Successful sales – If you fail to plan you plan to fail!
I have plenty of great sales tips and after being in the business for a while I can belt them out like the best of them, however, I endeavor to stay sharp by learning everything I can.
Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter” provides some great tips:
I’m not going to talk about every single tip in his article, but I will mention a few:
- Leaving and using voice mail: calling between 6:45AM and 8AM does show that you are driven and it’s important because if you do this on a consistent basis the customer will probably remember and not forget you.
- Learn the customer and learn them well: it’s obvious, but get a better understanding of the customer personally. In other words, how many children they have and how old, what they like to do for fun, what drives them and what doesn’t, etc.
- The price. Is it too high or too low? There is no such thing as a high price. If you have driven value for your product and service and the customer understands the ROI is too hard to ignore, then an acquisition cost becomes less relevant. If you are selling on price then you are not selling. Align yourself with the right partner and the right solution and everything else will fall into line.
- Hand written cards: I like this one. I have a stack of them on my desk. I really need to use them. Use them and it will make a difference.
- Umbrella questions: Naturally, get the customer talking. The customer should be talking more than you are talking. If the customer is not talking much and just nodding their head or shaking their head, this is a bad sign.
- Know your customer’s customer: I don’t think about this enough, but yes, you have got to really understand the customer’s business model, how they make money, and who their clients are before you can sell them on your concepts.
- Agree on something: Even if you do not agree on the immediate sale, agree on something. Agree on the next meeting, the next phone call, and the next actions items. Always leave with agreement on action, otherwise, there will never be follow up or a discussion and your sales process will stall indefinitely.
- Don’t present all of your information: If you have a sales brochure don’t go through every single offering. Know your business and their business well enough that once you understand their pains or challenges you can align them with one or many of your offerings right away.
- Quiet time: I really like this one. Find a quiet space with a blank piece of paper and figure out how you can sell more to new and existing clients. In todays age with all the constant noise, emails, texts, phone calls, and texts you can move through an entire day without ever having any time to think and strategize.
- Body language: Tilt your head towards the customer and make eye contact frequently. They might not make eye contact with you all the time or have the best body language, but you need to present yourself in the best light all the time every time.
Good luck out there!
Tony Bilby