Hardcore Sales Vs. The Relationship Part II: Building A Relationship With Your Prospect!
I would like to discuss some of the positives and negatives of sales and how they relate to relationship building. I would also like explain how you can go about starting to build a solid vendor-client relationship, and what pitfalls to avoid in the process.
DON'T ever give your prospective client the feeling of "This person is just here to sell me something" or conveying even the smallest inkling that portrays "Selling".
DO always "help" your client arrive at the fact that your are here to provide a service or product that they want and need. You are not there to sell; you are there to help.
DON'T go into the "Salesperson Overdrive". There are many of you out there, including myself, that must fight the urge to SELL or to Dominate the prospect. Whether you know it or not, you are setting yourself (and the prospect) up for that final decision, "Yes Or No, What Will It Be"? You end up in the situation which most of us despise, "The Sell".
Your entire Business Persona should be a Soft Persuasion. This means that you never try to make your prospect see things your way, It's quite the opposite actually. Soft Persuasion is in the Packaging. It's the way you package your company, yourself and your product or service. I don't mean the box it comes in. When I speak of packaging, I mean the way you portray your company and yourself. It should be a positive and confident portrayal, not an overbearing one.
Hard Persuasion too often comes back to bite you in the ass. Hard Persuasion separates you from your prospect, moving them away from you. Nobody likes to be bullied, and that's what Hard Persuasion or the Hard Sell comes down to. No matter how nicely you do it, you are bullying them into seeing things your way. This is not to say that there are not some of you who can make this work, but for most of us the Hard Sell Close is a feat that is beyond our capabilities. This is because we are business professionals and technical experts, not seasoned sales people.
Approach your prospect as if they are already a client. Assume this because they truly need your service, not because you want to make the sale. How you see and treat your prospective client is how they will see themselves. Perception is a strong tool to be used wisely.
Cover all the details before they can become potential problems in the closing of the sale. Covering all the details can help you avoid being pulled into an objection contest. Always maintain the one-to-one Relationship. Once
you move outside of that circle and separate yourself from the prospect, it's almost impossible to get back. You have removed yourself from their domain of trust to the domain of a salesperson. Crossing this line even once will cause your prospect to mistrust you and see you as a salesperson, not a service provider.
Staying low-key and creating an atmosphere of "no- pressure" is imperative. Remember; portray confidence, not arrogance. This is what Relationship Selling is all about. You want your prospect to feel at ease, not backed up into a corner waiting to strike out at whatever you have to say.
Above all, learn how to handle and deal with rejection in a positive manner. If you have carried yourself confidently explained all the details and they tell you "no sale", it may be that they were not a good prospect in the first place. It could also mean that they are indeed still a good prospect and they simply don't know it yet.
Next week, I'll pass on some techniques used in the process of relationship building and selling. Until then my friend work hard carrying yourself with confidence and honesty.
If you missed last weeks Part I, you can review it at: http://216.147.104.180/articles/data/20001018031828.shtml
It's been a pleasure. Please Feel Free to write me mailto:wildbill@greatdesignz.com and let me know what you "Honestly" think about sales, marketing and of course my article!
I hope you can join me next week for Part III: "Tips and Techniques For Relationship Selling"
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I'll be e-Seeing you Soon
Wild Bill Montgomery
http://www.MakingProfit.com Home of the "InfoZone" Business and Marketing Article Archives!
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