WHERE DO YOU RANK IN ASSERTIVENESS ?

Exactly what am I asking about ? I'm asking you how assertive you perceive you are in a selling situation ? Use a 1 to 10 yardstick, with 10 being the most assertive. With that answer defined now ask someone who knows you really well ( careerwise ) and ask their opinion. What do they say on the same scale ? Did you ask your sales manager ?

Here's the issue guys. Being "professionally" assertive can add $$$$ to your world and you don't have to act like a jerk to do it. Many salespeople are simply to nice and very uncomfortable pushing the sale, the appointment, or whatever you are trying to achieve. Have you succeeded by being a nice person in the past ? Probably so ! Are you uncomfortable being more assertive ? Probably so ! In my opinion, it comes down to a couple of items for your consideration. One is to learn ( through role playing ) what better questions to ask or statements to make which might affect the sale. Two would be have you ever been outsold ? Number 2 is a very interesting question and one of the questions that I always ask clients at the start of our relationship. Why ? Because hardly anyone in professional sale ever admits to being outsold. And I'm hear to tell you that there isn't anybody who hasn't been outsold ( including me ). I know you believe and proliferate the myth that that competition had lower prices ( and that may be true in some cases - especially now ). But here's the curveball for you ! Have you ever been successful in getting a sale when you were not the lowest price ? Sure you have. So what do you think that customer told your competitors to avoid discussing the details ?

The fear of being too assertive in a selling situation is to be respected - depends upon the people involved, the circumstances, and your best judgement. But remember this also ( and I'm not the first to say it - but consider it ) - "Do you have the business now" ? So, what's the worst that's going to happen ( if you are too assertive ) ?

I believe that you owe it to yourself to be more professionally assertive ! Think about it - it's another powerful insight to improving your closing ratio.

ARE YOU ASKING ENOUGH RIGHT QUESTIONS ?

This week I'm going to share (again) some insights from another one of my mentors, Dorothy Leeds.

I'm reminded of this almost every time I go through the results ( or lack thereof ) of a face to face call by one of my clients ( I call them post-mortems - cause the opportunity is dead after you leave the appointment ).

Ms. Leeds wrote the book "7 Powers Of Questions" and has her own admirable success with other books and resources plus being a great public speaker.

Some of the obvious results from asking questions in a selling situation are ( let alone how questions can bring success to your life outside sales also ):

1. Questions allow you to learn more about your customer and their organization to find avenues for a sale ( called discovery ).
2. Questions allow you to listen well and allows your customer to talk and most buyers love to hear themselves talk.
3. When the buyer ( or buyers ) are talking they should be sharing things that they don't normally share ( depends on how good your questions are ) and that leads to respect and relationships ( especially when they recognize that you are asking questions they have never been asked before).
4. Questions allow you time to gather your thoughts, truly show interest in what they have to say, and present yourself as something other than the typical feature / benefit dumper !
5. Your numerous well thought out questions generally prompt questions from the buyers and that's a good thing !
6. Good questions usually prompt the next step in the relationship - like the next appointment or a follow-up call and / or something you will do as a result of what you've learned.


Think about it - it's another powerful insight to improving your closing ratio.

ACCEPTING YOUR ROLE AS A SALESPERSON !

Obviously I'm on a roll sharing some insights from George and Shannon again. They are the two world renown behavioral psychologists who wrote "Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance".

What is meant by "Accepting My Role As A Salesperson" ? For a lot of us the perceived stereotype of a "Salesperson" is not comfortable and not what we want to be. Heaven forbid that we would "CLOSE" a sale by what we say / do or don't say /do ! How many people do you know on your Team or a competitor's roster have "Salesperson" on their business card ? Why is that ? Because most of us are convinced that people (buyers) don't like salespeople and we don't want to be associated with "other" salespeople. You will find "business development" or "VP of Regional Sales" or other fancy titles that make us more comfortable. Guess what - I'm OK with that fact.

I don't care what you put on your business card but what I want is professional salespeople who recognize that asking for the business, selling features / benefits and getting acknowledgement thereof, trial closes, cold calls, relationship building, networking, and many other basics contribute to your success. And you must challenge yourself to overcome whatever "head trip" you have about being a sales professional that inhibits your ability to be better at all of the above plus, plus, etc.

And on top of all that, comes the need to recognize that you must constantly challenge yourself to grow, to learn, and to improve your professional selling skills. Every aspect of your professional responsibility to yourself, your Team, your family, your customers should be a work in progress for the rest of your career ! Resting on your laurels is not acceptable for true sales professionals.