Copyright (c) 2009 Gavin Ingham
“Repetition is the mother of all skill.” ~ Tony Robbins, author of Unlimited Power
In sales seminars and sales training programs I often talk about the difference between sales skills and sales techniques…
Sales techniques are something external to you, they are something that you hear or that you know. Sales skills are something that you own, they are yours through hard work and practice. And, what’s more, they won’t abandon you in even the toughest of markets.
When I speak at sales conferences many salespeople sit back, cross their arms and ask for “the advanced stuff”. They tell their boss that they don’t need sales training because they already know it, they’ve heard it all before…
Take open questions as an example. Any salesperson with more than about 5 minutes selling experience knows what an open question is - a question that requires more than a “yes” or “no” answer. We all know that open questions start with the words what, where, when, why, how, who which. But how many salespeople put undue sales pressure onto their clients by asking (self-centred) closed questions when they should be asking (well constructed) open questions?
“Most salespeople” is the correct answer.
The ability to ask great questions is one of the critical skills for being a sales superstar yet most salespeople fair badly at best in this area. Think back to the first time you were taught about open questions. Did you understand it? I’m guessing that you did. Let’s face it, it really isn’t that complicated is it? Most salespeople hear it, think that it makes sense and move on. They hear it, they acknowledge it but they never practice it. They get it intellectually but because they never practiced it, it never becomes a skill for them. It never becomes something that they own.
Put under pressure in a sales meeting or in a cold call, and with the adrenaline flowing, they revert to type asking controlling closed questions and “forgetting” to ask carefully constructed open ones.
As Robbins says, “Repetition is the mother of all skill.”
* If you want to be a great golfer you need to practice your swing, over and over.
* If you want to be a great pianist you need to practice your scales, over and over.
* If you want to be a great at anything you need to practice it, over and over.
* If you want to be a great salesperson you need to practice your sales skills, over and over.
If you are a salesperson and you want to outsell your competition and win more clients fast, you need to create an ongoing sales development program for yourself that includes regular practice of all of the sales training basics.
Don’t wait for your boss to put you on a sales training program. Don’t wait for your sales results to fall off a cliff. Don’t wait until it’s nearly too late to start. Start now and make regular sales training practice of your selling skills part of your daily habits. You’ll be amazed what you can achieve from a mere 15 minutes a day practicing your basic sales skills.
If you’re a sales manager, sales leader or business owner then you need to think about how you can help your sales team to practice their core sales skills regularly. One-off training is not enough by itself. You need to create ongoing sessions and exercises for them to participate in, both individually and as a team.
Not convinced it’s worth the effort? Not convinced you can get the same results? Not convinced that you buy into this whole practice argument? What would Tiger Woods, David Beckham and Johnny Wilkinson tell you to do?
I rest my case.
For more sales training tips, tricks and strategies visit http://www.gaviningham.com now. Blogs, articles, podcasts, videos and a free sales newsletter.
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