How To Sell - 3 Essentials For An Effective Salesperson
By David C. Lucas
Even in this day and age, when the internet has become a powerful and effective marketing tool, the ability to sell yourself and your products and services is still very much a necessary skill. Not only is it vital that you become an effective sales person, you must also know how to spot and hire them as well.
Sales can be a scary topic for some. Many people think that sales, like musical talent or the ability to sculpt is some kind of inborn skill. While there may be some truth to this, you don't have to be a natural to be a good sales person. The real key to sales is repetition and practice. Not unlike music or sculpting, for that matter.
If you are shy, or feel you're not charismatic enough, you can overcome this. You do the uncomfortable until it becomes comfortable. Believe it or not, after a very short time of making cold calls, approaching prospects or networking, you will find that little lump of trepidation in your stomach will vanish. It really doesn't take long. It just takes consistent and persistent effort.
The truth of the matter is, especially for entrepreneurs, you have to be able to sell yourself. In the beginning, when money is tight and you have more time than funs, you must be able to convince others that you are worth their time and money. So in that regard, let's now discuss 3 core essentials for being an effective sales person.
Essential #1: Develop Your prospect List
This is vital in the beginning, but never forget about this. No matter how successful you become, a list of prospects will always be a valuable tool.
There are many ways to create and maintain your prospect lists. In the very beginning, you start with a list of people and companies to whom you already have a connection. And list them all, no matter who. You can always pear down later. The act of thinking of this list and writing down names will jog other names from your memory, so don't' skip anyone, even your family.
From this first list, you will weed out those who will not or cannot be customers. You will then contact the potentials and make your pitch, which we'll go into later. It is from this list that you can often develop a secondary list from referrals of those who hire you or buy from you, as well as from those who are not interested but might know someone who is. Referral lists are very powerful.
Once done, you will now have to seek out potential clients. This is where you can go online and do some research to find companies who are probable customers as well as individuals. There are many ways to do this, and it can be very effective.
At any given moment in time, your list will probably have at least three classifications of prospects. The A list, which are those who are most likely to buy immediately, the B list of those who are somewhat interested but for one reason or another, cannot act now. The final will be the C list. These are cold prospects or those on the fringes. They may even be a No thanks list, but for different reasons, you may want to go back to them later.
Essential #2 - Prospect Farming
This may seem like it belongs in the last tip, but really, this is a separate idea. Because what we're referring to here is how you cultivate your crop of prospects. Once you've gotten that list, your seeds, you must plant them, water them and take care of them.
Sales is not always a one shot deal. In so many cases, especially after you get past the list of your best possibles and their referrals, you have to cold contact people. This means making initial contact with secretaries, receptionists, administrative assistants and so forth.
You may have to do some direct mailing and cold calling. You mail a piece, then call a little while later, perhaps after the second or third time the prospect has received your mail. This creates an awareness in their minds so that when you call, they know who you are and what you represent.
Think of it as peeling an onion. Each layer you remove is one step closer to the sale. This might seem very tedious, but in the process you will build some relationships that can be very helpful. When you finally get to the principle, you may have an advocate in the form of his or her assistant, a fellow employee and so on.
Essential #3 - Offer Value
This one sounds almost too obvious, doesn't it? You might be thinking, 'Well, of course I'm offering something of value." And no doubt your product or service is good, but we need to take it a little further.
Remember that everyone is an individual. And what are individuals concerned with more than anything? Themselves and their prosperity. People buy because they believe it's good for them to. They hire you because you can do them some good.
This is a vital key to sales. When you can show your prospect how working with you will profit them, you will have crossed a huge hurtle. Show them why you, your company, your product or your service is the right choice. Show them how you can make them money, save them money, save them time, and make them look good or feel important. You are what they need and want. If you can demonstrate this, you will be far ahead of the game.
Of course, there are many sales tips. They fill volumes. Tips like make a customer a sales person, mostly by following essential #3. Don't be overly pushy, don't be too passive. Make the prospect feel important. The customer of my customer is my friend. On and on.
With just these three simple tips, you can have a great deal of success in your sales efforts. And use this as a starting point. Go forward and gather as much info as you can. And don't forget to simply ask your prospects or your customers what they think of you and how you sell. Good luck!
In the process of building his Lawson ERP Software consulting firm, David has become a master sales person. He knows how to tune into a potential customer and match solutions to their needs. To see examples of this, please visit his website:
http://www.forte-corp.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_C._Lucas
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-To-Sell---3-Essentials-For-An-Effective-Salesperson&id=7832494
No comments:
Post a Comment