"So many fail because they don't get started - they don't
go. They don't overcome inertia. They don't begin."
- W. Clement Stone
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Top 10 Ways to Increase Sales in the New Year, Part 1
Top 10 Ways to Increase Sales in the New Year, Part 1
By Colleen Francis
It's 2010! And in honor of the new decade I thought we could start of the year with a top 10 list.
We look at the first 5 on our top 10 list. You might notice that the entire list is focused on the front end of the sales cycle. Specifically targeting, prospecting and calling net-new leads. That's because in order to make sales, you have to have more leads and better quality leads. You might remember that I am particularly fond of the expression “every sales problem can be solved with improved prospecting skills.”
Enjoy the list and be sure to implement all 5 ideas this week. I know that you will have a perfect 10 year if you do!
1. Make just one more call
In my experience studying scores of both mediocre and successful sales people, I have discovered that the most reliable key to enduring success is discipline.
Discipline to provide just a little bit better service than your competitors offer or your clients expect.
Discipline to make one more call, attend one more networking event or block an extra hour in your calendar every day to do business development.
Discipline to document the objections you receive and create responses to deal with them consistently and effectively.
And discipline to practice your sales presentation one more time, every time you head out the door to meet a prospect or close a deal.
Discipline is the one sure way by which poverty may be converted into riches, failure into success - and short-term success into a winning track record that will last throughout your entire career.
2. Make testimonials part of your strategy for cold calls
Turn a testimonial into an opening statement that you can use when making your cold calls. It's a great way to get the conversation started on the right note because it's one (or more) of your customers who is talking about all the great things you can do for that prospect at the other end of phone. This strategy can be really compelling when the testimonial is one that the person you are calling can relate to specifically in their line of work. Let's say I'm calling a prospect in the tourism industry and I share with them a sample of the great feedback I received recently from a client who works for that industry's national association, I'm making it clear that I understand the challenges they have to deal with in their work. There's also a deeper message being processed by the person I'm calling: “If Colleen has worked with them, then she understands what we need and if she understands what we need, then she understands me.”
3. Create a Profit 100
Ask yourself: who are your best buyers? If you sell B2C, whether you're a dentist, accountant, chiropractor, real estate broker or financial advisor, chances are your best buyers live in the best neighborhoods. They have the most money and the greatest sphere of influence. So take a look at your current customer list, identify where your best customers live and target your marketing efforts to others in those neighborhoods.
If you sell B2B, your best buyers are usually the biggest companies that are spending money and are profitable now. Check your database, who spent last year? Chances are, they will be spending again this year.
Once you have your list create a plan to reach out to this best buyers at least every other week, no matter what, to let these companies know who you are?
4. Spend money on those who are spending with you
This is not the time to be taking a shotgun approach to sales, trying to sell all things to all people. Rather, this is when you should be targeting those who know you best—particularly customers that have a higher propensity to buy from you in good times and bad. Spend money on those who are spending with you. Don't make the mistake that so many companies make during an economic downturn, taking a hatchet to their marketing budget. There's a real opportunity right now for smart companies to step up their advertising and marketing efforts—provided that they are willing to invest the time to target who they are going to reach with their message and then measure the results.
In addition, consider how you can improve up-selling and cross-selling in your current market. Look carefully at who buys your products or services. Let's say you're a sales rep for a food-services company and you notice that your product line is selling briskly among women who are Toronto-based restaurant owners in the 45-65 age bracket. Maybe that's who you should be targeting. Find out what their needs are, and market aggressively to them, showing how your product meets that need.
5. Network
There are many mysteries in life, but this much is clear: nothing can help you get by like a little help from your friends. This is just as true in sales as it is in life. Truly effective sales people - the ones who always have time to make one more prospect call, finish one more project and grow their client base by another 10%, all while bringing fresh-baked cookies to the office every day - all have one thing in common. They are all more likely to employ a broad network of connections, friends, family and acquaintances to help them seize opportunities, and respond to challenges. In other words, the most successful and effective sales people are also the ones who are most likely to ask for help.
Many people feel that networking is something that only business people do - that it's only used to grow your business, sell more products or find a new job. This simply isn't true. Think about it on a personal level. Would you rather go to a dentist whose name you found in the phone book, or the one who your neighbor with the perfect smile always recommends? Would you prefer to shop for a used car at the first dealer you come to on the highway or one who's a personal friend of your sister-in-law's?
The fact is, in our personal lives as in our careers, we succeed or fail based on our networks, and on people. As has been said many times: "take care of your people (or, in this case, your network), and your business will take care of itself."
By Colleen Francis
It's time to finish building our “Top 10 List” for 2010. This time we look at items 6 though 10. If you missed the first 5 ways to increase sales in 2010 be sure to visit the first article...
Enjoy the list and be sure to implement all 10 ideas. I know that you will have a perfect 10 year if you do!
6. Get referrals
Referrals are the most profitable source of leads because they close dramatically faster than a cold lead, a lead from a trade show, website, advertisement or virtually any other source. In fact, one Engage private coaching client transformed their business from a 68:1 closing ratio to an 80% closing ratio by moving their sales team from making from “cold calls” to “referred calls”.
The first step is to make sure your customers are happy! The happier your customers are the happier they will be to refer you to their own friends, colleagues and associates. A referral from a customer is the highest form of trust. Trust is built on consistent behavior over time, starting with continuously showing your customers that you're focused on their needs. Once you've established that level of trust, identify "apostles" among your most loyal customers, and empower them to crusade for your product or service.
The second step is to make a direct request. Try something like: I would love to meet the VP of sales for your supplier ACME corp. Can you help me by providing an introduction?
Yes, you have to do the research first to find out who you should be referred to. It's worth the extra step as a direct request such as the one above is almost always granted.
Finally, always reward customers who send business your way. At a minimum, a handwritten thank you note will show them you appreciate the effort they made. At the maximum, a gift will help you secure that relationship - and likely lead to even more referrals in the future.
7. Acknowledge your clients
You'll be surprised how much this matters - and how dramatic the results can be!
For new customers, always say "thank you" they day you receive your first job order with a hand written thank you card. You should also say thanks after that order is filled. This second thank you can be a letter, a small gift or a phone call from you and/or the owner of the business or branch manager. After that, if it doesn't make sense to offer thanks for every order, make sure you do it at twice per year.
I encourage you to use handwritten thank you notes - preferably ones that aren't branded with your logo to look like an advertisement. In addition, many of our clients have gone one step further and developed a special “welcome kit” for new clients, complete with a thank you note, small but meaningful present and useful information or perks for doing business with them. For instance, my karate school includes a 20% discount coupon for Dairy Queen in their welcome package, as a reward for having a good workout! My insurance company sends a small emergency kit along with their automobile policy renewals and one top staffing companies I work with design an HR guide to send to all their HR clients.
8. When negotiating, don't add value if your customer won't value it
When dealing with the pricing objection sales people often make the mistake of piling on extras that the client may not want or need. The result is that it will cost you more to give the customer something they couldn't care less about in the first place - a perfect lose-lose proposition.
When I ask many of the sales people I coach why they do this, they usually tell me it's because they “think the customer will like this.” Thinking the customer will like something is the same as assuming they will like it. You only need to think back to grade school to remember what happens when we assume.
Value, like beauty, is in the eye of the buyer. Ask questions to find out what, besides price, would keep the customer from giving their business to someone else. Then set to work to provide them with as many of those concessions as you can. If the client doesn't want any extras, then you can't use the value vs. price argument to win this business. Quit trying and go on to something else.
In today's highly competitive marketplace, pricing pressure is a constant menace. If you want to be successful, you need to make sure the deals you are closing are profitable ones. Be extra careful of offering so much that the client actually ends up costing you money. If your client base is too price sensitive, go out and find new clients that want the value you have to offer - not just the lowest price. It's not easy, but it is simple to do if you have conviction.
9. Take control of the follow-up process and STOP chasing!
Chasing the client down to get them to sign an agreement is not selling. Instead this year commit to controlling the customer call back and follow up process. For example: When a client tells you the timing is not right, ask them to be more specific. "Thanks for letting me know that next month is better for you. What date would you want to place the order?" Or: "I would be happy to call you back next month. Would Tuesday, July 11th at 10:00 a.m. work for you?"
Don't take "don't worry - I'll call you!" as an answer. You need to stay in control of the follow-up. For example, if the client offers to call you back when they are ready try: "Thanks for wanting to stay on top of this, Bob. How about, if I don't hear from you by the 15th, I'll call you on the 16th at 10:00 a.m.?"
Question them into a corner - and close them when they get there. Tell your clients: "I would be happy to call you back next month. Do you mind if I ask, what will have to be different in May to make you want to buy from me then?" Or take the opposite approach, and ask: "Will anything change over the next few weeks that will cause you not to buy?" Once the prospect assures you that they do want to do business with you, you can respond with: "Great! Let's get your order into production now so your project won't be delayed, and we'll deliver it after July 1st."
10. Build client retention system
Sales people and business owners may already be familiar with the statistic that suggest that it's anywhere from five to 20 times less expensive to sell to existing clients than it is to land new ones. Less common, however, are those who heed that advice and adjust their sales strategy so that client-retention activities are as habitual as prospecting. And yet that's precisely the level of commitment that's required to make your client-retention efforts successful over the long term. This year make a commitment to increase the revenue you receive from your existing customer base by ensuring that they are purchasing your full range of products or services for their complete line of business units.
Consistent client-retention efforts sends a powerful message to your customers that you're serious about maintaining a deep, long-term relationship with them and are willing to prove it on a regular basis with hard work and even a little creativity. Your goal should be to reach out to your existing client base every 30 days with a meaningful and high value touch point. You can use email, the phone, live events or direct mail. Or use a different media each month. Whatever is right for your business, the magic number you need to remember for staying on the top of your client's mind is that 30 day marker.
Looking for a great source of ideas? Make a point of looking at what other successful sales people and organizations are doing to win repeat business from their clients. It doesn't matter if they are in a completely different line of work from yours. If the ideas they are executing are solid and are producing results, the odds are good that you can find ways to import them into your own business.
There's no denying that it can be time-consuming to be constantly scouting for client-retention activities and mining them for great ideas. That's why it's important to find learning opportunities where you can quickly gain ideas from others who have implemented their own retention strategies and can show you first-hand what works well in organizations of all sizes. This is a topic that I will be covering in great detail at my Sales Mastery Workshop (reserve your spot today if you haven't done so already…seats are very limited!). Specifically, I'll be helping participants develop their own client-retention template, complete with “how-tos” for building deep, trusting relationships with prospects and clients quickly and more easily than before.
And there's our top 10! To tie them all together, you know I've spoken before about the importance of having a personal philosophy for success — that no matter what you are selling, you are your own brand. This year, be sure to implement these top 10 sales approaches to enhance your personal approach to sales. Your efforts will get noticed. By adopting proven strategies — even the unconventional ones — and investing in opportunities to learn from the pros, you'll be shaping an approach to sales and customer retention that's as unique as your personal signature. And there is always increased profit in that!
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
http://www.engageselling.com/articles/article-top-ways-to-increase-sales-in-the-new-year-2.html
15 Questions for the New Year: How to Adopt Better Strategies and Have a Better Year
15 Questions for the New Year:
How to Adopt Better Strategies and Have a Better Year
By Colleen Francis
Last year, we spent a great deal of time looking at the strategies the Top 10% of sales people use to fuel their success. Now that we're beginning the New Year, it's important to decide how we can put those strategies into action in our own lives, so we can take our careers wherever we want to go.
As you start your planning for the New Year, below are a few questions you should be asking yourself to give you a clear focus of the areas and goals where you are committed to improving, and to help make sure that this year is your best year ever.
Be Nice
How passionate are you about what you do? Loving what you do will ensure that you maintain the positive attitude you need to get to the top. Ask yourself Brian Tracy's question, "if I knew then what I know now about this job, would I have taken it?" If the answer is yes, find a way to communicate that passion to your team mates and your clients. Passion and a positive attitude are the glue that hold all your sales skills together.
Are your company, colleagues, family and friends life givers who support you in your endeavors, or life suckers who impede your progress? Only life givers can create an environment that fosters success.
Do you want to become who you hang out with? Tony Robins says that our success is directly linked to the expectations of the people we associate with. Do you have the right associations? If not, you might have to go to different places, try something new or join new groups to meet new or different people.
Are you the "it" person in your industry? Do people see you as a person with valuable information, and come to you first? This year, develop a plan to become the "go to person" for your clients. Studies show it can be worth between $63,000 and $117,000 in extra income for you per year.
Do you take responsibility for your actions? You can complain all you want that it was shipping's fault for getting the order out late, marketing's fault for not giving you good leads or your manager's fault for not funding or training you sufficiently. The fact is, in sales, the buck stops with you. Your clients don't want people who make excuses or whine about being victims. They want agents of success. They don't care whose "fault it was," only that you take responsibility for it. What are you going to do this year to take more responsibility?
As a side note, when I interview sales people I always ask them to tell me about an opportunity they lost, and why they lost it. If they blame others for the loss, they do not get the job. I know that sales people who can't take responsibility, are never going to be in the top 10%
Stay Focused
Do you believe you have the skills, knowledge and strength to be successful? If you don't believe in yourself, no one else will, either. Develop a strong belief system that reminds you every day that you can be successful, and that you are the best.
When was the last time you tried anything for the first time? This is a pivotal question in lifelong learning and development. If you aren't learning something new about sales every day, you are falling behind. What's something new you learned last year? How can you learn more new things this year?
What goals have you set for this year? Are they written down? If I showed up at your office right now, would I see them posted where you can look at them every day?
Are you focused on the customer first? Do you have all the information your customers want, in the way they want it? Notice that I said, "all the information your customers want," NOT "everything you want to tell them." Customers want answers to their questions, not yours. This means you must first be an expert at what you do or sell, and then document all the relevant information in a way that answers the questions your clients ask, and solves their specific problems. How good are your answers?
How focused is your plan for success, and how focused are on achieving it? Top performers focus most of their time working on those activities that help them achieve their goals - such as prospecting, meetings and closing - and little time doing those tasks that earn them little or nothing. What are you focused on for the majority of your day?
Get to Work
How aware are you of the opportunities that you encounter? Do you see opportunity on every street corner as you drive home at night, or are you only focused on the latest re run of CSI that's waiting for you? Mediocre sales people complain that top performers are simply in the right place at the right time. Top performers know the harder they work the luckier they get. In other words, they create their own luck. You have to be good to be lucky - how good are you?
Are you making any mistakes? Are you failing? If you aren't failing, you aren't growing. My karate master is always pushing us to strike one more opponent, block one more kick, hold our stance just one more minute, until our bodies physically fail. Why? Because until you've pushed past your limits and failed, until you've stretched past your comfort zone into your uncomfort zone, you can never achieve more than you thought possible. What are you doing every day to reach your uncomfort zone?
What risks are you taking? Like high performance athletes, high performance sales people are constantly challenging themselves to do better. Every time you play it safe, you lose. Every time you take a risk, you win - either you win the business, or you win the knowledge of what not to do the next time. What risks are you willing to take in 2008 in order to beat the competition?
Did you give up on any goals last year? Thomas Edison failed 1,000 times before he invented the light bulb, and changed the world. Stanford University shows that 85% of clients buy after the 5th meeting and 95% of sales people give up after the 4th.Most sales people I meet give up after hearing their first "no" on a cold call. Persistence pays off. Do you want to be remembered as a quitter, or as the Thomas Edison of your industry?
Are you putting your great ideas into action, or just putting them on the shelf? Thomas Edison also said: "Strategy without execution is hallucination." Knowing the strategies of top performers is great. Executing them is what will make you a star. Take some time now to think about what you will do this year to execute on these strategies of the Top 10%. Then go out, and as Nike says: just do it!
Challenge yourself by going through these questions with candor and honesty. You already know many of the strategies you need to execute in the New Year. Make them happen and reap the rewards!
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
You have permission to use the above article in your newsletter, publication or email system as long as you do not edit the content and you leave the links and resource box intact.
http://www.engageselling.com/articles/060105article_betteryear.html
8 Questions to Help You Plan for Success in the New Year
8 Questions to Help You Plan for Success in the New Year
By Colleen Francis
Whether it's eating less, exercising more, spending more time with family - or just putting more money into our RRSPs! - we all tend to make personal resolutions around this time of the year. But whether or not you set yourself some new personal goals, January is also a great time to start thinking seriously about your business plan for the year, regardless of when your fiscal year ends!
Of course, it's always a great idea to plan ahead. But don't make the mistake of setting new goals for your career without first reflecting on your accomplishments - and your shortcomings - from the past year.
This isn't always an easy (or pleasant) task. But to truly control the direction you take this year, you need to be fully aware of how you fared in the last twelve months. Then, once you have a clear picture of where you excelled, where you need to focus more time or effort, and your results, you can begin to set the goals and behaviors you'll need to succeed in the new year.
The following are a few questions I use in my coaching sessions, which can help guide you through this important process. Remember: be as tangible, specific and honest as possible in your answers:
1. Where did I write down last year's goals, so I can review them and see how I did?
Where will I write down this year's goals, so they can be easily reviewed in at the end of the year?
2. What am I most proud of accomplishing last year, or since my last goal planning session?
3. What goals did I not accomplish this past year, despite my best intentions? Why didn't I accomplish these things? What have I been putting off that I could take care of in the next two weeks?
4. What did I do last year to improve my industry, product, sales skill and personal development knowledge? What are the most important things I learned as a result?
5. How many new connections did I make last year? How many referrals did I pass on to my clients, partners, friends or others?
6. What challenges, problems or frustrations could prevent my success this year?
7. What opportunities are available to me this year, which are the same as opportunities I had last year?
Did I take advantage of these opportunities last year? Why or why not?
What will I do to guarantee I take full advantage of these opportunities this year?
What tools, resources and focus will I require to take advantage of these opportunities?
8. What opportunities are available to me this year that are different from last year?
What will I do to guarantee I take full advantage of these opportunities?
What tools, resources and focus will I require to take advantage of these opportunities this year?
In total, this exercise should take you about one or two hours to complete. To achieve the maximum results, I would recommend that you find a quiet place away from the office and your house - say a coffee shop or a pub (providing one of your New Year's resolutions wasn't to cut back on alcohol or caffeine!) - and really give it the time, effort and attention it deserves. After all, your answers will form the basis for your entire business strategy for the next twelve months.
Don't rush the exercise, but force yourself to complete it all in one sitting. Your instincts will tell you more than you can predict, and your answers will be more accurate and insightful if you think diligently about them the first time, rather than going back and revising them later.
Watch for the next issue of Engaging Ideas, where we'll discuss what questions to ask yourself when planning to make this year great, as well as what actions you can take immediately to ensure you achieve your goals. In the meantime, thanks for reading - and Happy New Year from Engage!
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
By Colleen Francis
Whether it's eating less, exercising more, spending more time with family - or just putting more money into our RRSPs! - we all tend to make personal resolutions around this time of the year. But whether or not you set yourself some new personal goals, January is also a great time to start thinking seriously about your business plan for the year, regardless of when your fiscal year ends!
Of course, it's always a great idea to plan ahead. But don't make the mistake of setting new goals for your career without first reflecting on your accomplishments - and your shortcomings - from the past year.
This isn't always an easy (or pleasant) task. But to truly control the direction you take this year, you need to be fully aware of how you fared in the last twelve months. Then, once you have a clear picture of where you excelled, where you need to focus more time or effort, and your results, you can begin to set the goals and behaviors you'll need to succeed in the new year.
The following are a few questions I use in my coaching sessions, which can help guide you through this important process. Remember: be as tangible, specific and honest as possible in your answers:
1. Where did I write down last year's goals, so I can review them and see how I did?
Where will I write down this year's goals, so they can be easily reviewed in at the end of the year?
2. What am I most proud of accomplishing last year, or since my last goal planning session?
3. What goals did I not accomplish this past year, despite my best intentions? Why didn't I accomplish these things? What have I been putting off that I could take care of in the next two weeks?
4. What did I do last year to improve my industry, product, sales skill and personal development knowledge? What are the most important things I learned as a result?
5. How many new connections did I make last year? How many referrals did I pass on to my clients, partners, friends or others?
6. What challenges, problems or frustrations could prevent my success this year?
7. What opportunities are available to me this year, which are the same as opportunities I had last year?
Did I take advantage of these opportunities last year? Why or why not?
What will I do to guarantee I take full advantage of these opportunities this year?
What tools, resources and focus will I require to take advantage of these opportunities?
8. What opportunities are available to me this year that are different from last year?
What will I do to guarantee I take full advantage of these opportunities?
What tools, resources and focus will I require to take advantage of these opportunities this year?
In total, this exercise should take you about one or two hours to complete. To achieve the maximum results, I would recommend that you find a quiet place away from the office and your house - say a coffee shop or a pub (providing one of your New Year's resolutions wasn't to cut back on alcohol or caffeine!) - and really give it the time, effort and attention it deserves. After all, your answers will form the basis for your entire business strategy for the next twelve months.
Don't rush the exercise, but force yourself to complete it all in one sitting. Your instincts will tell you more than you can predict, and your answers will be more accurate and insightful if you think diligently about them the first time, rather than going back and revising them later.
Watch for the next issue of Engaging Ideas, where we'll discuss what questions to ask yourself when planning to make this year great, as well as what actions you can take immediately to ensure you achieve your goals. In the meantime, thanks for reading - and Happy New Year from Engage!
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
You have permission to use the above article in your newsletter, publication or email system as long as you do not edit the content and you leave the links and resource box intact.
http://www.engageselling.com/articles/041223article_planforsuccess.html
Climbing MT SAMIE Understanding the 7 core motivators behind all human behavior
Climbing MT SAMIE
Understanding the 7 core motivators behind all human behavior
By Colleen Francis
Legendary sales guru Zig Ziglar once said that the most popular radio station in the world is WII FM, which stands for "what's in it for me?"
As sales professionals, the single biggest change we can make in our behavior to improve our success is to simply get over ourselves and start focusing on our customers and prospects.
I never cease to be amazed at how many sales people focus on themselves rather than on what their customer actually wants to buy. The fact of the matter is, our customers aren't interested in what we have to say unless they feel it is in their best interests. We can't be persuasive if our focus is on us.
Reframe the question
To reframe your approach so that your customers' interests are always at the forefront, start by asking yourself three key questions:
Who cares? In other words - whom are you selling to? Be as specific as possible. Are you selling to Marketing VPs in the textile industry, or Chief Technology Officers in the aerospace industry?
Why us? The answer to this question defines your product, whether it's a tradeshow booth, retirement-planning system, clothing line or human resource staffing service.
So what? This is where you answer your client's all-important question, "what's in it for me?"
Put your answers to these questions together and you'll get a statement that sounds something like this:
"You mentioned that you're working with a very restricted budget. The VPs of Marketing at banks across Canada and the U.S. are buying our tradeshow equipment because it can cut their labor and shipping costs by up to 40 percent while still maintaining durability. Knowing that, does it make sense to look at our product line?"
Take it to the mountain
Next, you need to make sure you're presenting the features of your product or service that directly address your customers' best interests. How? The answer to this lies with the seven most important letters you may ever come across in your career: "MT. SAMIE."
There are seven core motivators that drive all human behavior. "MT. SAMIE" is a simple acronym designed to help you remember those motivators whenever you're dealing with new or existing clients. Here's how it works:
M = Money: As Zig Ziglar once said, "Money isn't everything, but it ranks right up there with oxygen."
T = Time: Despite all of our so-called labor-saving devices, it's staggering how many people are still utterly time impoverished. E-mail, anyone?
S = Security: People have a natural tendency to avoid risk in favor of security, whether it's risk in buying a product or the security that comes from having a "safe" job.
A = Achievement: All of us enjoy producing results. If your solution will help a prospect accomplish something or achieve their sales targets, then you will be much more likely to grab their attention.
M = Making a difference: Look at what's happening all over the world today. People will often help out if they feel like what they are being asked to do will really make a difference.
I = Image and reputation: Whether we admit it or not, we're all concerned with what other people think about us. In fact, it is the power of image and reputation that leads so many of us to have a hard time saying "no." If your solution affects someone's image or reputation, then believe me - you'll get their attention.
E = Enjoyment: People go to great lengths to increase enjoyment in their lives. If you're not enjoying the situation you're in with a customer or colleague, odds are, they're not too thrilled about it either. Discovering and communicating "what's in it for them" can go a long way towards making the experience less stressful and more enjoyable - and help you make a great impression.
Sure, this advice isn't exactly rocket science. In my experience, however, common sense doesn't always translate into common practice.
Just ask yourself: when was the last time a customer asked you for information, and instead of letting them buy what they really wanted, you proceeded to try to sell them on what you thought the best product features were?
When in doubt, go back to MT. SAMIE, and ask yourself if your solution is truly addressing one of your prospect's core motivators. Or to keep things even simpler, just remember the words of the immortal Yogi Berra: "The fastest way to get what you want is first to help others get what they want."
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
You have permission to use the above article in your newsletter, publication or email system as long as you do not edit the content and you leave the links and resource box intact.
Understanding the 7 core motivators behind all human behavior
By Colleen Francis
Legendary sales guru Zig Ziglar once said that the most popular radio station in the world is WII FM, which stands for "what's in it for me?"
As sales professionals, the single biggest change we can make in our behavior to improve our success is to simply get over ourselves and start focusing on our customers and prospects.
I never cease to be amazed at how many sales people focus on themselves rather than on what their customer actually wants to buy. The fact of the matter is, our customers aren't interested in what we have to say unless they feel it is in their best interests. We can't be persuasive if our focus is on us.
Reframe the question
To reframe your approach so that your customers' interests are always at the forefront, start by asking yourself three key questions:
Who cares? In other words - whom are you selling to? Be as specific as possible. Are you selling to Marketing VPs in the textile industry, or Chief Technology Officers in the aerospace industry?
Why us? The answer to this question defines your product, whether it's a tradeshow booth, retirement-planning system, clothing line or human resource staffing service.
So what? This is where you answer your client's all-important question, "what's in it for me?"
Put your answers to these questions together and you'll get a statement that sounds something like this:
"You mentioned that you're working with a very restricted budget. The VPs of Marketing at banks across Canada and the U.S. are buying our tradeshow equipment because it can cut their labor and shipping costs by up to 40 percent while still maintaining durability. Knowing that, does it make sense to look at our product line?"
Take it to the mountain
Next, you need to make sure you're presenting the features of your product or service that directly address your customers' best interests. How? The answer to this lies with the seven most important letters you may ever come across in your career: "MT. SAMIE."
There are seven core motivators that drive all human behavior. "MT. SAMIE" is a simple acronym designed to help you remember those motivators whenever you're dealing with new or existing clients. Here's how it works:
M = Money: As Zig Ziglar once said, "Money isn't everything, but it ranks right up there with oxygen."
T = Time: Despite all of our so-called labor-saving devices, it's staggering how many people are still utterly time impoverished. E-mail, anyone?
S = Security: People have a natural tendency to avoid risk in favor of security, whether it's risk in buying a product or the security that comes from having a "safe" job.
A = Achievement: All of us enjoy producing results. If your solution will help a prospect accomplish something or achieve their sales targets, then you will be much more likely to grab their attention.
M = Making a difference: Look at what's happening all over the world today. People will often help out if they feel like what they are being asked to do will really make a difference.
I = Image and reputation: Whether we admit it or not, we're all concerned with what other people think about us. In fact, it is the power of image and reputation that leads so many of us to have a hard time saying "no." If your solution affects someone's image or reputation, then believe me - you'll get their attention.
E = Enjoyment: People go to great lengths to increase enjoyment in their lives. If you're not enjoying the situation you're in with a customer or colleague, odds are, they're not too thrilled about it either. Discovering and communicating "what's in it for them" can go a long way towards making the experience less stressful and more enjoyable - and help you make a great impression.
Sure, this advice isn't exactly rocket science. In my experience, however, common sense doesn't always translate into common practice.
Just ask yourself: when was the last time a customer asked you for information, and instead of letting them buy what they really wanted, you proceeded to try to sell them on what you thought the best product features were?
When in doubt, go back to MT. SAMIE, and ask yourself if your solution is truly addressing one of your prospect's core motivators. Or to keep things even simpler, just remember the words of the immortal Yogi Berra: "The fastest way to get what you want is first to help others get what they want."
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Sales Flash and a FREE 7 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com.
You have permission to use the above article in your newsletter, publication or email system as long as you do not edit the content and you leave the links and resource box intact.
http://www.engageselling.com/articles/070411article_engageschoice.html
Sunday, January 16, 2011
8 Keys To High Velocity Selling
8 Keys To High Velocity Selling
January 6, 2011 by Stone Payton
1. Faster Really Is Better. Top Performers in every arena consistently Produce Better Results In Less Time – exercise just a handful of key disciplines that give them that slight extra edge.
2. Love Is A Tremendous Accelerator. Love equips you with a world view and thinking discipline perfectly designed to systematically increase the ratio of results to time invested.
3. Interruption Marketing Is A Dying Model, continues to produce diminishing returns (especially in the professional services arena), and it’s SLOW.
4. The Best Way To Market Your Service Is To Service Your Market
Do this consistently . . .
- Before they become a client . . . and your sales cycle will shrink dramatically
- While they’re a client . . . and your revenue will skyrocket
- After they’re a client . . . and you’ll expand your business exponentially
- Even if they’re never going to be a client . . . and you’ll have more referrals than you can handle
- For your vendors . . . and you’ll have “reach” that no budget, no process, no expertise could ever produce
- For your competitors . . . and you won’t have any
5. Forget The Funnel
- It just doesn’t jive with the buying process anymore (probably never did) -- requires linear movement in a non-linear environment.
- It Leaks (a lot), requires binary response (Yes or No?, In or Out?) in a market full of choices.
- It’s not how Top Performers go to market, and not what they do when they get there.
- There’s a better way.
6. Focus On The Pre-purchase And Post-Purchase Experience
Make the experience of engaging with you and your organization what the gurus call “signature” . . . something your competitors are unable or unwilling to replicate, something your market can’t get somewhere else and they become less and less willing to do without.
Don’t wait till they buy, Don’t stop after they buy.
7. Teach Me How To Buy From You
Aligning your sales process with the prospect’s buying process is a credible idea – but far more applicable to hard goods, non-discretionary services, and commodity items – products and services for which most organizations have an established buying process.
The more unique your service is (like specialized expertise, for example), the less
likely your prospects have an established buying process that will properly facilitate your interests or theirs . . . and the more energy you need to invest in teaching them how to buy from you.
8. Solve My Problem
Help me get exactly what I need and want – whether you and your company provide it or not.
606 reads Original article
About the Author
Meet Stone Payton . . . The man who literally wrote the book on SPEED
http://thecustomercollective.com/stonepayton/46164/8-keys-high-velocity-selling?utm_source=tcc_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter
The Parable Of The Kid In The Candy Store!
The Parable Of The Kid In The Candy Store!
January 13, 2011 by Paul Castain
Once upon a time a little boy was finishing up his purchase at the local candy store. He turned to the store owner and asked “Mr. Matthews may I please use your phone?” Mr. Matthews smiled at the little boy, who was one of his regulars and handed him his phone.
The little boy quickly punched in the phone number and had the following conversation “Mrs. Donavan you don’t know me but I pass your house each day on my way to school. I mow many of the lawns in the neighborhood and was wondering if I could mow yours as well?” Mrs. Donavan politely replied “Oh thank you anyway but we are quite happy with the service we are getting now”
Somewhat disappointed, Johnny countered with a compelling offer. “That’s fine Mrs. Donavan and what if I were to beat whatever price you are paying by $5.00 per week?” “I’m sorry but we aren’t looking for a lower price” replied Mrs. Donavan. “Well, I suppose I could throw in a once a month trim of the hedges and weeding your garden on top of the $5.00 discount” Mrs. Donavan simply thanked the boy for his kind offer and wished him a good day.
The candy store owner, having heard this, said “Nice try kid. I’m proud of ya for giving it your best shot” The little boy smiled and said “Oh I’m not finished yet. Watch this”!
He immediately called Mrs Donavan back and said “Mrs Donavan, I’m so sorry for being a pest but what if I were to offer you the $5.00 discount, the weeding of the garden, the trimming of the hedges and I wash your car for you every other week?” “I’m afraid the answer is still no young man. Not if you were to give me the world and charge me next to nothing! I’m quite happy and I have no intention of switching” The little boy smiled and almost seemed moved by her response. With a softened voice he simply said “Now that’s what I like to hear. You don’t have to worry about me calling again.”
Mr. Matthews was amazed at how happy the little boy was with what he witnessed to be a rejection. “Young man; I really admire your spirit! That woman must have told you No at least 3 times and yet you are happier than when you first made the call. Keep up that attitude and you will be a great success someday” The little boy’s smile grew bigger and said “Oh I already am a success” Somewhat confused Mr. Matthews asked “But how could you possibly be a success at your young age?”
“I know because that was my customer and I was simply calling to see how I was doing”!
Can your relationships stand the test of persistent, low balling competitors?
Is it even a relationship or is it merely a series of transactions?
Silly, warm and fuzzy question coming atcha in 3,2, 1 . . .
Do your clients know that you love them?
Seriously. . .
Do they know, beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are grateful to the point of renaming your children after them?
But that’s silly talk isn’t it? Nobody gives a damn whether you and I appreciate them or not, right? That my friends may be common sense but it is in no way, shape or form commonly practiced!
If it were, then you and I would be out of a job because there would simply be no new opportunities!
Think about that today as you take care of your customers . . .
And be sure to think about that the next time you hesitate to call that prospect
that you think has no need for you!
http://thecustomercollective.com/paulcastain/46585/parable-kid-candy-store
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