2 min read
Have you ever asked yourself why you became a salesperson? If you empathize with people, are perseverant and love a healthy challenge, you can be sure that your chosen profession was not the result of mere chance. You were born with the skills to tackle one of the toughest, yet most rewarding jobs out there. Sales is full of obstacles and requires a continuing review of the methodology, tools used and in particular, the behavioral practices of leads.
With this in mind, it might be worth taking a look at David H. Sandler’s sales system dubbed the Sandler Method. By applying this discipline, the author managed to cope with a period of low sales, something that almost every salesperson has gone through. Through eight chapters, Sandler conducts an analysis from start to finish of the entire sales management process. Today’s post will focus on the first 4 – the evasive techniques employed by customers to counter traditional sales strategies.
Some customers tend to retain a little information from the sales rep. Certain aspects of their operating systems, budgets or purchasing decisions, data they’re not willing to make public which, you’d have to agree with, is to be expected.
This is mainly to protect themselves from you, the untrustworthy salesperson – the more technically forthcoming they are, the more susceptible they become to your bag of ‘sales trickery’. However honest and professional your intentions may be, the nature of the client will be to stay a little wary at first. Carefully remove that initial barrier and learn to connect, on a personal level, with that person in front of you. That will be your first challenge.
One of the most important goals for sale reps, especially during a meeting, is to motivate our customers to purchase our product. Taking the time to research the client and highlighting common competitor and industry problems means we can come prepared with a tailored “presentation of solutions.” This shows the client you’re detailed, thorough and professional. However, the problem arises when you find out that your honest intentions and hard work have been used simply to get a better price on your competition.
One of the main disadvantages facing the salesperson is that a client will always have the upper hand. Harnessing this power in negotiation terms means the customer can request certain information that the seller will have to provide free of charge, otherwise known as “consulting” or “orientation”.
However, for the client, this is often not enough. They have to dangle the carrot by asking for a little time to analyze the proposal. You leave satisfied with your efforts, confident in an honest and fair proposal. So be aware! It is possible that this moment of reflection is actually a skill to continue to milk free sales information, with no intention of actually buying. How could they possibly do this to you, you ask?
Admit it, this has happened to all of us at some point in time. You are in the office or visiting a client, but your mind is elsewhere. It’s stuck on last month’s ‘done deal’. The one that you’d all but filed away, ticked off and felt very pleased about, too. Yet you are still waiting for that final call, message or email to place it down on the dotted line, but it never comes. This is a hard reality that every salesperson has to face and traditional sales systems often do not provide any plausible solution.
In response, Sandler proposes a “dance” between prospect and salesperson – a union of sorts that’s as beneficial as it is brief. A give and take of mutual level and consent. This system is already used by thousands of salespeople and sales managers in many industries and businesses. Companies like Oracle, Minolta, Daimler Chrysler or Microsoft have adopted the Sandler Sales System.
If you want to know more about the Sandler Method or in implementing it as part of your own sales system, you can click here for more information.