As always, what follows, are concepts, not scripts.

#1 – Do you normally make decisions this way?
Simply ask the prospect if they normally make important decisions in such a manner. That is, do they usually make decisions BEFORE they have ALL of the necessary information? Be strong and embarrass the prospect on asking you to “cut-to-the-chase” on such an important issue.

Sales Person
“Steve, I understand and appreciate that you are anxious to know what our program will cost. But let me ask you; do you normally make decisions BEFORE you have all of the information regarding that decision?”

Then, after whatever the uncomfortable answer, perhaps…

“Steve, if you’ll just give me just a few minutes, I will give you all of the information you need, including the price, so that you can make a well-informed, intelligent decision. Does that make sense?”

#2 – Compared to what?
Since you have not been able to give the prospect the information about the product or service, then how can the price have any real meaning? If I told you I have a house for sale and the price is £50,000, what would that mean? Unless you have details about the house, the price is irrelevant.

Sales Person
“Sarah, my point is that whatever price I give you right now, what do you compare it to? If you are thinking of comparing it to what you get from your present supplier, I can tell you that what we deliver is not quite the same. If you would like to compare “apples-to-apples” then I ask you to allow me to first explain exactly what WE will do for you. Is that fair enough?”

All money is not good money
Be careful with the price ONLY or price before presentation prospect. Often, even if you give in and divulge the price prematurely, AND close the deal, usually you will end up with a nightmare customer. Work with clients who are worthy of YOUR quality business. Be a professional.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

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Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Let’s face it; there are some, unethical, under-trained sales people out there that often make things harder for all of us. However, if you know me, I never blame the sales person or the sales team. As far as I am concerned, if you are in a position of leadership of a sales team, then almost anything that happens is the responsibility of the sales management.

I believe even the individual failure or success of the sales person is ultimately the responsibility of the sales manager.

Yet, the sad fact is that often people in positions of sales leadership are those with little or no practical experience or understanding in the field for which they manage. If you happen to be one of those unfortunate sales people (who keep writing me) under the control of a slipshod, inexperienced, micro-managing, penny-pinching, self-serving sales manager, then the following three ideas will help you better manage your sales manager.

#1 – You Are Involved
The bad sales manager will usually have a fragile self-esteem and thus, have a need to be involved in everything and anything that happens to the point of hampering you from doing your job.

To handle this micro-management, try to keep the manager involved. Send an email, a text, say something as you move on to get done what you know you need to do. The key is to keep the micro-brain involved JUST enough so that he or she will FEEL involved enough to stay out of your way.

#2 – You Are Responsible
When you achieve success, the big sale; let the manager know that, in some way, he or she helped make it happen. Don’t misunderstand me, I am not talking about lying or appeasement; it is the truth! (Just not the way he or she may think.)

#3 – I Thank You
As good sales person, you will eventually begin to demonstrate high levels of success and surpass sales goals. However, an egotistical sales manager will often view your accomplishments as a threat.

Find a way to thank the sales manager for the opportunity he or she gave you to enable you to reach such success. Once again, this is not misleading; it is true.

What’s Good For the Goose…
As a good sales manager manages sales people, sometimes, good sales people need to manage the sales manager.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Conversely, very positive experiences can cause you to begin a negative thought process when those same positive conditions are not present. The result is a preconditioned mind-set that can cost you a ton of sales.

Here are three such mental blocks you want to avoid.

#1: The Pre-Sale Ritual
Performing a certain set of routine exercises to get your mind-set right is a good thing. However, you cannot let your routine become such a ritual that if for some reason you are unable to complete it, you lose your nerve.

If you feel you went into the sales interaction without performing your routine, you can feel ill prepared, unconfident or even afraid. Be careful not to let any set of pre-sales actions become critical to your performance.

#2: That Special Suit or Outfit
Most of us have a special outfit; that suit, tie, blouse or whatever, that makes us feel invincible. While there is no harm in that, it is easy to begin to feel that you close more sales, close bigger sales, or have better success while adorning that certain attire. When this happens, you tend to feel LESS effective in other outfits. Such a superstition will cost you.

#3: Sex and Age
This is a tough one, in that often the fear is real. If you feel you have problems with prospects of a certain age or sex, it is possible that you have problems communicating with that type of person. However, usually it is but a mere phobia.

The last two big sales you lost, the prospect was a senior aged man. When you walk into your next sales interaction and find an older man, fear sets in and a sense of doom blankets your confidence. You fear this one will end as the others and you will not make the sale. Once this feeling materialises, your sales interaction and close becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Selling is a highly subjective business. Be careful not to subject your mind to unwarranted fears.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

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Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Your Mind is on the Money
Once the prospect feels that your interest in the buying decision rests largely on the fact that you NEED the sale, it is all over. The problem is that often you really DO NEED the sale. Of course, some people tell you that you should simply not think about it. But let’s be honest; that is not only easier said than done, but depending on your personal financial situation, it may seem impossible.

So, how do you get that gleam of hunger out of your eye and that tone of desperation out of you voice when the truth is that you badly need the sale? Try this.

Put the sale in its proper perspective
In situations when you NEED the sale, your fear of losing the sale becomes a nightmare. This is because closing the sale represents a ton of money. However, you need to understand that the sale you may or may not close, is NOT worth as much as you think. You need to put the sale in its proper perspective and understand what is truly at risk should you lose the sale. What you earn when you close a sale is NOT the amount of the total commission.

Not such a big deal
Let’s say that on your average sale you earn £400. Of course, there are bigger sales when you earn perhaps £1,500 or more and then there are small ones where you make only £150. But your average is £400. You also have a closing average of 20%, or one out of five.

Therefore, you actually earn but £80 per sales interaction (£400 divided by 5). On every closing attempt, whether you close the sale or not, whether it is a big sale or not, you essentially earn £80. That’s all. In addition, keep in mind that you earn that £80 regardless if you close the sale or not.

All that you are dealing with is the amount you earn on a sales interaction or a closing attempt. That’s all. It may appear that the £1,500 or £5,000 is at stake. However, all it really is (as in this example) is £80.

You are scared to death at loosing the sale because you see a huge commission at stake. However, that huge commission is but an illusion. Most of it you already earned on the other sales interactions. You will earn nothing more than the amount that you earn on every sales interaction; win lose or draw.

Put the sale in perspective and relax.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

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Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Here is a simple yet highly effective technique to help you get past a hard screen. Use this and increase your contact rates today!

Don’t Sound Too Professional
The gatekeeper’s job is to block unwanted or unnecessary calls from reaching the decision maker (DM). This usually refers to sales people making cold or warm calls. Gatekeepers train to recognize all kinds of sales people, from the undertrained, smile and dial telemarketer to the high-level stockbroker. Therefore, the first step to getting pass the screen is not to sound like a sales person. Your voice and tone needs to reflect that of a normal, boring, everyday business call from an associate, friend or client.

How to NOT Sound like a Sales Person
The main key to sounding more like a regular acceptable caller and less like a sales person is to make mistakes. You cannot be perfect. As a sales person, you practice your presentation and even rehearse your answers to objections. Then, after speaking to hundreds of prospects, you know exactly what you are going to say. Therefore, your speaking pattern becomes flawless. You speak faster and without a stutter or a misspoken word. In addition, you sound very sure of yourself, confident and sharp.

Be the Opposite
To get pass more gatekeeper screens, sound like the opposite of the professional sales person. Speak slower, stammer and stutter a bit. Do not sound very confident or interested. You do not want to sound like making telephone calls is part of what you do for a living. In fact, you want the GK to think that you sound so bad, that there is no way you could do this for a living.

The less professional and sharp you sound, the less of a threat you are. The less of a threat you are, the more likely you are to get pass the gatekeeper screen and through to the decision maker.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

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Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Quick and to the point, here are three sales management DON’Ts you need to avoid.

#1 – Fail to Recognise Work Ethic and Effort
Too often, the only recognition or reward in a sales organisation comes along the result—closed sales. This makes sense in that the results are the true bottom line. However, you have to understand that it is actually a ton of other activities and work involved to generate the results. Also, many times the work and effort is there, and this being the sales business, the bottom-line results do not manifest themselves as quickly.

Don’t let the only time sales people get a compliment from you be when they close a sale. Recognise positive sales activity and a strong work ethic, as these things will eventually result in more sales.

#2 – Fail to Recognise Small Accomplishments
In line with the above, you must recognise those smaller victories. When the sales team member reaches a quota for the first time, or sets more appointments than usual, or finally gets through a tough Gatekeeper screen to reach an elusive decision maker. Such successes may seem trivial to you, but can be enormous to the sales person.

#3 – Fail to Recognise Ideas
Although some of the ideas and thoughts to help increase sales or improve processes from sales team members may not be effectual or even viable, you cannot ignore or dismiss them nonchalantly.

You have to give a full ear to the ideas and give them some validity. If the sales person thinks that his or her thoughts and feelings are irrelevant, he or she too will feel irrelevant.

As you may note, the three mistakes all have to do with the same thing: helping sales people feel good about themselves. When sales team members lose their self-esteem, you lose everything.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat MTD Sales Training

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Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

What You Can Not See CAN Hurt YOU
The problem is that it is much easier to see and understand others selling issues that result in loses, such as closing mistakes, poor customer service issues, or losing sales to the competition. It is easy to spot lost sales opportunities.

However, it is far more difficult to recognise or quantify the lost in sales revenue when it comes to sales opportunities that NEVER developed in the first place, due to poor prospecting. So, please take these three prospecting mistakes to heart and avoid them at all costs because it is likely they are already costing you more money than you can imagine.

#3 – Failure to Get Referrals
Not getting enough referrals; especially getting referrals from the prospects that do not buy, is a killer. You must become and expert at getting referrals and if you are already good at this, then practice getting more.

#2 – Selling the Product or Service Prematurely
Prospecting is but a set in the sales process, and it is not the close. However, far too many sales people confuse prospecting with closing. In that I mean, when they should be qualifying the prospect, or identifying the decision maker ort just setting an appointment—they are trying to sell the product.

When a prospect objects to an appointment, you need to sell the appointment and not the product. Avoid falling into the trap of trying to sell your product or service during the prospecting stages.

#1 – Poor Record Keeping and Customers Relationships Management
The most costly prospect mistake is the lack of effective record keeping. Most sales people overlook the importance of keeping accurate sales-activity records. Prospects that slip through the cracks are often the difference between success and failure. Prospects you forgot to call, emails you failed to send or lost leads, are a fraction of what slips through your fingers. If you are using post-it notes, an A4 pad, memory or the back of a cigarette packet for prospecting, you are losing money!

Avoid these costly prospecting mistakes and keep your sales funnel fill.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by Digital Art)

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

“I am sorry, but I am very happy with my current supplier/vendor. We have been doing business with them for many years and have no reason to change…”

This position strikes terror in most sales people and many ask me for advice on how to overcome this objection. The problem is that this is NOT an objection. It is a matter of fact, and should be expected.

Waiting for You?
My question is, when you call a prospective client, what did you expect their situation to be? Did you really think the prospect would be sitting there, without a current supplier or vendor and just waiting for you to call?

It is obvious that the prospective company is already doing business with one of your competitors. Now, if that decision maker were completely unhappy and unsatisfied with that current vendor, do you think he or she would have done something about it? What businessperson would continue to do business with a vendor for which they truly did not want to do business? And if, that were the case, then would not that vendor had probably called YOU?

Common Sense
Of course, they are happy with their current supplier or vendor, and you should already assume that. It is not an objection. Therefore, do not take it as an objection and move on. Instead of trying to argue the fact that perhaps you would make a better supplier, take the sales process as it should progress…one-step at a time.

Glad to Hear That
Do not argue the point. Instead, agree and even congratulate the prospect and let them know the reason for your contact at this stage of the sales process.

Prospect
“Well, I am really happy with our current technical training company. We have been working with them for about ten years, and we are very satisfied.”

Sales Person
“Great! I am glad to hear that Ethan. I would think that since you have been doing business with XYZ Tech for all of these years, that you are indeed very happy. I am also certain that they EARNED your business. Ethan, I am not asking you to GIVE me your business because I have NOT earned as they did. All I am asking is that you allow me to give you some valuable information about new developments in our industry over a quick 30 minute meeting. Perhaps in time, I might be able also to EARN some of your business. But in the mean time, the information will beneficial to you…”

The Opposite
The situation is the exact opposite of what most sales people think: Don’t fear the prospect who is happy with their current supplier…fear the one who is not.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

The End is the Beginning
The way you end the call is as important and sometimes more so, than the way it began. If your goal was to set an appointment, and you did so, what you do and say as you end that call can make the difference on if the appointment happens or the prospect cancels or no-shows.

If you closed an actual sale on the telephone, then your call “Termination Tactics,” are even more critical. Below are three powerful tips to ending the call that will help actualise and materialise what you worked so hard to accomplish during that call.

#1 – Confirm and Summarise
After you have successfully set the appointment or closed the sale, you have to concretely summarise and confirm what happens. I know that sounds like it is automatic and assumed, and that is the problem. Most sales people take this for granted and it is a mistake.

Although, so you mentioned the product and costs ten times, or you talked about the meeting on several occasions during the call, you need to DO IT AGAIN!

“Once again, Sarah, I appreciate your time today and look forward to meeting with you next week. Let me just double check one last time; you will meet me at your office, located at 1234 Bending Road Place, Tuesday, that is the 12st, at 3:00 pm, is that right?”

#2 – Leave a Logical Backup
Remember, people make most buying decisions based on emotion and then justify or “back-up” those decisions with logic. On the telephone, when the prospect has agreed to buy or agreed to the appointment, he or she has made a buying decision, even if it is to buy the meeting. You must leave the prospect with some logic to help them justify or back up their decision after you get off the telephone.

“I want to just reiterate, Ethan, that during that brief meeting next week, I am going to show you exactly how to gain a slight advantage over your competition on the internet and leave you with some extremely valuable information. The meeting will greatly benefit you regardless of if you decide to do business with us or not…”

“Once again, Mary, the fuel adjustment gauges will arrive early next week, and you will see that you sill save a minimum of 24% on your costs starting from day one…”

#3 – Wait for the Prospect to Hang Up First
Lastly, after the good-day pleasantries, wait and let the prospect hang up the telephone first. You do not want the last thing the prospect or new client to hear be a telephone slam down on them. In addition, it is very easy for you to hang up as the prospect begins to say something or ask one last question. Also, you do not ever want it to appear that you were in a hurry to get off the phone. Slow down.

Confirm and summarise. Leave some logic behind and hang up last, and some of those great tips on beginning the telephone call might actually pay off in the end!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

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Click on the image below to find out why your very existence as a sales person is in doubt…