Selling to Consumers | Sales Training Blog by Skip Anderson

Trying to Get a Date vs. Trying to Make a Sale

In my sales training seminars, I sometimes use analogies that compare dating and selling. The interpersonal dynamics of an individual attempting to get a date with someone to whom he's attracted (we'll call her the "subject") is similar to the dynamics of trying to complete a sale to a prospect (who we'll also call the "subject").

Both the dater and the seller must engage their subject. Both must get information from the subject. Both must have a compelling "product." Both must ask their subject to "buy." Both must provide outstanding service after the sale to get repeat orders. 

James Chartrand wrote a guest post over at Copyblogger that illustrates how to sell effectively using the story of an attractive woman sitting at a bar. Although his article is about effective online marketing, his "sales" scenario is perfectly well suited to our sales training purposes here.

Many "pick-up artists," as James calls them, think their role is to talk about themselves. Many salespeople think their role is to talk about themselves. They're both wrong.

Which of the two men in James' article is most like you when you're selling?

Your comments are always appreciated. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Employee Recognition: 6 Management Strategies

Managers, when is the last time you expressed gratitude to each of your salespeople or other direct reports in a direct and personal way?

When I talk with a new sales or management coaching client, we often end up talking about management issues, even if my client isn't a manager (it seems many employees have issues with their managers these days!). I often ask these clients about the last time they were the recipient of thanks or gratitude from their manager.

This is what I often hear: "I don't know that my manager has ever expressed thanks to me."

Ouch! As a manager, that one stings to my very core. Employees long for recognition, sometimes even more than they want a higher salary or better hours (read Deborah S. Hildebrand's article about her CARE approach to employee management).

Everyone knows we're living through some turbulent times, and many workplaces are inundated with tension and sometimes overwhelming pressure to perform. This is a fact of (recession) life. But all employees need to feel as good as possible about their contribution to your organization whether in challenging times or bountiful times.

Here are six ways to offer sincere thanks to your employees:

1. Be on the constant look-out for praise opportunities.

Even your most challenging employees do the right things some of the time. Identify these right things and recognize them. Become a prophet of praise.

2. Remember this most basic law of supervisory technique: Praise in public and reprimand in private.

I just heard a story about how a manager at a retail department store reprimanded the employees of one department on the intercom after the store closed. This would have been a great way to praise those employees, but it is an ill-advised strategy for issuing a reprimand.

3. Keep is simple.

Sometimes the most valuable praise and recognition is the simplest praise and recognition There's no need to rent a billboard with the picture of your employee on it. A sincere thank you is often very effective (and appreciated). Simple works.

4. Make is personal.

Probably the best strategy for expressing gratitude is a face-to-face interaction. For many of us, our hectic work lives are enveloped in a less-than-personal routine of copious emails and ever-present smart phones which have become the cornerstone of communication in the contemporary workplace. It's important for us to remember that eye contact is a powerful assistant in achieving a meaningful personal connection with other human beings.

5. Rediscover the phone.

Just this week, I was involved in a flurry of emails to-and-fro with a good friend. We were trying to schedule a morning coffee get-together. Finally, she emailed me this: "Wouldn't it be something if we actually picked up the phone and talked to each other about our schedules?" If you can't thank your employee in person, try the phone. Don't always rely on emails.

6. Do the unexpected.

Employees love unexpected instances of gratitude. If you commonly send personal notes, try talking in person instead. If you normally call an employee into your office to talk with them, go to their office instead. If you normally talk on the phone every morning before your employee heads to their customer appointments for the day, call them at lunchtime instead. Shake things up. It is the unexpected that really has an impact on people.

Who in your professional and personal life would appreciate an unexpected and sincere expression of your thanks today?

Your comments are always appreciated. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Want Your Customers to Stop Procastinating?

Researchers at the University of Kostanz, Tel Aviv University, New York University, and Indiana University have published a study that suggests that people are more likely to procrastinate when the task at hand is more abstract and less concrete in nature.

A series of research studies asked participants to respond to email questionnaires within three weeks. Some questionnaires distributed asked questions that required abstract thinking while other versions asked questions that required more concrete thinking. The vast majority of participants who were asked to complete the concrete tasks completed the questionnaires by the deadline, whereas over half of the participants who were asked more abstract tasks didn't bother to respond at all.

How might this information be used to influence a prospect in a selling scenario? 

Tasks that are "assigned" to a customer (for instance, a mortgage broker who needs financial information from the prospect or an interior designer who needs his prospect to set a budget) might be more likely to be completed on time if the instructions are concrete, and if the task is framed in a concrete manner.

How might you use this information to reduce procrastination on the part of your prospects?

I appreciate your comments. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Just a Plain Ginger Ale?

I met a friend for lunch the other day.

"Can I bring you a ginger ale or lemonade?" asked the waiter.

I considered his proposal and said, "I'll have a ginger ale" (proof that giving prospects simple and easy to understand options yields results!).

"Just a plain ginger ale?" the waiter asked.

"Sure," I answered quickly.

But after the waiter left to retrieve my beverage, I thought to myself, "Hmm...I'm getting a plain ginger ale...I wonder what other kinds of ginger ale they have." When the waiter returned with my plain ginger ale, I asked him.

"So, you mentioned plain ginger ale," I said. "What other kinds of ginger ale do you have?"

"Oh, I suppose I should have told you what kinds we have. We have passion fruit, orange and pomegranate. Would you like me to exchange your plain ginger ale for one of those?"

"No thanks," I responded. "I was just curious because you had used the wording just plain ginger ale."

My Observations

1. "Plain" and "just" are lousy sales words. Don't use them. There's nothing plain about the ginger ale this establishment served me. It was fantastic. This was not your typical "out of the bottle" ginger ale, it was the signature beverage of this dining establishment. As a consumer, which would you rather buy? (A) "Just plain ginger ale" or, (B) "The finest ginger ale on the planet?" Utilize words that elevate your product offerings and create value in the mind of the customer.

2. If you have options that the customer would want to know about, you'd better let them know about the options before you ask them which option they want.

How can you utilize these concepts in the products or services you sell?

I appreciate your comments. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales trainer, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to the free sales tips email newsletter.

Hamsters I Have Known

I invented a word last year: "hamstering."

You can see the definition of my word here, on Urban Dictionary (please visit Urban Dictionary and give my definition a "thumbs up").

Hamstering is when a person appears to be busy, but is actually wasting time and getting nowhere. It's named after hamsters exercising on an exercise wheel...they work hard, but don't make any progress (although I'm sure their cardiologists are happy).

Here are some hamsters in business that I have known:

Hamster #1. This person worked in sales in a design-oriented industry. He would spend hours perfecting his designs before presenting them to his prospects. But his designs were over-designed. He was unable to leverage his extra effort into extra revenue. Result: Long work hours, low revenue production, his omnipresent feelings of being under-appreciated.

Hamster #2. This business owner was passionate about creating new ways of doing things. The problem was that often the old ways of doing things were the most efficient ways of getting them done. Breaking new ground is a very good thing, but only if the new ground leads to more efficient processes, better products, or happier customers (or employees). Result: Mega hours spent creating new products, marketing ideas, and systems with no increases in revenue, along with lost opportunities to service both external and internal customers.

Hamster #3. This individual would take a simple project and make it complex. He would allow himself to get sucked into new projects (actually, he loved to get sucked into projects, and then would complain how insanely busy he was), always spending more days, more hours, and more effort than required, and frustrating the entire organization in the process. Employees would avoid asking him to do anything because his over-involvement in projects would often spill over to those who asked him for help. Result: A frustrated organization, and an employee who couldn't be counted on to do simple projects, or to deliver them on time.

Here are three questions to help you determine if you are a hamster:

Question #1. Do I leverage the extra time I put into initiatives so that more revenue or lower costs are the result?

Question #2. Do I rarely hear others around me often encourage me to keep things simple or to not spend too much time on initiatives?

Question #3. Do I know when to "say when" and be done with a project?

Question #4. Do I often embrace the concept less Is more?

If you answered "no" to any one of the questions, you might be be a hamster. If you answered "no" to two or three of them, you're definitely a hamster. If you answered no to all four, you need emergency intervention now. You probably are divorced, have few friends, drive your colleagues crazy, and your customers, too.

I appreciate your comments. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Correct Timing to Maximize Your Sales

Last week, my second-grade daughter participated in a grand pajama party at her school. It was "movie night." The kids could go to movie night with their blankets, stuffed animals, pillows, and wearing their pajamas. Reports are that a fun time was had by all.

This works for second graders. But it wouldn't work very well for eighth graders. Why? The timing is wrong. Hormones would wreak havoc on that blunder of timing. I get nervous just thinking about it.

In golf, you don't putt first and then drive. In cabinet making, you don't cut the boards first and then align your saw fence. In brain surgery, you don't cut a hole into your patient's skull and then look at the X-rays to see where the tumor is.

If you want to sell more, get your timing right. Do the correct things at the correct times. Know when to ask open-ended questions and when to ask closed questions. Know when to involve your prospect's partner in the selling process. Know when to ask referrals so you get lots of them.

Do everything in the right order, and you're more likely to become a sales superstar. Timing counts!

I appreciate your comments. Please share your comment by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Today, I'm a Proud American

It''s inauguration day in the U.S.

Today, I'm proud to be an American. We say we value equality, freedom, and justice. Today, we offer the world evidence that those words are not merely marketing phrases spoken in our great American self-promotion campaign.

Regardless of our individual political beliefs, what better day is there to sell more?

Have a great, productive, inspiring day.

I love your comments! Please share them by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Managers: Don't Give Your Employees a Heart Attack (Literally)

If you're a manager, a Swedish study suggests you might have an impact on your employee's health. The recent study by the Karolinska Institute found that the lower an employee rated their boss's competence, the greater the employee's likelihood of having a heart attack and other health problems.

The institute followed the employees over time, and by the completion of the study, were able to link increased and more severe health problems, including heart attacks, to the employees who had bosses who were rated lower in competence. Additionally, the study found health problems to have increased prominence for employees who had worked for their incompetent boss for a longer period of time.

Ratings of managers were derived by having the employees answer survey questions such as "I have sufficient power in relation to my responsibilities" and "I have a clear picture of what my boss expects of me." Therefore, it appears that the incompetence in the study may be real, or it may be perceived by employee participants.

Good management may very well be more healthy than bad management. Manage well!

I love your comments! Please share them by clicking "comments" below.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Giving Information without Getting Information

During a sales interaction, prospects usually have (and should have) plenty of opportunity to ask questions to their salesperson. These questions can be about every conceivable issue.

In my travels and observations of salespeople, I am continually surprised by the many missed opportunities to get information from prospects during a sales interaction. One easy way is to leverage prospect questions to get information. When a prospect asks you a question, you answer it, but then you follow up with a related question to the prospect. Here's how it works:

PROSPECT: "Does this come in blue?"

SALESPERSON: "Yes, it does. Is blue the color you want?"

[An inexperienced salesperson might assume that the only reason a prospect would ask such a question is that they want that particular color. But top-performing salespeople know that prospects ask questions for a variety of reasons, and the only way to achieve clarity of understanding about the customer is to ask these questions to learn, explore, and investigate.]

PROSPECT: "No, I want green, but blue we were at XYZ Company and they only had blue."

SALESPERSON: "Sure, I understand. Why do you want green?"

PROSPECT: "We saw a green one in a magazine and we both agreed it would look great in our home..."

What did the salesperson learn during this interaction? She learned that the customer wanted green, that the customer didn't want blue, that the customer had a reason for wanting a green one, and finally, what that reason is. This is powerful information for the salesperson, and getting the information helps the salesperson serve the prospect.

When you give information, get some information back in return.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Stuck in a Recession Pity Party?

Many of us are under the tremendous pressure of the current state of the economy. For some, no matter how hard you try, the dark cloud of the economy seems to be always present. So what do you do? How do you handle the dark cloud that is the current economy?

One thing you can do is watch this video. My guess is that it will help you, in some way. Thanks to Tim Ferriss and Fabio Platero for calling my attention to this video:

For those of you struggling with the economy, or anything else for that matter, please keep on keeping on.

I greatly appreciate it when you comment on my blog posts. If you have something to say, please comment now...

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Retail Bankruptcy Update

The Wall Street Journal reports that a wave of bankruptcy filings are expected in the retail sector could be forthcoming now that the holiday retail season is done. Bon-Ton, Claires, and Gottschalks are mentioned in the WSJ article, and there's mention of a possible liquidation by Circuit City.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Read "Selling Yourself for Success"

I was interviewed last month for Matt Krumrie's column in the Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper ("Ask Matt"). Read Selling Yourself for Success.

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

You Refuse to Participate in this Recession? Get a Clue!

So many of us in the consulting and sales training industry have been preaching about not letting yourself get sucked into negative thinking in these touch economic times. This has got to have been the number one topic in the last few months in new blog posts and articles from the business and sales training community.

But "not getting down about the economy" is not the same as "fooling yourself that the economy doesn't suck." It does suck. That's why I disagree with the folks who cleverly say, "I refuse to participate in this recession." Recession (and there's been increasing mention of economic "depression" lately) is here and we must accept it and face it head-on. "Refusing to participate in the recession" is naive and a recipe for disaster.

That's why I like Seth Godin's advice to real estate agents so much. His advice refuses to accept defeat, but embraces the reality of the recession in which we all participate, like it or not. Read his post, even if you're not a real estate broker. All of us must create new tactics for success (and for some, it's a matter of survival). And I'm certain that people selling cabinetry and automobiles and shoes can find a way to modify Seth's advice for their unique situations.

[Speaking of new tactics for success, my new FREE eBook, "27 Can-Do Steps to Sell More in Tough Economic Times" will be available very soon...stay tuned!]

Hey! Yeah, you! Why haven't you commented on one of these blog posts yet? C'mon, now...click "comments" below and add your comment...it's EASY...

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

What Single Person Has Most Influenced Your Sales Career?

Was (is) it a sales manager? A mentor? A senior colleague at your company? A parent? A friend? A sales trainer? Your aunt? Your neighbor? An author?

Tell us about the biggest positive (or negative) influencer in your sales career.

C'mon, now...click "comments" below and add your comment!

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Grow Your Business Today: 3 Experts Share Their Fab Ideas

Today, I have three dynamic experts to help you grow your business (whether you are self-employed, a business owner, or an employee of a business). Here goes...

ONE. Here's a quote from internet strategist Leslie Carothers that she thought up herself right there in her little ol' head. And I love it:

"Intention without action = the status quo."

-Leslie Carothers

Salespeople and business owners' heads are full of good intentions, but sometimes the only thing keeping the intentions from becoming reality is one thing: inaction. The status quo is the enemy of business growth. So what can you take action on today upon which you've had the intention of taking action?

This reminds me of one of my own quotes:

"Activity breeds activity."

-Skip Anderson

If you want more customer activity (as in "buying"), then get more active. Get off the sofa!


TWO. I'm a big fan of marketing expert Al Ries. I absolutely love his marketing books (The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing is a must-read for anyone interested in marketing and business). If you're self-employed, a business owner, or simply interested in marketing, read his wonderful post at Advertising Age, "The Difference Between Building a Business and Building a Brand."

Read it even if you're a salesperson. As you read Ries' post, think about your personal brand as I presented it in my personal branding post earlier this week. Be true to your brand!


THREE. Over at Trizle, there's a great post about "Why Entrepreneurs Fail." It's well written and has some great, simple insight into what we all need to do to run successful businesses.

If Carothers, Ries, and Trizle can't inspire you today, then I don't know who can! Read on! Sell more!

Please share your comments. C'mon, now...click "comments" below just a little bit and post a comment!

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

What is Your Personal Brand? 9 Ways to Find Out

Every company has a branding identity. These identities go beyond what a company does to reflect who the company is and who they cater to.

Here are some brands and my impression of them:

Wal-mart: low prices, blue collar
Target: fairly low prices, lifestyle and design-oriented

Dell: tried-and-true, stale
Apple: innovation, design

Taco Bell: youth-oriented, inexpensive
Chipotle: fresh, tasty

Volkswagen: good design, affordable European luxury
Subaru: earth-friendly, practical

Not only does your employer (if you have one) have a brand identity (be it well developed or not), but you have a personal brand as well. Your personal brand is who the marketplace perceives you to be.

Answer the following questions to help solidify your brand in your thinking:

1. How re you unique from others in your company? In your industry?

2. How do you view the customer interaction differently than other sellers do?

3. What type of clientele do you seem to resonate with? Who "gets" who you am? Who "doesn't get" you?

4. What types of customers say they enjoy working with you, or give you compliments?

5. What do your customers think about you?

6. Write down ten adjectives that describes you as a seller in your thinking. Now write down ten adjectives that you think describes you from your customers' point-of-view.

7. Ask your co-workers and customers you trust to do the same thing.

8. Do your customers as a group perceive you any differently than your non-buying prospects perceive you? If so, how?

9. Write ten taglines for your personal brand. Here are examples of corporate taglines:

Chevy: "Like a rock"
Target: "Expect more. Pay less."
Ford: "Quality is job 1"
Selling to Consumers: "Sales training to sell more"
Subway: "Eat fresh"

Avoid cliches in your list (taglines that include innovation, quality, customer service, price).

Okay, now analyze this information to tweak or solidify your brand in your own thinking. Where are there inconsistencies? What can you do to exaggerate your brand? How can you better drive your business by focusing on your unique individual brand? How can you more completely differentiate yourself from your internal and external competitors? What do you need to stop doing to stay true to your personal brand? What adjustments do you need to make in your personal networking, marketing, and advertising to ensure you are living the promise of your brand?

You have a brand, you just need to find out what it is, verify that you are the brand you want to be, and then magnify your brand to achieve increasing market resonance.

If you are challenged by this exercise, it might suggest that you are an also-ran, that you don't have any clear market identity, or that you have become a commodity instead of a unique brand. Ouch!

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Overcoming Objections: "The Alliance"

Many husbands and wives (and other partners) make a secret agreement before talking to a salesperson. This alliance is formed before the salesperson (you) ring their doorbell at their home (if you sell in the home), or before they walk into your retail store (if you sell in a retail environment), or before your phone call (if you sell in the home), or before they come to your timeshare presentation (if you sell timeshares).

The alliance is formed in a manner similar to the following:

HUSBAND: "Now honey, let's not be pressured into making a decision today. We'll just tell the salesperson we need to think about it, okay?"

WIFE: "Yes, you're right. We'll just refuse to buy no matter what and we'll tell the person we need some time to think about it."

HUSBAND: "Okay, that's our plan, then."

Often, this alliance is so rigidly formed that your prospects will indeed refuse to buy from you, even if you have the right product for the prospect at the right time and at the right price. So how do you handle this unstated objection?

One of the most effective techniques for handling this secret objection is to preempt it by talking about the objection early in your sales appointment (long before you get to the closing step in the selling process). You can bring the "alliance" into the conversation in a manner similar to this:

"Dawn and Brad, I know a lot of the couples I work with have a private chat before I come to their home for our meeting. And that chat often goes something like this: "Honey, let's not buy tonight no matter what, and let's tell the sales guy that we need time to think about it."

And then the other partner agrees, and says something like, 'Yes, absolutely, I agree honey. We'll tell the salesperson we want to think about it.'

Now I don't know if you had a chat like this before I arrived at your home today. That's your business. But I want to make this proposal to both of you:

I propose that we all put forth our best efforts during our time together today. I'll do my best to understand your situation, and you do your best to explain what you need from me, my company, and from our widgets. At the end of our appointment today, I'll ask you if you want what we offer. If you do, say 'yes', and if you don't, simply say 'no.' Is that fair?"

The great majority of your prospects will agree with you, and that gets the monkey off your back. This can pave the way for a smooth interaction, and engaged prospects. It's a great sales momentum builder, because the prospect will be inclined to not automatically announce that they need to think about your proposal. You'll still hear that objection from prospects, but you'll hear it less frequently if you use the technique as outlined above.

Occasionally your prospects will say something like "We never buy right away; we always think about it." If you hear that from a prospect, you can say, "Yes, I've heard that before from clients, and I think I understand why salespeople say that. Nobody likes to be taken advantage of. So can we agree that we'll all put our best efforts on the table today during our meeting?"

This is your second closing question. You're not closing on the sale, you're closing on the agreement to work together effectively.

Then, when it comes time to close the transaction, you can again address the alliance with this prospect if you can offer a discount to make a decision:

"Now I know you folks are cautious about buying something without thinking about it. I understand that. I also understand that my customers want to get the best deal possible. So since you were so nice to tell me up front that you would need to think about this purchase, I'm going to offer you some special pricing that I only offer to people like yourselves. The reason I'm offering this special pricing is because my time is valuable, and I know yours is valuable also. So I'd like to get a yes or no from you today, rather than have to play phone tag or send emails back and forth or drive back to your house tomorrow. So, for us to get this order written today, here's my offer..."

And then you continue with your closing routine. Again, most of your prospects will buy your argument (if you've been successful at positioning your product to meet the prospects needs and if you've successfully addressed all other objections).

Addressing The alliance isn't appropriate for every sales scenario of course, but it is often the best way to beat the alliance.

Don't forget the alliance!

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Sales Improvement Through Sales Training & Sales Coaching

We help consumer-selling companies and individuals achieve stellar sales improvement so they sell more.

Our 3D Selling™ selling model teaches sales representatives to step beyond mere sales processes. Selling processes are important, but there's more to exceptional selling than just following certain steps. There' is a lot of great sales training information available in the marketplace, but our sales methodology is the first to be designed specifically on B2C and retail selling (selling to consumers).

To companies, we provide sales training, including classroom training in sales seminar format, and the creation of sales manuals and documentation. As business consultants, we help design sales compensation systems and we create improved management and leadership performance. We help our clients address issues that are preventing them from meeting and exceeding their sales goals.

To individual salespeople, we provide sales coaching, an individualized series of phone interactions to address sales challenges and bring sales performance to a whole new level. Our sales coaching clients dictate their specific needs, while we help provide the solutions.

Our core belief is that successful selling is a skill (just like golf, cooking, or origami). Skills can be improved, and when that happens, sales performance increases. We improve sales skills.

It's a new year with new sales opportunities. How can we help you?

Contact Selling to Consumers Sales Training at 651.681.8568 or www.sellingtoconsumers.com/contact and let's talk about it. Mention code  X397 and you will receive 50 minutes of free phone sales coaching or sales consulting time from Selling to Consumers.

Flickr graphic by kevinzhengli. 

Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers Sales Training, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to our free sales tips newsletter.

Selling to the 2009 Consumer

It's a new year, and time to look ahead. Trendwatching.com has just released their list of consumer trends for 2009. Anybody who markets or sells to consumers could use this list to educate themselves about the consumer mindset in current times.

In one of the trends, which they call "Happy Ending," Trendwatching.com predicts that the new year will be a good one for companies that do a good job of showing their customers that they truly care. And, with the economic downturn in full swing, this is what they have to say about the new consumer mindset:

"But the most important effect of more austere times is probably that consumers start questioning what truly makes them happy, which more often than not steers them towards the realization that happiness ain't (just) about traditional consumption. Expect pockets of consumers to switch to lower-consumption models with surprising ease, and to look for different and less costly sources of happiness and thus, ultimately, status. Any way you can help them with that will be a guaranteed winner."

I takeaway three things from this:

1. Consumers will consume less and when they do consume, it will be at a more moderate price point than before; and

2. Prospects will focus on what makes them truly happy, with an eye on practicality.

3. The definition of "status" is changing.

Years ago when I was selling custom closet systems in customers' homes, I was intrigued and constantly puzzled by homeowners who built, for example, a 5000 square foot home (that's a good-sized home in my part of the country) with a large master closet, but would only put a rod and shelf (either wood or wire shelving) in the closet to hold the clothing. What apparently made this consumer happy was a large home (but a poor use of space).

This didn't seem practical to me (but admittedly, I was biased). Imagine how much money this consumer spent on their 10 foot by 16 foot master closet (don't forget to add the mortgage interest on 160 square feet of space into the mix). Yet, they often went the cheap route and put an inexpensive rod/shelf (with tons of wasted space) in this large closet to hold their thousands of dollars worth of clothing. Wouldn't it be a better investment to put that expensive space to good use with a little extra investment in a quality closet system to utilize the space well?

Perhaps the new trend will be to build smaller homes with more modest closets, but also to invest in a custom closet system that truly utilizes that space. It makes sense, doesn't it? (Making full use of what you have rather than mindlessly building something where the only goal is sheer size). Products like this may fit well with the new definition of status.

I believe we'll see consumers shop smarter in 2009, but those of us who can position our products to be a practical addition to their lives rather than an ego trip will probably fare better than those of us selling products that are purely luxury purchases. Look for the consumers you sell to be more practical and to focus on what makes them truly happy. This will be an opportunity for many of you, but will require a slightly or greatly different approach to selling and marketing.

What can you do to help your product/service and your sales approach resonate with the consumer of 2009? Let's talk about it.

Flickr photo by Gemma Vittoria.

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Skip Anderson is a professional speaker, sales coach, and the Founder of Selling to Consumers, a B2C and retail sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to the free Sales Tips newsletter.