By Janet Wagner
Imagine you’re meeting with a client and eagerly pitching a product, but your client isn’t catching your enthusiasm. In fact, he’s giving the impression that he wants to flee. It would be such a good product for him that you press on—until he does give an excuse and ends the meeting.
What went wrong? You didn’t replace his fear that he might be manipulated into a bad purchase with confidence. If people haven’t been burned by an inappropriate white-elephant of a purchase themselves, they know someone who has. When you start to pitch, they become wary. Enhance your credibility in their eyes, and you diminish their fear of making a bad purchase. In his book Speak to Win, Brian Tracy explains how to pitch persuasively.
Find the ideal prospect and gain his trust
You must first find those individuals most likely to need what you’re selling. “You need to ask questions to determine the prospect’s pain, problem, need, or goal that your product or service can alleviate or take away,” says Tracy.
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Once you’ve found your prospects, you must establish rapport and trust. |
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Once you’ve found your prospects, you must establish rapport and trust. This is best done by asking questions appropriate to the prospect’s circumstances and listening intently to his responses. “Questions are very powerful in establishing rapport,” says Tracy. “Listening builds trust.”
Each year the National Association of Purchasing Management surveys its membership about experiences and attitudes toward purchasing and salespeople. Tracy says that members’ perennial reply is that they value “salespeople who ask good questions, listen carefully to their answers, and try to help [them] make good purchasing decisions.” Remember: telling isn’t selling.
Accurately identify the pain, problem, need or goal
Never assume that what’s keenly felt by one prospect is of the same importance to others. Just as a physician conducts an examination and checks test results before rendering a diagnosis, you need to ascertain what the prospect needs most before you begin to sell. Get him to agree on his most pressing need and you’re halfway to closing the sell. “If you begin talking about your product or service before [you’re in agreement about his need], you will actually kill any interest the prospect might have,” says Tracy.
Winning presentations
A winning presentation draws on the information you learned about your prospect through your questions and his responses. You’ve identified his need, so show him how your product or service will fill the need. In essence, you tailor your presentation to each prospect’s specific need. Don’t rush through your pitch. Ask for feedback intermittently and adjust your presentation to align with your prospect’s concerns. Tracy says that it’s imperative that you’ve “thought through every logical objection that a [prospect] might have and have developed a clear and convincing answer to each objection.” Deal with each objection and show the prospect why it’s not a deal breaker.
Going in for the close
Early in his career, Tracy had his presentation down to a science but rarely closed a sale. He realized that the problem wasn’t the product or the prospect but his fear of rejection. Keep in mind that rejection isn’t personal, plunge in and ask for the sale.
Your work isn’t over when the sale is made. The easiest sales to make are to satisfied clients or individuals referred to you by satisfied clients. If you want to enjoy those boons, you must take great care to treat your clients well after the sale. Be prepared to counter buyer’s remorse, to answer questions as they arise and to ensure that the sale is merely the first among many to come.
Brian Tracy is a noted speaker and consultant who has written several books, including The Power of Charm, Focal Point and Create Your Own Future. For further information on Tracy’s method of persuasive selling, see Brian Tracy, Speak to Win (www.amanet.org/books).
Janet Wagner is a contributing editor to Advisor Today.
November/December 2007
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