I was just reading the book ’10 steps to sales success’ which you can check out here .
In it I was reminded of an old Zig Ziglarsales objections handling line that has stood the test of time well and still stands strong today as a great way of getting some one to think when they throw an unwarranted price objection at you. Remember, value, value, value…………
“Our company made the decision to explain a higher price once rather than justify poor service and quality several times.” “You only cry once when you pay a higher price.”
Now, check out the video about Sales Objections below:
One of the passions i have is hunting down old hard to find sales and business information. Thissales training video is absolutely a must see. It is from one of the greatest ever sales trainers, called Elmer Wheeler.
You may have not heard of Elmer, but i can guarantee you have heard of some of his phrases, which you will see in this sales training video. He was instrumental in introducing the following phrases into the English language:
“Don’t Sell the Steak; Sell the Sizzle.”
“Don’t Write: Telegraph.”
“Say it with Flowers.”
“Don’t Ask If, Ask Which.”
Now let’s watch the Sales Training Video
The sales training video is a bit corny at the beginning so you may want to start watching at about 6 minutes. It might seem old and out of date but this guy was a genius of his time and there is not 1 sales person alive today who could could not learn from his work.
In a volatile business environment, sales has to adapt. It is not just reaction to change that we need, it is anticipation of change. That means that a variety of thinking skills are needed:
The ability to analyse what is happening to customers and what it means for their suppliers,
The ability to create new scenarios and solutions for them,
The ability to reflect and learn from failure and consolidate on success.
Whenever do we get time to think about value in sales?
When times are hard, the pressure is on to do, do, do. But if you are doing the wrong things, that only upsets customers more. Sales management in the 21st century is a great deal about leading and coaching the professional development in salespeople that customers admire.
Productivity is always important, but efficiency comes after effective courses of action have been identified.
Drip marketing software will revolutionise your sales and marketing process if you take the time to implement it.
Do you sometimes struggle to remember to follow up with important prospects and existing customers and clients because you just get too over whelmed?
It’s natural. We all do it no matter how well planned out our time is.
The reality is we all let sales and marketing activities go through the cracks because we are too busy, get distracted or just plain forget. There was research done (artributed to many organisations) in the 90′s, that showed most people will buy after 7 ‘touches’. More recent research has indicated that with the proliferation of marketing messages and marketing channels available today, that could be more like 12-20 touches.
An effective way to keep ahead of the pack and on top of your game is to leverage technology to work smarter and not harder. One of the best ways of doing this is by using what is referred to as ‘drip marketing’ software.
One of the greatest ways to differentiate yourself in the modern sales world is by developing your armory of stories. These stories should engage the audience, tell details about your past, your present and maybe even your future.
The stories should give insights into your culture, your values and what it is you stand for. The most effective stories will entertain, engage and draw your audience to you. In sales, they will make you stand head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. They will motivate your prospective customers and clients to desire to buy from you rather than you hard selling to them.
If you want to see the power of a brilliantly crafted story then pay full attention to this video. It is stunning in every way.
Oh, what it would be like to have the skills and craft to deliver a sales presentation with this sincerity and power:
When I run sales training courses I always provide my delegates with a whole set of documents and templates they can use in their business. One of the ones that many comment makes a huge difference in their lives is the following sales project plan.
This is a fantastic one page project plan to get you thinking about the key reason and actions needed to make any sales strategy work.
My Goal: The most important part of the process where you clearly articulate the reasons why you are undertaking the sales project. What will it do for you? What are your objectives?
Resources I need: A fantastic way to get you thinking about what and who you will need to call on to make this sales project a success.
I had a conversation this morning with a smallbusiness owner who is feeling the pinch at the moment. They are in the garden design business and are finding that their clients are stalling placing their orders for what many consider to be a non essential service. He did not hide the fact that he would be hapier with more business at the moment.
The interesting part of the conversation for me was when the business owner was telling me that he had spent days in the library recently learning the art of garden design, perfecting his skills and investing his time in becoming a better garden designer.
My rather pointed question to him was:
“With all that time in the library recently, how many sales or small business marketing books did you read?”
The answer was exactly what I had already guessed:
For years sales training has been training on the development of the features and benefits of your product and service as a core skill in sales. This is absolutely right because you have to know how your products add value to the other person and their company.
The culmination of the developement of the features and benefits list was the ultmimate ‘elevator pitch’, the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). The principal behind the USP in salesis that it is the one biggest attribute of your company, product or service that above all else defines why a company should do business with you.
USP in sales example
The classic example quoted everywhere is that of Dominos Pizza. This was something like:
“Hot, fresh, Pizza, delivered to your door in 30 minutes or less or its free”
2009 and beyond will see fantastic companies flourish. Companies that have great relationships with their customers will continue to grow, take market share and even make market share that did not exist before.
Where are you in this process? If you are not at the top of your game yet then don’t panic. Some focused activity and attention will enable you provide your customers what they really want. But do you know what that is?
Verry often when undertaking a sales consulting project the company is not quite sure what their customers want. When we discuss this and the company sees the importance of this knowledge for their business they immediately think of a brainstorming session, a strategy review and a trends analysis. Whilst these are all excellent ideas there is something else you should be doing first.
Continue reading ‘Handling Sales Objections – You are too expensive’