Beware! Dinosaurs Are Alive and Looking for  Victims.

Don’t let them into your business, they will kill  it!

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

Warren Buffett

I recently answered a question on Quora about ‘closing techniques’, the question itself indicating the questioner is following an old fashioned and outmoded concept, so I answered accordingly.

 I was amazed at some of the emotions I stirred up!

 Some of the comments were positively dinosauric! I mean, seriously, are people still using such ineffective and counterproductive tactics?

 Is it any wonder that the sales profession still lacks trust and respect?

Of course, I totally understand that challenging the status quo makes people uncomfortable, but I still wonder why the sales industry in general simply fails to understand how far even ‘unprofessional’ prospects have developed their buying requirements?

Incredibly, a great deal of sales training and management still works from the premise that “getting a sale, any sale”, is the main target outcome of the sales process, rather than satisfying needs and achieving customer satisfaction, even, dare I say, happiness? 

“In the end, all management can be reduced to three words: 
people, products, and profits. People come first.”

Lee Iacocca

  ~~~~~ 

Customer service begins in the sales process!

 Look, the only way to sell effectively is to be genuinely interested to find the best solutions for your prospective customers, and the only way to do that is to acquire a really deep knowledge and understanding of their needs. Only then can you advise them on the best solutions and help them understand why those solutions are the best.

 Oh, and by the way, if you can’t match your solutions to their needs, they shouldn’t be buying them!

There is absolutely no excuse for overpromising simply to get the sale, knowing that your company will be put in the position of undersupplying and exposed to the problems that are subsequently created!

“You can’t transform something you don’t understand. If you don’t know and understand what the current state of the customer experience is, how can you possibly design the desired future state?”

Annette Franz

 Many sales processes today incorporate a ‘know your client’ (KYC) practice, it’s actually a minimum requirement in many industries, such as financial services. But even in that sector, it’s still unusual to see KYC being used correctly, to establish the most crucial knowledge; a deep understanding of the prospect’s communication needs and buying comfort zones.

 No matter how good your solution is, unless a prospect is comfortable with the way the information is delivered and trusts the source of the information, they will not buy comfortably, and for the correct reasons.

 At its most effective, selling has seven main aims:

1. To put the prospect's needs for a perfect solution before that of making a sale.
2. To help them fully understand the need for the solution.
3. To align the solutions with the prospects’ needs and challenges.
4. To motivate and encourage the prospect to want the product or service, passionately.
5. To help the prospect attain the solution in the most comfortable way.
6. To make the buying experience enjoyable and stress-free.
7. To create customers that create customers.

 The customer experience starts at the point of  sale.

 We must always remember; the customer experience starts with the sales process. Using so-called ‘closing’ techniques to force the prospect into purchasing is totally counterproductive and has only one of two results: a cancellation or an unsatisfied customer.

Both leading to problems. Indeed, very often, sales made in this way are more damaging than those not made at all.

One last note; sales training is secondary to communication expertise training. Becoming a highly effective communicator means never needing the uncomfortable pressure, closing techniques of yesteryear.

 At its very best, the sales process is a smooth-flowing process of influence and agreement, leading the prospect to a natural decision of becoming a customer as a mutual consensus.

 And, do you know the most amazing thing about all this? There is no ‘tactic’, ‘process’ or ‘strategy’ that is more powerful and naturally easier for creating high volume, high-quality sales, than effective communication!

“When money is the end goal, a business can only succeed in the short term. It can’t build trust or impact its audience. As visionaries, that’s our ultimate goal.”

Danny Iny

Don’t forget, you can get my coaching help with Sales Leadership challenges with a FREE discovery call here; Call Will Free (subject to availability). (Be sure to ask about my subscriber discounts.) 

 Got any feedback or comments, I’d love to hear them. You can drop me a line;  [email protected].  

 If you like reading about communication and people skills, catch my Medium.com publication; Youmeus