Even though, the market is leading to internet-based marketing and business development, nevertheless, the face-to-face marketing and selling is still in dominance.
There are many industries and wide range of products which needs one to one discussion to conclude on sale. Lot of selling depends on relations.
The current market scenario is very dynamic and volatile. The buyer has become more mature and practical. Availability of information at ease has helped buyer to upgrade the knowledge and understanding.
Moreover, the competition and wide range of products have given buyer to choose the best from the lot and as per allocated budget.
As the markets have gone thorough transformation, the sales force also needs to cope with the pressures and demanding buyer’s wish lists to stay in race. Professional selling can be made easy with following skills.
Professional Selling – 7 Golden Skills
1. Selling Yourself First
2. Selling to Person
3. Listening to Customers
4. Product Knowledge
5. Asking Questions
6. Emphasize Benefits
7. Impress with USP
1. Selling Yourself First
This may sound an old day’s method, however, stands still good in the process of professional selling. Getting yourself accepted by customer and assessing to create a base in the beginning prepare you to start smoothly.
Developing the rapport with the customer gives an extra edge to go closer to your objective. Creating an environment of interest towards each other is a contribution factor to talk openly.
A small series of questions to make customer talk about themselves and telling about you in the flow helps in establishing intimacy. Do not try to impose upon, instead, let the customer feel comfortable in your presence and at the same time get attracted.
Many a times, persons are bought than the companies or products.
2. Selling to Person
No two customers are alike and carry similar thought process. Therefore, understanding and connecting with each and every individual at personal and professional level is important aspect.
To figure out better, every customer has his or her own way of perception, different desires and requirements. The working environment, family background and the education level, all these and other aspects related to every person are non-identical.
Every person is self-centric and carries some ego, hence, as a professional selling person, proper importance and attention is to be given to make the conversation and relation responsive.
While presenting, talk truth and should not manipulate to impress. No human wants to be deceived in any manner. Honest tactics always pay in long term. Gathering information from other sources also helps.
3. Listening to Customers
Having two ears and one mouth approach is always a winning formula when in conversation with customer. Listening carefully and responding in accordance pay good dividend.
Most of the sales persons show that they are listening, however, are actually thinking that what next to be done which perhaps a customer also understands. In a professional selling, paying attention and asking relevant questions builds up the trust.
At no point, the discontinuity from the conversation should be reflected and above all the chances of missing out the right query become high. Every question should be answered with solution.
Listening to customer gives you the opportunity to understand the thought process and allows you to devise your strategy to modify as per the need of situation. Using body language like nodding and smiling also adds up the acceptance.
4. Product Knowledge
Thorough knowledge about product is essential, however, how much information the customer requires, should only be shared. The school of thoughts does not mention that the persons packed with product knowledge are best sellers, it is the skill or the judgment to make best use of your grip on the product.
Being an expert in your product gives self confidence and you are in better position to respond to concerns, queries or any other detail required. Correlating the product features with the needs of customer becomes easy.
You never know, how much information customers are having, may be, they themselves are expert and for that reason, you are in a finer position to discuss.
Professional selling calls for good product knowledge which lets you to handle the competition better and strengthens the skills of negotiations.
As you feel confident of yourself, customer also thinks about you in the similar fashion. Customers always favor the deal where they feel satisfied.
5. Asking Questions
Asking questions in any sales discussion is a significant parameter for conversion. Questions help you to bring customer’s needs to light. When you ask questions, you are gaining and validating the information.
This will not only help you to decide on your product, at the same time customer also knows what to buy. The idea is to create an awareness of needs versus the product through qualified questions.
In professional selling, it is always advisable to put across open ended questions as the answers will take you to go deeper and acquire more information.
Some of the buyers are introvert and hesitant to talk much, so asking related questions will open them up to fulfill your requirements. Any poor or irrelevant question leads to resistance. Even the simple questions like what is the quantity you are looking for, when do you want the deliveries or who are the decision makers.
Try the ADAPT process:
Assessment
Assess the situation through open end questions which can generate vital information to correlate with your business.
Discovery
Identify the needs, problems being faced and those areas which are of interest to you. Probe further to know the current scenario.
Activation
Activate them to elaborate their understanding of problem and hardships being faced. Realize them that present position can lead to untoward consequences.
Projection
Project here that you have the solutions. Help them with resolving the issues and to come out of difficulties.
Transition
At this stage, when you are conversant with the happenings, promote yourself with products to accomplish their needs.
6. Emphasize Benefits
Every product constitutes some features and some benefits which are essential characteristics for a customer to understand the product. However, customers always show the interest in benefits and based on those customers buys.
The features should always be linked with benefits. Any feature can be “so what” for customer but saying “which means” will turn the table in favor.
The point of importance is that customers have their own requirements which may be different from others, hence both should be correlated in line with the requirements. Benefits in terms of commercials and returns on investment can pull customers.
Ultimately all the customers are looking for favorable results out of the purchase and products. Professional selling meets these requirements.
Features are statements about a product or service, as to what it does or can do. Benefits show the end result of what the product or service can achieve.
Feature and benefit matrix help marketers ensure their communication is clear and relevant to buyer. About 80 percent of buying decisions are emotion based and if you are able to connect emotions and benefits, job is done.
7. Impress with USP
Every product or service is associated with a feature which is distinctive from others and it is Unique. Stressing on Unique Selling Proposition or point (USP) which by default you should know makes you stands apart from the competition. Without mentioning USP in professional selling environment is halfhearted effort.
Unique selling points must be described. To be linked with the gathered information through the questions asked at the initial stages of discussion.
Majority of sales persons believe that it is the price that sells and customers buy the cheapest goods, however, this is misconception, in reality, it is the value that customers buy. Prove that the product cost is value for money.
What you see, you buy. Claims should just not be words of mouth but to be shown. Show them with statistics, other customer’s reports, testimonials and other visual aids to inculcate the confidence for going ahead.
Conclusion
Knowing and implementing the right selling strategy is decisive for the success of salesperson. Plunging quickly into sales without knowing the background and understanding the customer, the result will be thank you very much, some other time.
On the other hand, by following above principles, it will be you saying thank you very much. And that is Professional Selling.
Need we say more…
