Over the years I've heard thousands of sales professionals say, "I don't like using sales scripts. It sounds so robotic and stiff and it just doesn't work." Actually, let me restate that: Over the years, I've heard thousands of unsuccessful sales professionals say that. Successful sales professionals understand that having a script - a set process that they follow when interacting with customers - is key to success. There's a reason why following scripts can help: Used correctly, they help build trust. Prospects Respond to Confidence You've probably heard the advice, "It's not just what you say but how you say it." That connects … [Read more...]
2 Simple Secrets Professional Public Speakers Use
Public speaking remains one of the biggest fears that people wrestle with, and it is only made worse by the fact that we seem to be speaking in front of groups more and more often! Office meetings, sales presentations, networking events; our schedules are filled with opportunities to share our ideas in front of an audience (and get nervous about it...). It's worth developing your comfort, though, because confidence in public speaking can have a direct and positive influence on your career success. Managing Stage Fright Even experienced professional speakers get a little nervous before they take the microphone. But what if you are in the … [Read more...]
How to Stop Fearing Sales Objections with this Magic Phrase
One of the reasons people don't like to sell is that we don't like rejection. As young children we develop a deep-seated fear of being abandoned by those that we love, and it follows us into adulthood. So there's this subconscious connection that's created between this fear and a prospect saying no. But we also avoid asking for business because we don't know what to say if the other person doesn't say yes or no. That's why most of us will only "ask for the order" when we already know the answer. It could be a formal sales situation where you are asking a prospect for a business deal. But it could also be an internal meeting where … [Read more...]
Back to Basics
I coach and train a lot of salespeople on how to build their business, increase their volume … basically, on how to sell more and sell more often. They are often top performers who have stalled and hit a plateau. When digging in to find what is missing from their business, that gap which has hindered their efforts, I’ve made one overwhelming observation: They are rarely missing any knowledge, skills, or tools. Instead, more often than not, they’ve gotten away from the basic training that made them successful in the first place. There Are No Sales "Secrets" They are often trying to reinvent the wheel, or they simply stopped doing … [Read more...]
Leaving a Business Voicemail the Right Way
With our headlong rush into social media and email, it seems that it's become rarer and rarer for us to actually speak to others on the phone. This has definitely led to a decrease in phone skills, and unfortunately for many professionals it's destroyed their ability to leave a good voicemail message. This problem is compounded by the fact that, since we're leaving less voicemail messages, when we do find ourselves needing to leave a voicemail it's important and we get performance anxiety. Create Clear Communication By the way, I'm not talking about creating a perfectly-crafted sales message to get a cold call victim to call you back. … [Read more...]
3 Things Everyone Likes to Talk About
You want a useful professional network? Then you need people in it. You need more people in your network than there are now? Then you should meet new people...and get them to want to spend time with you. And that’s probably where I lost you… One of the biggest challenges in building a strong professional network is that we have to bring new people into it. And let’s face it, meeting new people can be tough. It takes a lot of energy to start and develop a conversation with a complete stranger. It’s especially daunting when you feel that you have to carry the bulk of the weight and be conversationally awesome. Luckily, you … [Read more...]
The Magic Number of Networking Connections
I often get asked about the ideal number of connections you should have in your professional network. The topic often gets muddled because our first impulse is to equate networking success directly with the number of connections we have. I’m here to tell you that you don’t need a huge number contacts to have networking work for you. It’s much more important that you have strong relationships with the people in your network. But if you are really looking for that magic number of connections, here it is: One more than you have now. That’s the key to success. What’s really important isn’t the overall number of connections, but the … [Read more...]