Listen…3 Best Sales Tips

Are you listening when you sell? Or are you just caught up in your sales process?

Shhhh-I’m not listening, You can’t hear me, I don’t want to listen to you…

You know I’m a salesperson.  I deal with other sales people every day just like you.  At the heart of things I believe we are all trying to sell each other something all the time.  Your husband is selling you on why it’s better to watch Monday Night football then to go to Bible Study, your teenager feels entitled to take the family car, an employee wants every Friday and Saturday night off.  We all have agendas and often times we are so wrapped in what we want that we forget what our original intent really was.

Here’s a great example of what I mean.  A salesman called me on Thursday.  He represents a product that could potentially drive traffic to our booth at a show we are attending in the late fall.  Initially his approach was centered around helping me.  I believe great selling is about helping other people.  I was in a hurry and did not have much time for the call.  He told me enough about the product that I understood that it was a touch screen mapping kiosk that would help people understand where our booth is and that the potential client could print a map to get to our booth.  There are also some additional “pay for” features that he wanted to show me which was honestly the reason for the call.  These additional features required that I set an appointment so that I could take the time to look at their value.  I appreciated his approach.

In the interest of time and out of respect for the sales process, I said to the guy, “My schedule is completely packed next week.  I’m on the road every day.  Let me give you my sales manager’s contact information and he can help us decide if we need this tool.”  I did not feel like I had the time to spend the 20-30 minutes with him.  He continued to press for my time with an on-line meeting.  I then asked him, in the interest of time, to simply lay out the features and the benefits of the product.  I gave him the best sales opportunity possible and requested information regarding other times they had used the product so that I could best understand what I could expect in way of results.  And then after he walked me through those features and benefits, I’d like to know the price.

I then got the lecture about needing to SEE what the product had to offer rather than just getting the price.   Now I’m mad.  Click here to find out the 3 best sales tips in the world!

I had already coached him about how to best sell me.  I share with him at this point that I am a salesperson; and reminded him that I wanted to understand what the product would do for me, what my expected return on investment would be, and then I’d like to know the price.  Any of you that know me, know that I KNOW that price last is the way to go.  I set him up to sell me in the way that I know sales works and he argued with me.

Correctly identifying that I was probably the decision maker for the company, he offered another date beyond next week.  I told him I was available the following Monday and he placed the date at the 5th.  That is not the following Monday.  Now we are really NOT communicating.  He has not listened to me.  He is wrapped up in his sales process and now I’m pissed.  I can’t think of a better word to aptly describe where I was in the conversation.

Selling is about doing something for someone and not to them.  If this salesman really listens to me rather than calculating his next thought then he hears that initially I’m interested but I’m busy, I’m not at my desk, I want to give someone else in my organization the responsibility of looking at this opportunity, I’m really angry, he’s pushed too far, and now I don’t care about him or his product.  This progression or digression of the relationship happened really fast.

In light of this interaction I felt like one of the best things I could do this week is to give you 3 key sales relationship tips.  So here they are:

  1. Listen more than you talk-This one is especially hard for me and most sales people.  We’re chatty by nature which can be a good thing gone bad when we don’t get the subtle shut-up cues that our customers often give us.  I believe we talk too much for a couple of reasons.  Number one, we get nervous and fearful that the customer might reject us.  Number two, were excited and passionate and our hope and belief that everyone should have our stuff overruns the ability to listen to the pieces that our potential client is really wanting to buy.  There’s not a single salesperson in the world that hasn’t had the experience of having someone sold and then unsold the situation because they wouldn’t quit talking…look how I’m rambling on here!  Let’s move on to number 2…
  2. Be more interested in helping the customer have what they need rather than selling your stuff! If your product can make a big difference for your customer then you genuinely need to find out what that customer needs and sell them that.  If your approach is all about you and you getting the features and benefits of your product in front of a potential customer so that they will buy your stuff, then you have your priorities in the wrong order.  Ask your customer the right questions that will help you identify whether or not your product makes a difference in their life.  If it doesn’t then you aren’t speaking to the right buyer.  Remember, great selling is helping others-you do something for people and not to them!
  3. Express gratitude-always.  Whether you sell something or not, every contact you make builds a firm foundation for what to do next.  You are going to get something out of every sales call you make, no matter what.  You have experience that you can file away for the next lead.  You learn why people don’t buy your stuff.  You find out what works better and what you could have done to improve on the last situation.  When you go into a cold call or even work a warm lead with a pre-determined attitude of gratefulness, you’ll always come out a winner.  No matter what happens, thank others for their time and understand the beauty of learning something with every interaction.

Sell Like Your Life Depends On It?

charles-sleicher-the-juarez-flea-market-juarez-mercado-mazatlan-mexicoWhat if you needed to have the mindset that each day when you showed up to work, the majority of the income you receive would be based SOLELY on what you could sell that day?

What would you do different today than you did yesterday? How would you present yourself? Would you change your approach? Do you think it is possible that you might see opportunity where none existed the day before?

If you read the newsletter last week you know that I had the pleasure to go on a cruise to Mexico.  We stopped at Progresso and Cozumel. In Cozumel, we took a cab ride with another couple around the island. During our tour we had 3 great beach stops. We also had wonderful conversation with the driver.

The couple we traveled with was sweet and elderly. The lady kept shouting interesting questions from the back. I don’t know if she thought that the louder and slower she spoke the more Miguel would understand her. Miguel spoke perfectly good English!

Her best question of the day was, “WHAT – IS – THE – MINIMUM – WAGE”?  (see what I mean?) Anyway, the question required a little interpretation, not because of the language but because of the concept. I don’t think they have a minimum wage the way we think of it here in the United States.  I was stunned at the answer which made me think of the title for newsletter this week. Miguel shared that a “good” average wage in Cozumel was about $24 per 8-10 hour day.

No wonder EVERY shop owner reaches out and says, “hey lady, come see my jewelry, or pottery, or whatever they were selling.” And truthfully, it was more about me having something nice for me or for someone at home. I love the fact that no one ever seemed to pass up an opportunity to sell. AND no one was shouting out prices. It made me think about the fact that we think that a good promotion has to be price driven. NO ONE said 50% off. I will admit though that if it looked like I wasn’t going to buy, they were quick to “make me a deal.”

I’m reminded every time I go to Mexico that “closing” is an absolute art in this country. And now I understand the motivation. Think about it, if $24 per day is your base and you have the best job in the city, then you have to be excellent. There’s no room for failure.

I bet, (and I’m a betting woman) that if you were uncomfortable “closing”yesterday and today you found out that you could ONLY make your normal salary when you closed 5 birthday parties then you would be much sharper than the day before.

We have this GREAT closing question in our birthday scripts, and it goes something like this… (once you’ve connected with the guest, then qualified the details of the party, and finally described the products) we ask you to say, “of these 3 packages which do you think Timmy and his friends would like the most?” This is typically a difficult question in the beginning. People worry about being pushy.

BUT if your life (livelihood) depends on it, then it becomes your favorite question. This is the difference between “selling” a party and just telling about your packages.

Well I’m preaching now. I just get so excited when I see the genuine enthusiasm of those that are selling their wares. I admire their tenacity. They are usually very kind and fun. YES I bought some souvenirs! YES I probably paid too much. AND some of those folks made a little more than $24 on the day I passed through Cozumel!

If you need help learning to “sell like your life depends on it” I hope you’ll call us today.  817.886.4840.

Cruising Right Along!

167     I’m Shipping out on Monday for 5 days in the Caribbean sun. I’m looking forward to sleeping as late as I      want (that probably means all the way to 7:30 a.m.)! I plan to exercise, gamble, go to art actions, drink some margaritas, learn to salsa and make salsa, and hopefully find some news things that make birthday parties great. (Of course this is a business trip! I’m obligated to do “entertainment” research, right?)

Seriously, I’m paying close attention to all those things that I do, that get in the way of all the things I mean to do. You know what I mean? I encourage you to make a list or at least become aware of what happens on those days that you look up and wonder, “what the heck did I do today”! You felt busy but hardly anything is checked off your list.

I don’t think it’s possible to get beyond the cruising stage if you don’t have some sort of map that lays out what the journey really is. I have a set of great questions, compliments of my “CEO Brain Trust Group” that set the stage for reflection and planning for the new year. We also use a Goals Grid that ask you to simply state the 3 primary goals this year for your work, health, and personal life. It’s not too much to stop and complete this exercise. It could be the most significant 30-45 minutes you spend this week.

Click here to download your copy. If you are brave enough to make commitments or need to declare them publicly then click the blog link below and share away.

As always, I’m so pleased that you take the time to stop in and read our newsletter. We have so much happening this year. We’ve got an AMAZING Bowling Promotion that I can’t wait to release. We participated in a TX BPA education event this week in Houston and gave them a sneak peak. If their reaction is any indication about how this promotion will work… Well let’s just say, I’m pretty darned excited! We will release this product in San Antonio at the BPAA Bowling Summit.

Motivation in the Message!

I love this time of “renewal”. Every year, this is one of those inspiring moments in time that makes me feel like everything is fresh. Out with the old, in with the new. It sounds so cliché but honestly for me it makes big difference.

If you were too caught up in the holidays and you had little time for reflection: I encourage you to look at the lessons from last year. Make some decisions about what you learned and then plan for the best year of your life.

From a business perspective, TrainerTainment has set the following goals for 2013.

1. To help at least 4 new centers open in the coming year.

2. We are going to explode our e-learning department so that Dave can employ interns (he mentioned something about “cute coeds”).

3. Our Social Media Division has gone crazy and our goal there is to generate at least 100,000 new fans for the people we serve currently and for those that will come on board during the year.

4. We have big plans to increase center sales with a focus on birthday and group revenues for at least 50 locations this year through our weekly sales coaching program.

5. All of our products are going to be downloadable or in some type of “green form” from our NEW website that should deploy at the end of Jan.

6. We have a commitment to participate in at least 24 education events this year whether at national trade shows, or local and regional events.

7. With our Secret Shopping Program we know that we can increase birthday sales from 15%-65% and in some instances we have had 100% growth. Our goal is to help 100 locations experience this growth this year with this program!

8. We are going to celebrate as a team more often! (I’m thinking about a company cruise)…anyone want to join us just for the fun of it!

9. We will do at least 6 FREE webinars during the coming year (send topics if you would like to be a part of that training development)

10. And we saved the BEST for last, instead of the “Live Summit Events” we are going to deploy an AMAZING “Boot Camp” style training that will combine weekly on-line “interactive” webinar presentation, homework, review, e-learning, and certification of completion. We are pretty excited about this training and feel that in an economy where every dollar counts and time is such a precious commodity that this is an exciting solution to the expense associated with traveling to a live event. We would love to hear what you think of this concept!

Personally, I’m 7 days into being “on track” with the health thing. I’m making healthy food choices and I’ve been in the gym every day for 7 days. I go on the road on Friday so that is always the “true” test for me. I would ask that you send good thoughts my way, pray, whatever it is you do to help another, I know I need the motivation, help, and support!

That leads me to the intent of the newsletter today. What motivates you? Seriously, when you do something because you really want to do it…what’s that about? In your life, in your work, with the people you love, you have an internal driver that creates that motivation.

I have thought a lot about this in recent months. People ask me every day…“How do I motivate my employees.” I keep finding the same answer and that is to only hire people who are self-motivated.

And then, I got to thinking about what I thought motivates me. I’m going to need that when I’m on the road with the diet and exercise goal. It’s easy with the health thing to stay motivated when I’m at home…Let me rephrase that-“It’s easier”. But how do I stay motivated when I really want Popeye’s Chicken or In & Out Burger…or when I’m so stressed that nothing but chips and queso will do?

You’ll think I’m shallow; but what I really believe motivates me is excitement and fun! It sounds a little ridiculous when I say it out loud. However, I know in my heart, that nothing is hard when I’m having fun doing it or if it is very exciting. So things like challenge or competition fall into that motivation bucket for me as well. I will tell you that I am also completely inspired by love and joy. So I’ll move mountains to have those things in my life. The absence of joy or fun, excitement or love, of course are un-motivating.

For instance when my knees hurt at the dang gym, that’s tough (not fun). Or the fact that I know I’m going to be completely sore until about mid Feb. (I hope some of this soreness goes away by then). In those moments I have to think about how exciting it will be to shop at a normal size store, or how awesome I’m going to look at Bowl Expo, or how joyful it will be to live longer because I’m healthier. That’s motivation. Sometimes it’s in the moment and sometimes it’s in the results. How about you? What’s your driver? How will you stay motivated this year, this month, this week, this day?

Thank you for reading. If indeed you made it to the bottom of the email today, or even if you didn’t, I really appreciate the fact that you spent a little time with us today. I hope you’ll take time to share some of your goals and your motivation triggers!

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