One of the things that always surprises me about experienced sales people is that they still tend to believe there’s a secret sales weapon out there. They go to conferences, they hire coaches, they read books, they buy DVDS of motivational speakers and then after all that their sales are still down. “What am I doing wrong?” they ask. “What’s the secret?” The secret is in understanding people — how they work, how they think, what they feel. You don’t need a degree in psychology to figure it out either, but understanding the four sales types helps a lot.
You just have to be honest, authentic and focused on them, their problems, challenges and needs. You have to be able to listen well, to recognize a need, whether spoken or unspoken, and you have to find things you honestly like about them as a way to connect with them on a personal level. And finally, you have to make them feel good about you, about your product and about doing business with you. That’s it. That’s the secret of sales, of life, and of relationships. You have to genuinely care.
Quote:
“My advice to salesmen is this: pretend that every single person you meet has a sign around his or her neck that says, ‘Make me feel important.’ Not only will you succeed in sales, you will succeed in life.” ~Mary Kay Ashe