The Sales Profession

The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style.

Selling is a craft. Craftsmanship in selling is a satisfying and rewarding profession. Like every craft there are fundamental skills that are required. The true craftsman will master those fundamentals and accent them with their own unique style. The fundamentals of the the professional salesman consist of:

• Building meaningful relationships
• Understanding the needs of your customers
• Making recommendations using features and benefits
• Resolving objections and closing the sale
• Following through and obtaining the next sale

ACTION POINT: Study and master the craft of selling.

Following Through

Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

When you follow through, you do more than you need to. Here are some ways you can surprise your customers with your level of commitment:

• Regularly check how things are progressing internally, and communicate effectively to everybody involved on a day-to-day basis.
• Send your customers a list of follow-up activities and deliverables', including dates; make sure you meet them consistently.
• Let your customer know well in advance if for some reason you can't meet a deliverable.
• Send emails updated your customers requesting a response. This instills confidence that you have their interests in mind all the time.

ACTION POINT: Surprise your customers by following through.

Following Up

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter.

Follow-up is doing whatever you committed to do at the end of the sales meeting with your customer. It is a process that you initiate to ensure that objectives are accomplished and commitments are fulfilled.

It is your responsibility to make sure that all of your organization's resources are doing what is needed to move the relationship to the next level. Will the samples be there on time? Is everyone aware of and able to meet the agreed upon delivery dates? Is the team committed to participate in the next meeting?

Every single sales call you make--from a brief catch-up meeting to a formal presentation--deserves a follow-up letter. This can be a letter, an email, or even a handwritten note--whatever suits both your style and the occasion--but must follow every call. The letter should thank the customer for their time, review what was discussed, and define the next steps. It can also serve as a reminder of who committed to do what by when.

ACTION POINT: Follow up on every single sales call you make.

Moving Beyond the Close

if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

After you have closed, you earn yet another great opportunity to differentiate yourself from the competition. Following through goes beyond just following up on your promises--doing what you said you would do professionally and on time. Following through means exceeding what's expected of you and so sending the clear message to your customers that you are consistently thinking about them.

Time speeds by. It's not hard for 90 days to pass before you realize that you haven't made any contact with a customer. "Out of sight...out of mind" may be a cliche, but it's true: and if you haven't been in touch with a client, it's a safe bet that your competitor has.

ACTION POINT: To prevent long silences, track how often you make contact with your customers. Use whatever suits your style to record every face-to-face meeting, as well as pone calls, letters, and emails.

Using a Closer

"Well then, how about an order?"

A young salesman had called on the same client twice a month for two years. Sensing he was close to his first order, he brought his boss with him. The junior salesman reviewed price agreements, credit terms, and product specifications with the client. He kept asking the customer if everything was approved, whether they were satisfied, and if there were any other questions. All of the answers were positive, but the salesman just couldn't pull the trigger. Finally, the manager lost patience and blurted out "Well then, how about an order?" The customer's response was "What took you so long to ask?"

The customer was obviously ready to buy and the young salesman's reluctance to close was only raising suspicions in the client's mind. If the manager hadn't stepped in, the sale could have been lost.

However, using a more senior person as a "closer" is a poor selling model: the salesperson should feel adequately equipped, trained, and empowered to ask for the business.

ACTION POINT: Ask for the business, even if it feels uncomfortable. Research has revealed that customer rank asking for their business as the sixth most important reason for doing the deal.

Collecting for Success

closing is important, but it shouldn't be viewed as an isolated goal.

There is a distasteful acronym out there in the world of selling - ABC, Always Be Closing -- that reflects the strong emphasis placed on closing by many sales managers. Of course, closing is important, but it shouldn't be viewed as an isolated goal.

Transform this unhealthy acronym into an ABC that will help you -- Always Be Collecting: only when you consistently question, understand, and resolve issues together with your customer will you be on the road to success.

ACTION POINT: Always Be Collecting.

Consolidating the Close II

When a customer is a prospect, they hold all the cards

To be successful repeatedly, you need to acknowledge the transfer of power that occurs when the deal is closed. When a customer is a prospect, they hold all the cards, but once they commit to the deal, they lose some of that power because they are dependent upon you to deliver.

It's uncomfortable for them, and it is a good reason for you to show humility after closing the deal -- it's not the time to whoop and punch the air.

ACTION POINT: Remain humble after the close and stand ready to serve the customer through the delivery process.

Consolidating the Close

it's the ones who get the second, third, and fourth who are the most successful

Everyone needs reassurance after making a large purchase--to silence the nagging voice asking if they did the right thing. With this in mind, it is important to make sure that you are highly visible to the customer after you have closed the deal. Some salespeople say that " the real selling starts after you get the business," and it's hard to argue with the sentiment.

With hard work, anyone can get the first order; it's the ones who get the second, third, and fourth who are the most successful. Whatever you do, don't fall into the stereotypical image of a "love ' em and leave ' em" salesperson. If you do, your relationship will be a short one. Guaranteed!

ACTION POINT: Work on getting the second, third and fourth order.

6.4.1 Knowledge is Important

Lack of the basic skills of mathematics, written communication, and reading severely limit an individual.

I wish I knew how important education was when I was in school. Some one please tell the youth how important education is, and pray that they listen. Lack of the basic skills of mathematics, written communication, and reading severely limit an individual.

ACTION POINT: Encourage learning for others and for yourself.

Asking and Getting

A good way to cover all the key variables tis to answer the "four Ws"

If you've done your job well up to this point, the customer will know that you have something valuable to offer and will want to buy from you; moreover they'll want you to ask for their business. If you don't, you're expecting the customer to do your job . It seems obvious, but if you don't ask for the business, you're much less likely to get it.

Once there has been a commitment to buy, close the sale by beginning to pin down the specifics. A good way to cover all the key variables is to answer the "four Ws" -- who will do what by when with help from whom? When you have the answers to these questions, you are ready to execute.

If you don't close the deal -- and, of course , you won't always -- it is vital to keep the momentum of the selling process going. Set objectives for resolving issues and be clear about what has to be done before the next meeting. Experienced salespeople will tell you that the only time you fail in a sales call is when you don't get a next step.

ACTION POINT: Always thank the customer for their business. It is the classy thing to do.

Assuming the Best

Assume that if the customer does not have a reason not to buy, he or she is ready to buy.

To close a deal you shouldn't need to rely on corny closing tactics. You need simply to demonstrate the same credibility, integrity, and degree of interaction with the customer that you showed throughout the selling process. Don't change the basis of your hard-won relationship at this point.

Assume that if the customer does not have a reason not to buy, he or she is ready to buy. This is called the Assumptive Close. In this Assumptive Close, the dialogue with the customer is very direct, and goes something like this:

• Salesperson: "Anything else we need to discuss?"
• Customer: "No, not that I can think of"
• Salesperson: "So everything seem OK?"
• Customer: "Yes I believe so."
• Salesperson: "Great, Then how do we get started?"

The point is clear even though the words you choose may vary: you ask the customer if there are other concerns. If they say no, you double check. If everything seems OK, just ask for the business.

ACTION POINT: If you have followed the process, just ask for the business.

Approaching the Close

It's time to close -- to ask for the business.

You have build the relationship, determined the needs, made great recommendations, and resolved the customer's objections. It's time to close -- to ask for the business. So why do so many sales professionals find this step so difficult? The answer is simple -- it is that fear of rejection rearing it ugly head once again.

This fear pushes many experienced salespeople toward canned "closes," like the Specific Terms Close," where the idea is to present the customer with a prearranged buying scenario, and then ask them to agree to it. For example: "We can deliver 10 palettes on May 12 for $1,000 -- Is that OK?" Of course, on occasion, this approach -- and others in a similar vein -- may bring about a sale, but often the customer will think you are being presumptive and rude. It's canned selling at its lowest

ACTION POINT: Overcome the fear of rejection and avoid canned selling.

Closing The Sale

Over the years, salespeople's ingenuity has given life to scores of"surefire"closing techniques.

Going by names such as the Puppy-dog Close, The distraction Close, and the Treat Close, some are just gimmicky, while others border on manipulative. Their faults lie in the fact that they all see closing as a special technique, rather than the natural outcome of a problem-solving dialogue with the client.

ACTION POINT: Make closing a natural part of your selling process.

Closing in on the Sale

Make sure that the customer know that you're part of a dedicated and responsive team.

Create confidence in your solutions by reviewing similar problems that you have solved for other clients. Other steps of the process to remember include:

• Sell your company - Talk about your company's history, successes, and commitment to excellence.
• Get creative - Generate ideas together with your client to modify the strategy: use inclusive language when describing how to overcome objections: "we have to figure out why..." or " our priority is not to..."
• Sell your colleagues - Make sure that the customer know that you're part of a dedicated and responsive team.
• Sell yourself - Make your customer feel confident in your ability. Explain why you're so well placed to address their concerns about service, quality, or specification.
• Review the features and benefits - Go back over these trusted selling tools.
• Highlight the specific benefit - Repeat or rephrases a benefit that the client has forgotten or did not fully appreciate during the earlier presentation phase.

ACTION POINT: Trust in the process and build confidence in your customer.

Mopping up the Concerns

So ask the question.

Your final act in the objection-resolutions process is to learn if there are other objections. This may sound like opening Pandora's Box, but it's critical. If other objections do exist, you need to learn about them because if you fail to uncover them now, they will certainly spoil the deal later. So ask the question.

Keep your inquiry neutral and use expressions like: "Is there anything else we need to discuss?" Try to stay away from negative language and terms such as "objections" or "issues" or "concerns." If you use words like these, you can give the customer the impression that you know something that they don't. Keep it simple. If objections remain, go back and repeat the process until you have removed all the obstacles in the way of closing.

ACTION POINT: Keep it simple and neutral when addressing all of your customers concerns.

Responding to Objections

Before you can move to the final state of the selling process--closing--you need to deal definitively with the customers objections

Once you have reformulated your customer's objections into needs, it's time to respond.

Usually, this is straightforward--the answers lie in what you have already proposed and in knowledge you already have--but sometimes you will need to be creative to lead your client to a solution.

Before you can move to the final state of the selling process--closing--you need to deal definitively with the customers objections (or unfulfilled needs, as we know them) by using all means at your disposal. If you still cannot resolve the objections, you need to revert to problem-solving mode. If you still draw a blank, call a time out and ask to come back in a day or two with fresh ideals to move forward. Your customer will respect you for it in the long run.

ACTION POINT: Be relaxed and remember that customers ask some questions that are not objections--simply plain questions. Just because someone asks you about inventory issues doesn't mean they are worried about them.

Lowering Your Price

If you do have to lower the price (which happens), let the customer know what you have to remove or reduce from the original proposal.

The last thing you should do is lower your price without taking something off the table. If you provide a quote and a customer objects and you then subsequently drop the price, the message is clear--you were charging too much originally. This sentiment can have serious negative impact on further business and your customer's perceptions of you.

If you do have to lower the price (which happens), let the customer know what you have to remove or reduce from the original proposal. As a last resort let them know you are lowering the price to earn your way in, but that the original price was fair and this is a short-term offer that you will not repeat.

ACTION POINT: Price fair up front and take something off the table if you lower it.

Resolving Price Objections

Do everything you can to turn your customer's objection into a need

The objection-resolution process is your best tool dealing with price objections. Firstly, acknowledge the objections as you would any other, for example: "I know you are trying to keep costs down." Next, get the customer talking. Ask questions, and find out about any other offers they have had from your competitors--how do they compare to yours? the deals comparable with yours in terms of the value delivered? Learn as much as you can regarding how far off you are in price from other offers.

When resolving price objections, re framing the objections is critical. Do everything you can to turn your customer's objection into a need, using phrases such as: "So if I understand you correctly, you need to know what you will get for the additional 10 per cent," "My understanding is that you need to know why we charge a bit more than Company X and why it's still in your interest to buy from us...," or "It appears to me that you need to feel comfortable with with your decision to pay us more than some of our competitors..."

If the customer agrees with your re frame, go ahead and address the need. give it your best shot, and see if they will accept your point of view. You will be surprised at how an objection often turns out to be less significant than it originally appeared to be.

ACTION POINT: Re frame price objections to turn them into needs.

ACTION POINT:

Preempting the Objection

Needs determination should include a discussion of what the customer is currently paying or expects to pay.

If you have undergone a thorough needs determination, when you make a recommendation your customer should not be surprised or shocked about the price. Needs determination should include a discussion of what the customer is currently paying or expects to pay.

Questioning the customer about their budget or pricing guidelines will help you recommend a price that is close to what is expected. if the customer won't answer your questions give them a "sense of" cost: "Just so you know, a program like this typically cost $100 How does that sound?" You will quickly find out whether this is a long way from what they expect to pay.

ACTION POINT: Make sure price is not a surprise when you present it to the customer.

Understanding Price Resistance

...objections about price are sometimes used as a convenient reason to object, but are really a smokescreen to mask other issues.

Everyone wants to find a good deal and feel like they are getting a good price. However, objections about price are sometimes used as a convenient reason to object, but are really a smokescreen to mask other issues. In these situations, it is important that you question your customer to determine what the underlying issue really is. At other times, however, the objections truly is all about price. In instances where the buyer is making his or her decisions on price alone, there may be little leeway for negotiation, and you may chose to walk away from the relationship.

ACTION POINT: Consider walking away when the only factor is price.