Looking to Build a career and a fortune in Sales, follow these 5 simple tricks
A business thrives on sales and customer acquisition. Any doubts? Getting regular business is the key to an organisation’s sustainability. It is not an easy function and requires a lot of effort, energy and planning. It is a known fact that some strategies may not work on the ground and one has to continuously keep customising it to make an impact.
It is also important to understand if the product or the service you are offering is required by the prospect or not. Nobody buys a product or service unless it meets some specific requirement unless it is a new product designed after tremendous amount of research and to meet the specific needs of the market. Also your product has to have unique features and it can only sell if it has some very important unique selling propositions that is different from those already available in the market.
Follow these tips to become a "rock star business developer" and garner sales to become a top ranking performer which your boss you would.
1. Getting through the "gate keepers"
When you first visit the prospect, you encounter the staff at the security desk or the reception, who in common parlance are referred to as “Gatekeepers”. These gatekeepers safeguard the employees inside the premises from “outsiders” and “intruders”. This is a normal approach because a lot many “Jhola” type (“bag carrying” salesmen) call upon organisations on an everyday basis and offer products and services, some of which are local and unbranded, are commonly available, make them available at dirt cheap cheap rates, offer guarantees (wonder who will provide back-up guarantee and where do you catch hold of them?) and add no utility value to the user. These are such cheap products that you wonder how they make any profit at all. Well, that’s besides the point. The point here is that because of such gate crashers, genuine persons get blocked and bombarded with questions like – why you want to meet, the person is busy or in a meeting, he will be or is available only at some very odd hours, just to keep you away.
So they key here is to do the following:
Make sure that you have a prior appointment. If you don’t have one, make sure that your opening statements to the front desk is convincing enough for them to let them through to the person you are looking to meet. Tell them why it is important for their manager to meet you. Provide effective answers to their counter questions which you must anticipate and be prepared for them.
You must also be dressed to impress. The reality of life is that people don’t value a person o his product or knowledge and the purpose but people do get impressed with one’s attire or how you carry your personality. Not intending to demean anyone, but the reality is that people holding lower positions are far likely to get impressed with a person wearing a formal jacket or attractive sunglasses or carrying an impressive bag. Yes, in the 21st century that still holds, at least in India. If you have people accompanying you and if they address you as “Sir” or “Madam” that helps make a still bigger impression. If they approach you on her/his behalf while s/he waits, also adds to the “impression communication”. But in some cases, even this does not work.
I do not advise this but display of a bit of attitude and a slightly stern but not using curt language helps cast an impression.
I know of a real life instance where a short sized person arrived in a swanky car with security personnel in a car ahead of his and one behind. The security personnel would cordon off people so that he could walk towards a store. This created a kind of image of a very important person and people started wonder who he really was even though he may not be any celebrity or a rich corporate executive. It just zapped people’s thinking and he had attained a superiority position over other lesser mortals. He became the “upper crust” very easily.
2. Building a good rapport with the prospect
Be thankful that you are finally got into the inner “sanctum sanctorium” where the “lord” sits and is an achievement in itself. Now let’s get on to the most important part which is where we need to focus on our remaining energies on impressing the prospect. A lot has been written and spoken about your opening lines, the firm handshake and so on so we will skip that part.
Now it is important to recall what you have observed and made mental notes, while you were waiting in the reception because that will help you raise discussion points and get into the prospects mindset.
It is important that after initiating the discussion, you allow the prospect to talk or share as much as possible. You do not want to put him off or tell you that you hardly know what s/he has been trying to convey or hardly understood the needs or requirements. Once he has exhausted, you start giving him your replies point to point to ensure that you have covered every detail aspect of his “stated” requirements. Don’t oversell your product or service but explain the key salient and uncommon features. Make sure that you make constant eye contact, watch his facial expressions change with every statement. Facial expressions are a big giveaway and you would know that you have a strong or a poor chance of striking a deal. Remember that some people have trained themselves not to reveal their mindsets through expressions or to have a straight face all through. I have encountered such people who will smile all throughout the meeting and concur with you and yet mislead you into believing that you have “sealed the deal”.
How you resolve their queries is very important and explaining that the product or service has already taken care of their problem or pain points is crucial. It might be important that highlighting such key features in the initial discussion itself will save her/him from embarrassment.
I have used praise and appreciation for something which I have found unique or special while I was waiting and convey my admiration and that it has impressed me. I make it a point to convey my genuine appreciation or happiness at some client sites and this has helped me build a good rapport with the prospect and also converted many of them as clients.
3. Picking up cues about his pain points without the prospect even mentioning about it.
If you are smart enough and of course you should be, allow the Lord to speak as much as he can. Ask her/him relevant questions that will do two things (a) he will understand that you are actually asking the right questions; (b) and that you can solve his problems and therefore he will open up by freely sharing information. At this point, s/he will start blurting out her/his problems and that gives you an opportunity to get deeply into her/his mindset. S/He will have almost fallen in your trap. You have to be mentally alert to understand and recap whatever has been said so that s/he get the message that you have understood his pain points.
4. Telling them how you’d be able to resolve this
Now this is like going for the kill. Telling them that you have understood the problem, you can propose a couple of options of how it will be resolved, without giving much away. Withhold some solutions and make sure that they ask you. The moment they ask you about process, formalities, timelines or more details which you do not expect them to understand about your service, it is better to assume that the prospect is interested. As soon as he starts asking technical questions, it is to be realised that the prospect has already been approached earlier and he is coming from there. The question that is uppermost in their minds right from the initiation of the discussions is “how much will it cost me?” is the last but firmly asked. Now there are two things to do: (a) tell him an estimate of the proposal if it is a product whose price is known; or (b) if it is too technical or involves both supply of products and technical service, then you can say that you will have to go back to your team, work out the various details and only then you will be able to give a final proposal. Don’t forget to take an email id. Give them a time-frame by which they should be able to receive your proposal. Ask them if they have any other details to share or to ask which will be critical to the discussion. If not, express your thanks and re-commit about the deadline for sending the proposal.
5. Giving him a proposition s/he cannot refuse
Once you have understood that s/he already has a proposal, consider the costing and make it competitive but don’t undercut drastically. This ends up spoiling the entire business opportunity, not only for yourself but for others too. It is a buyer’s market and there are multiple competitors, then you might have to adjust your pricing accordingly. But if your product is unique or exclusive, then you have the opportunity to demand a reasonable amount and even premium too.
Follow-up your proposal by telephone calls to confirm if they have indeed received the proposal. I have seen that prospects have not even checked to find out if they have received your correspondence. At other times, they will simply tell you honestly that they have received but not have had the opportunity to go through it in detail and will ask for more time. Such behaviour delays decision making for everybody. You can follow-up but up to a point. Telephonic calls may not be sufficient after a while and then you will have to make a personal visit for a face-to-face interaction to understand their body language and other non-verbal cues.
The personal visit may be an opportune time for the prospect to bargain and negotiate which is where you should open up. It must be understood that s/he was waiting for this opportunity but was shying away. Give him a final offer, get her/his verbal confirmation, offer to send a final proposal, if required or get his signature on the struck deal, send the contract papers later and get working!
Best Wishes!
Sarfaraz Lakhani
22nd January, 2020
#calibrecreators
A business thrives on sales and customer acquisition. Any doubts? Getting regular business is the key to an organisation’s sustainability. It is not an easy function and requires a lot of effort, energy and planning. It is a known fact that some strategies may not work on the ground and one has to continuously keep customising it to make an impact.
It is also important to understand if the product or the service you are offering is required by the prospect or not. Nobody buys a product or service unless it meets some specific requirement unless it is a new product designed after tremendous amount of research and to meet the specific needs of the market. Also your product has to have unique features and it can only sell if it has some very important unique selling propositions that is different from those already available in the market.
Follow these tips to become a "rock star business developer" and garner sales to become a top ranking performer which your boss you would.
1. Getting through the "gate keepers"
When you first visit the prospect, you encounter the staff at the security desk or the reception, who in common parlance are referred to as “Gatekeepers”. These gatekeepers safeguard the employees inside the premises from “outsiders” and “intruders”. This is a normal approach because a lot many “Jhola” type (“bag carrying” salesmen) call upon organisations on an everyday basis and offer products and services, some of which are local and unbranded, are commonly available, make them available at dirt cheap cheap rates, offer guarantees (wonder who will provide back-up guarantee and where do you catch hold of them?) and add no utility value to the user. These are such cheap products that you wonder how they make any profit at all. Well, that’s besides the point. The point here is that because of such gate crashers, genuine persons get blocked and bombarded with questions like – why you want to meet, the person is busy or in a meeting, he will be or is available only at some very odd hours, just to keep you away.
So they key here is to do the following:
Make sure that you have a prior appointment. If you don’t have one, make sure that your opening statements to the front desk is convincing enough for them to let them through to the person you are looking to meet. Tell them why it is important for their manager to meet you. Provide effective answers to their counter questions which you must anticipate and be prepared for them.
You must also be dressed to impress. The reality of life is that people don’t value a person o his product or knowledge and the purpose but people do get impressed with one’s attire or how you carry your personality. Not intending to demean anyone, but the reality is that people holding lower positions are far likely to get impressed with a person wearing a formal jacket or attractive sunglasses or carrying an impressive bag. Yes, in the 21st century that still holds, at least in India. If you have people accompanying you and if they address you as “Sir” or “Madam” that helps make a still bigger impression. If they approach you on her/his behalf while s/he waits, also adds to the “impression communication”. But in some cases, even this does not work.
I do not advise this but display of a bit of attitude and a slightly stern but not using curt language helps cast an impression.
I know of a real life instance where a short sized person arrived in a swanky car with security personnel in a car ahead of his and one behind. The security personnel would cordon off people so that he could walk towards a store. This created a kind of image of a very important person and people started wonder who he really was even though he may not be any celebrity or a rich corporate executive. It just zapped people’s thinking and he had attained a superiority position over other lesser mortals. He became the “upper crust” very easily.
2. Building a good rapport with the prospect
Be thankful that you are finally got into the inner “sanctum sanctorium” where the “lord” sits and is an achievement in itself. Now let’s get on to the most important part which is where we need to focus on our remaining energies on impressing the prospect. A lot has been written and spoken about your opening lines, the firm handshake and so on so we will skip that part.
Now it is important to recall what you have observed and made mental notes, while you were waiting in the reception because that will help you raise discussion points and get into the prospects mindset.
It is important that after initiating the discussion, you allow the prospect to talk or share as much as possible. You do not want to put him off or tell you that you hardly know what s/he has been trying to convey or hardly understood the needs or requirements. Once he has exhausted, you start giving him your replies point to point to ensure that you have covered every detail aspect of his “stated” requirements. Don’t oversell your product or service but explain the key salient and uncommon features. Make sure that you make constant eye contact, watch his facial expressions change with every statement. Facial expressions are a big giveaway and you would know that you have a strong or a poor chance of striking a deal. Remember that some people have trained themselves not to reveal their mindsets through expressions or to have a straight face all through. I have encountered such people who will smile all throughout the meeting and concur with you and yet mislead you into believing that you have “sealed the deal”.
How you resolve their queries is very important and explaining that the product or service has already taken care of their problem or pain points is crucial. It might be important that highlighting such key features in the initial discussion itself will save her/him from embarrassment.
I have used praise and appreciation for something which I have found unique or special while I was waiting and convey my admiration and that it has impressed me. I make it a point to convey my genuine appreciation or happiness at some client sites and this has helped me build a good rapport with the prospect and also converted many of them as clients.
3. Picking up cues about his pain points without the prospect even mentioning about it.
If you are smart enough and of course you should be, allow the Lord to speak as much as he can. Ask her/him relevant questions that will do two things (a) he will understand that you are actually asking the right questions; (b) and that you can solve his problems and therefore he will open up by freely sharing information. At this point, s/he will start blurting out her/his problems and that gives you an opportunity to get deeply into her/his mindset. S/He will have almost fallen in your trap. You have to be mentally alert to understand and recap whatever has been said so that s/he get the message that you have understood his pain points.
4. Telling them how you’d be able to resolve this
Now this is like going for the kill. Telling them that you have understood the problem, you can propose a couple of options of how it will be resolved, without giving much away. Withhold some solutions and make sure that they ask you. The moment they ask you about process, formalities, timelines or more details which you do not expect them to understand about your service, it is better to assume that the prospect is interested. As soon as he starts asking technical questions, it is to be realised that the prospect has already been approached earlier and he is coming from there. The question that is uppermost in their minds right from the initiation of the discussions is “how much will it cost me?” is the last but firmly asked. Now there are two things to do: (a) tell him an estimate of the proposal if it is a product whose price is known; or (b) if it is too technical or involves both supply of products and technical service, then you can say that you will have to go back to your team, work out the various details and only then you will be able to give a final proposal. Don’t forget to take an email id. Give them a time-frame by which they should be able to receive your proposal. Ask them if they have any other details to share or to ask which will be critical to the discussion. If not, express your thanks and re-commit about the deadline for sending the proposal.
5. Giving him a proposition s/he cannot refuse
Once you have understood that s/he already has a proposal, consider the costing and make it competitive but don’t undercut drastically. This ends up spoiling the entire business opportunity, not only for yourself but for others too. It is a buyer’s market and there are multiple competitors, then you might have to adjust your pricing accordingly. But if your product is unique or exclusive, then you have the opportunity to demand a reasonable amount and even premium too.
Follow-up your proposal by telephone calls to confirm if they have indeed received the proposal. I have seen that prospects have not even checked to find out if they have received your correspondence. At other times, they will simply tell you honestly that they have received but not have had the opportunity to go through it in detail and will ask for more time. Such behaviour delays decision making for everybody. You can follow-up but up to a point. Telephonic calls may not be sufficient after a while and then you will have to make a personal visit for a face-to-face interaction to understand their body language and other non-verbal cues.
The personal visit may be an opportune time for the prospect to bargain and negotiate which is where you should open up. It must be understood that s/he was waiting for this opportunity but was shying away. Give him a final offer, get her/his verbal confirmation, offer to send a final proposal, if required or get his signature on the struck deal, send the contract papers later and get working!
Best Wishes!
Sarfaraz Lakhani
22nd January, 2020
#calibrecreators
No comments:
Post a Comment
We thank you for sparing your time to leave a comment. We value your thoughts and feedback.
Calibre Creators