By Maggie Leyes
Patrick Evans started his business, Evcor, in his garage in 1979, and sold it in 2000 for $60 million—making 20 partners millionaires. In the process of growing his business, he has trained an endless stream of salespeople. And while most agents and advisors don’t like to see themselves as salespeople, if they don’t have clients paying for products, services and advice, they would soon be out of business.
There is something to be learned by “listening in” on how other industries are making it big with their clients—it’s also entertaining to read about their foibles and successes. So let’s see what Evans might teach us in his latest book, SalesBURST!!: World’s Fastest (entrepreneurial) Sales Training (Wiley). The point of the book, Evans writes, is to teach those in sales how to think—and act—like entrepreneurs. It’s not about knowledge—anyone can acquire that, he says. Instead, it’s about selling that knowledge to someone that has a wallet.
 |
|
“Once you have been honest with yourself on paper, you will send yourself a series of solutions.” —Patrick Evans |
|
He offers 14 secrets to his sales success in the first part of the book. I read through it and chose four that you might want to try in your business:
Secret 1: Write it down. Write down one thought and then don’t let any other thoughts to be “viewed on the screen inside your head.” This works, he says, to help you find solutions to problems you are facing (“Write it down, write it down, write it down” is his mantra throughout the book). This will allow you to take what he calls “helicopter shots” of your business. Here’s the formula: sit down (lock the door to the room you are in), clear your head, write out your problem on a pad in as much detail as you can … and an idea or solution will surface. “Once you have been honest with yourself on paper, you will send yourself a series of solutions … You will be shocked that it is so simple, yet it works every time,” he writes.
Secret 2: Land where you planned. For success in sales, you need to “land where you planned,” says Evans. “It’s so simple. I love it. What’s your plan?” It should start with understanding your clients and making sure you are aligned with them. Although Evans teaches sales techniques to many industries, he brought up the insurance industry, citing a study that one of the major insurance companies did. It found that agents who purchased life insurance themselves sold more with their prospects and clients. Being aligned means having the same mindset. “Enthusiasm is caught, not taught. You have to bring excitement to the bargaining table. You must be functionally organized to formulate a written plan and then you have to land where you planned,” he writes.
Secret 3: Water, no ice. (Otherwise known as: Listen) Here’s a simple exercise Evans suggests that you try. Next time you are dining at a restaurant, ask the waiter for a glass of water with no ice. What do you think you will get? Most likely it will be a glass of ice water. Why? “For the same reason that you don’t listen to your prospects, even though all of us think we do. The fix for this is really easy: Listen, and then write everything down,” says Evans. (There’s that writing mandate again.) And, be sure to review your notes the same day, he advises. If you don’t, you will forget what some of your notes mean.
Secret 4: Answer a direct question with a question. It may sound awkward and may feel awkward to practice at first. But Evans is adamant that it “works flawlessly in life. People will answer your question and then you are fee to ask a question or answer their original question now that you have more knowledge. Go ahead and smile, attorneys use this method all the time.” It works, he writes, because from the time that we were little, we’ve been programmed to obey authority and answer questions. He gives this example in his book that you can try out:
Question: Why is your company better than the firm I now have?
Your response: __________________?
How about if you tried this response, he suggests, “What do you like about the firm you have now?” After you get their answer, ask, “What do you dislike?” “It works wonders,” says Evans.
It’s all in your head
When asked, “Where do most salespeople fail?” Evans’s answer was quick and to the point: “They fail in their minds. They fail before the [client] makes the decision. They lack self-confidence and people who purchase can sense that.” He says that people want to buy from a “friendly partner,” someone they can have a conversation with who is friendly and approachable.
For more information on SalesBURST!!, go to www.salesburst.com.
March 2008
How Does Your Practice Measure Up?
Breaking Through: A Case Study
|
|
