Selling to Consumers | Sales Training Blog by Skip Anderson

5 Sales Lessons from the Street (Literally)

It's Girl Scout Cookie time, so I took my daughter out for her first door-to-door selling experience on Saturday, spending three-and-a-half wonderful hours with her. Her personal goal (set by her!) for the campaign is to sell 200 boxes, and on our first outing she made it two-thirds of the way to her goal.

I spent a lot of time in street waiting for my daughter to do her thing at the front door of each house we visited. Seeing that I'm obsessed with sales improvement, I couldn't help but spend that time identifying what we can learn about selling from the Girl Scout Cookie experience.

1. Prospects lie.

I don't know for sure, but I estimate close to 100% of the twenty people who told my daughter "We already bought cookies" were lying. After all, we were out first thing on Saturday, the first day of the Girl Scout Cookie sale. The entire time we were out, we didn't see anybody else in the neighborhood selling GSCs, so unless everybody rushed to buy them at work before the sales started, at least some (most?) were lying.

2. Some people avoid salespeople.

There were a handful of people who saw us coming or drove into their garage minutes before we arrived at their home to sell GSCs. But they didn't answer their door. Could they have been in the shower or using their toilet at the exact same time my daughter approached their front door and rang their doorbell? Yes. Is that likely? No. They were avoiding my daughter the salesperson. Some people will go out of their way, perhaps huddling behind the living room sofa, just to avoid a salesperson.

3. Enthusiasm counts.

My daughter knows both my wife and I are salespeople, so sales is a common topic at our dinner table. She was excited to get out on the street and sell GSCs just like the big girls she saw come to our door when she was little, but she was also excited to be a salesperson like Mom and Dad. That enthusiasm showed, and some people bought cookies because of it (and her irresistible smile...thanks to her mother's genes). Enthusiasm and smiles work for sales professionals of all ages.

4. Sometimes you have to ask for the sale more than once.

Surprisingly to me, many people in our neighborhood said "no" to my daughter. But if you follow-up with, "are you sure you don't want to buy just one box," some customers will do just that. Sometimes it takes more than one closing action to make the sale.

5. Get to the emotion.

If a cute eight-year-old girl bundled up for the Minnesota winter with her adorable little gloves and scarf and coat traipsing through the wintery Minnesota neighborhood with her dad isn't enough to tweak your emotions enough to invest $3.50 in a box of GSCs, I feel sorry for you. Yet, I understand that their just wasn't enough emotional octane for some to get them to open their wallet. You just need to ramp up the emotional component of interaction in order to entice some to go ahead and buy. When prospects said no to the cookies, following up with, "Would you like to buy just one box to donate to the food shelf to help a local family in need?" gets some people over that emotional tipping point. To the people who still wouldn't buy, I feel really sorry for you.

Find a Girl Scout Council in your neighborhood who is selling cookies right now. Order some!

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Do Steroids Help Salespeople Sell More?

Steroids have been in the news this past week with Mark McGwire's admission that he used steroids while playing Major League Baseball in his interview with Bob Costas on the MLB network.

Athletes can use anabolic steroids when they want to bulk up or use other performance-enhancing drugs to build strength or endurance (even though use can lead to breast formation in males, shrunken testicles, and aggressiveness, just to name a few). Professional athletics seem to have a double standard: their public face says performance enhancing chemicals are bad and shouldn't be allowed in professional athletics, yet their use continues in the dark shadows of the world of sports.

But steroids won't help salespeople sell more. The salesperson's steroids are knowledge: Knowing how to do this things called selling, how to do it well, how to keep doing it, and how to do it better and better each month. 

There are no shortcuts in selling. Only knowledge that changes selling behaviors to sell more, and to sell more more efficiently and profitably.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Love Your Customer Award #5

My wife lost her [old original 2G] iPhone, so we went to the AT&T store in Eagan, Minnesota to buy her a new [3Gs] iPhone.

We encountered sales consultant David Long, who helped us.

David is the best B2C salesperson I've seen (as a consumer) in quite some time. Here's what David did right:

1. He was professional and helpful.

2. Without being overbearing, he drove the interaction. He didn't merely ask questions, he took the lead. But he also listened, reacted, and most of all, sold us. We even bought the MobileMe app and the extended warranty (something I NEVER do).

3. He was sales driven. He didn't miss any opportunities to move the sale forward, even asking me if I wanted to buy a new 3Gs iPhone when I admired my wife's new phone (I still have the old 2G iPhone).

4. He laughed at my jokes.

So congratulations to David Long, the recipient of our fifth "Love Your Customer" award. It's my mission to get all B2C sales professionals to sell like David.

- - - - - - - - - -

[My wife found her old iPhone in the pocket of her robe. I'll have to give it a couple months and then try the same tactic so I can get a new iPhone.]

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Humble Confidence

The manager, business owner, or salesperson who possesses humility allows engagement with other people (employees, partners, vendors, customers, prospects, suspects, etc.). They are accessible and present. They are not toxic. They are thankful for their riches and often flexible with others. The ego is successfully managed.

Add confidence to all that humility and you have an individual who is certain he will successfully handle the management issues with which he is faced, or the customer issues he will encounter. He is able to deal successfully with people of all types, change prospects into customers, move the business forward, and solve problems that need to be solved. Confidence instills confidence in others, so the humble and confident business person inspires those around him. He often takes a leadership role even when it is not a formal one.

Who do you know who possesses humble confidence? How have these traits helped their business? Their sales?

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Sales Smack: Come Smack with Us

Sales Guy Jim Keenan is holding his first "Sales Smack" tonight. What's a Sales Smack? It's a place where unique and important topics can be discussed, including some that are rarely discussed.

The topic for tonight's Sales Smack is "Is Sales Responsible for a Company's Growth?" Sales Smacks will be held every other Tuesday night, each with a new topic.

Jim would like you to participate, too. It's free to participate. You can participate by joining in the conversation or observing only - it's up to you. If you have something to say, speak up, otherwise listen in. I'll be joined by Dave Brock and several other business experts.

Click Sales Smack to join tonight's Smack or tune in afterward to listen to the recording.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Only 2 Years to Meet Your Sales Goals! The World is Ending!

 
So Hollywood tells us that the world is going to end in 2012. Yikes! That means we only have a couple years to meet our sales and career goals! Better hurry...

> Ask for help. If you need to find prospects as part of your selling job, start beating the bushes like you've never beat them before. Get out there. Time is of the essence!

> Learn how to close sales quicker than you used to. Whenever possible, accelerate the speed of the sales cycle for your prospects. Hurry up now...

> Do more of what you do well. If you sell well on weekends, work every weekend. If you sell well immediately after you get a haircut, get more haircuts. If you sell well after you work out, start working out every day. You get the idea.

> Don't waste your time. Some salespeople waste 80% or more of their time on unimportant non-selling activities. Stop doing that. Please.

> Clean up your act. If you're on the fringe of being a sales professional, clean yourself up and join the profession of selling instead of the dark underbelly of sales. Use unsavory business practices? Stop. Need a shave? Ditto. Sleeping with your prospects? Not anymore. After all, there's only two years left to sell. Sleep on your own time.

> Be remarkable. Perhaps for the first time in your life, become a remarkable salesperson. Do what it takes to cross the threshold of remarkability. 

What can you recommend to your fellow sales peeps to maximize their sales by 2012? Let our readers know! Post a comment!

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Why Can't Tiffany Sell to Men?

Dear readers: Don't sell like Tiffany.

- - - - -

A Play in One Act: Why Can't Tiffany Sell to Men?

As the scene opens, the sales manager is having a private sales coaching meeting with Tiffany, one of his average salespeople. Rachel is sitting back in her chair, lets extended, looking tired and frustrated.

Sales Manager: "What's up with your sales this month?"

Tiffany: "I just can't sell to men."

Sales Manager: "Why?" 

Tiffany: "I just can't get them to buy?"

Sales Manager: "Can you sell to women?"

Tiffany: "You know I can"

Sales Manager: "I know you can sell to men, too."

Tiffany: "I'm not comfortable doing it."

Sales Manager: "Are you comfortable doing other things with men?"

Tiffany: "Yes, of course. I just can't sell to them."

Sales Manager: "Tiffany, I know you can sell to men."

Tiffany: " -- "

Sales Manager: "So, if I KNOW you can sell to men, and you KNOW you can't sell to men, what do we do?"

Tiffany: " -- "

Sales Manager: " -- "

Tiffany: "I'm just saying I can't sell to men."

Sales Manager: "Let's pretend I'm a woman. Sell me this pad of sticky notes."

Tiffany: [role playing] "What are you looking for in your sticky notes."

Sales Manager: [role playing] "I like purple ones. And I don't like the little ones. I like bigger ones."

Tiffany: [role playing] "What else?"

Sales Manager: [role playing] "I need the jumbo back or something. I hate running out of sticky notes."

Tiffany: [role playing] "What else?"

Sales Manager: [role playing] "That's it."

Tiffany: [role playing] "Here's our super jumbo pack, which has twice as many sticky notes as the jumbo pack. And you get two different shades of purples. Do you like the size of these."

Sales Manager: [role playing] "Yes, that's what I had in mind."

Tiffany: [role playing] "Do you want to get these?"

Sales Manager: [role playing] "Yes, thank you."

Tiffany: "See, I told you I can sell to women...I just can't sell to a man."

Sales Manager: "But I am a man. I was just playing the role of a woman."

Tiffany" " -- "

Sales Manager: " -- "

Tiffany:  "Oh yeah."--

Sales Manager: " -- "

Tiffany: " -- "

Sales Manager: " -- "

Tiffany: "Okay. I can sell to men."

THE END.

- - - - -

Dear Readers: Okay. You can sell like Tiffany now.

-

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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19 Momentum Building Questions for Better Retail Selling

In my opinion, adequately trained sales representatives are a requirement for most retailers if they want to maximize their sales and profitability. Retail sales training can turn a retail clerk into a retail sales professional. Which do you think will have a higher average sale? Which will sell more? Which will cram more profit into their transactions?

Unfortunately, the state of retail selling has deteriorated to the point that most store associates can't even legitimately be called "salespeople" any longer. So to help you generate discussion about this topic in your company, here is a list of nineteen sales questions that will help associates build sales momentum. Sales momentum is that glorious force that helps shoppers get out their wallets and give you their money.

These questions may not be valuable if you sell aspirin and toothbrushes at the pharmacy or light bulbs and rakes at the hardware store, but if you sell big ticket items like appliances, boats, furniture, or rugs, these questions may help you take your selling to a whole new level. When reading the following question, let's assume you have built significant rapport and trust with your prospect, and let's also assume that these questions are organically inserted into the conversation in a subtle and sophisticated manner:

1. [Customer asks you to check size in the stock room]. If we do have your size in the back, how many do you want? 

2. [Customer says they think it's the right widget, but they want to think about it]. What have you got to lose by taking it home today? You can always bring it back, right?

3. [Customer says they want to check with their wife]. What will you do if your wife says "go for it"?

4. [Customer says they want you to put an item on hold for them]. I'll be happy to hold that for you, I just need to put a credit card number in the system. Which credit card would you like to use?

5. [Customer is looking for a gift for his wife]. So if you decide to go ahead and give this _______ to your wife, how do you think she would feel when she opens up your gift?

6. [Customer is shopping for a widget. You're trying to decide which widget to show her]. What is the absolutely top amount you're willing to pay for a new ____________? How much more than that would you pay if we found you a perfect ____________?

7. [Customer just tried something on]. Wow, you look great in that. Do you know what I'm thinking? I'll tell you in a minute, but you tell me what you're thinking first.

8. [Customer asks how much you'll lower the price if they buy it today]. How much money would you save by going ahead and getting it today? I know your time is valuable, how much is your time worth if you shopped at three or four more stores?

9. [Customer is looking at different sizes of bottles of ______]. You can save money by going with the __ ounce bottle. Do you like to save money?

10. [Customer is talking with you about buying a new widget]. Who else will need to give the okay to approve this purchase?

11. [Customer told you he's been looking at other stores]. What's the criteria you will use in making your decision about who to get your new ________ from?

12. [Customer told you he's been looking at other stores]. So you've been out shopping for a _____, how wonderful! How will you know the right one when you see it?

13. [You greet a customer and she says she's just looking]. You're just looking? Fantastic, please do look! What will you be looking for today?

14. [Customer sees something they like]. So you like this widget! Great! What is it you like about it?

15. [Customer asks if he can think about the purchase]. Can you think about it? Of course you can think about it! Let's think about it together. What do you think?

16. [Customer asks for a better price]. Can I do better on the price? Wow, that's a great question! So I can make sure I understand what you're saying, what price are you hoping for?

17. [Customer wants to try out your widget in the store]. Yes, of course you can try it out. Please, go right ahead. If you like it after you try it out, then what will happen?

18. [Customer asks for price of several customizable widgets]. Absolutely, I'll get that for you. I can either give you individual prices, or one package price including your package discount. Which type of pricing is most important to you?

19. [After a presentation of your product]. Every purchasing decision requires information. What  information have I left out of my presentation that is crucial to your decision?

What momentum-building questions can you think of that would be valuable for salespeople to include in their repertoire?

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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The Salesperson as Leader

Leadership traits are always sought after in management and executive positions, but it's less common, and unfortunate, that all companies don't require leadership qualities in new hires within the sales discipline.

One way salespeople can sell more is by acting as a leader. Leaders have the ability not only to lead, but also to easily get others to follow, a helpful skill during sales interactions. They paint a picture of what the future will look like. In a sales application, this means being clear about how the prospect's life will change when they purchase the product or service in question. Leaders identify incongruence between parties so progress can be made. Leaders inject purpose and direction into their relationships - something very valuable in sales relationships.

How can you identify leaders during the hiring process for sales peeps?

Identify those who have led previously. As in virtually any hiring situation, past performance is the best predictor of future performance, so if a candidate has a history of successful leadership, they will probably continue to successfully lead in your company.

Ask good interview questions to identify leadership sensitivity, ability, and past successes:

- What do you think leadership is?

- Tell me about a specific time you led others on a project. How did you become the leader? What was the result?

- Tell me about a time you were recognized for your leadership ability.

- Tell me about a specific situation when you used your leadership skills during a sales interaction with a prospect.

- Who's the finest business leader you know. Why?

- Name one thing your former manager could have done to be a more effective leader.

If you're a salesperson, how can you become a better leader?

Think not only about selling process, about fulfilling needs, and closing the sale, but think about what qualities are needed to move the prospect from prospect status to customer status.

Develop your leadership sensitivity and your leadership skills. Strive to understand leadership from the outside in. Read John C. Maxwell's The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You

When you become a better leader, you sell more. When you hire better leaders, your company sells more.

Lead on!

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Y2K is Behind Us; And So is a Decade of Selling

Ten years ago, we were worrying if Y2K would shut down everybody's business, utilities, gasoline and energy, the financial system...

In 1999, I was the general manager of a business. Y2K was on the top of nearly everybody's thoughts at the time. I stayed up late on New Year's eve of that year, wondering if all hell would break loose at midnight thanks to Y2K. Perhaps you joined me on that journey.

Well, all hell didn't break loose, unless you consider the financial industry's near demise about a year ago which had nothing to do with Y2K. You and I are still here to do what we do: sell products and services.

So rather than looking back on the last year in sales, let's look back at the last TEN years. But first:

Congratulations on your selling career!

Sales is one of the most interesting, lucrative, honorable and important professions one can choose. I tip my hat to you for your contributions.

Three Questions to Evaluate Your Last Decade in Sales

1. Today, are you where you expected to be?

As the last ten years have passed, did you plan for where you are today, or did it just happen? Would better planning have helped you? Or did an act of God get you where you are today? Did you make the money you wanted to make? Did you get the promotion you wanted?

2. What could you or should have done differently in the last ten years?

Did you go to that sales training seminar you said you were going to go to? Could you have learned new interaction techniques that would have helped you engage all the shoppers or prospects you encountered in the last ten years? Should you have read more, learned more from others, found a sales mentor?

3. What will you do differently in the next decade?

Where are you going? Where do you want to be? How will you get there?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on any or all of these three questions. Please comment!

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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The Sales Instinct: 6 Factors that Define It

I can teach people new to the sales profession how to sell, and I can teach veteran sales peeps how to sell more. After all, I'm a sales trainer, and that's what I do and that's what thousands of others do every day. If an individual is willing to understand the "how" as well as the "why" of selling, to listen to what I have to say, and to put some new behaviors in place, I can show virtually anybody to make a lot more money at selling than they do now.

But one thing I cannot teach someone is an instinct for selling. The "sales instinct" is something that is the by-product of a group of traits, the combination of which is greater than the sum of its individual parts. These traits which work in concert to provide the salesperson with tools that provide them with a substantial advantage over others who do not possess the sales instinct.

When I refer to "selling instinct," I'm talking about six factors:

1. Quickness.

Salespeople with sales instincts act quickly. They pick things up quickly. They quickly connect the dots between "what is" and "what is possible" quickly. They work think quickly and work quickly. If there was such a thing as a "quickness meter," readings for those who possess sales instincts would be dangerously high.

2. Strategy.

Sales peeps with sales instincts know how to get where they want to be. They plan ahead and they work their plan. They are not only focused on the individual sale and the individual prospect, but they're also big picture thinkers who can see paths to success that others miss. They can see the trees and the forest. They instinctively know the best route that is mostly likely to get them from point A to point B.

3. Flexibility.

Sales professionals with sales instincts weave in and out of various diverse sales situations with ease. They have a knack for successfully working with many types of individuals who have many types of needs, desires goals, and perspectives in many types of circumstances. Their personal elasticity is much greater than those who do not possess the sales instinct.

4. Nuance.

Salespeople with sales instincts understand the many small unique details and subtleties of any situation, and also understand how minute adjustments can affect outcomes.

5.Promotion.

People with sales instinct have a natural bent for promotion of all types: self-promotion, product promotion, company promotion; All have their roots in her desire to bring customers into her fold, or to introduce her products and services to the world (or at least their marketplace).

6. Magnetism.

The sales-instinctive salesperson has a magnetic field which help him to draw people in, to give him the benefit of the doubt, and to give him a chance to be heard. This magnetism doesn't just apply to himself, but also to the products and services he sells; he infuses most everything he touches with a veil of attractiveness to others.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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10 Traits that Suggest a Sales Career Might Be Right for You

Do you have these ten traits? Maybe a sales career should be in your future.

1. You get a kick out of people.

You like people. You're fascinated by people. You understand people. You are energized by interaction with others.

2. You work independently.

You don't need or want someone hovering over you every moment of the day. You get more done when you can work on your own than you can with others getting in your way.

3. You create relationships.

You are able to create solid long-term relationships that are built on trust. You can create meaningful relationships more quickly than others. People like you.

4. You're a worker bee.

You work hard. You spend lots of time and effort on projects and task. You put in your hours.

5. You are flexible.

You role with the punches. You change when needed. You go with the flow. You adjust your course to get where you're going.

6. You tolerate rejection.

People reject you and you just roll along without any side effects. You don't go home and kick the dog. You keep the faith and carry on. It's part of life.

7. You are a tweaker.

You change this up a little. Then you change that a bit. You're always fixing and improving things. You're never satisfied. You know there's always a better way if you can just find it.

8. You connect with different types of people.

Humankind is your playground. You find a way to connect to many individuals who have diverse personalities. Angry people? You lock onto them. Shy people? They're putty in your hands. Analytical types? You win them over.

9. You're assertive.

You tell it like it is without losing your cool. You have great eye contact. You're a straight shooter. You're confident.

10. You're driven.

You can't stop until you're done. You need to win. You're persistent as can be. You want to drive ahead regardless of obstacles.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Don't Let Sales Skills Atrophy

If we don't exercise, our bodies deteriorate. Muscles atrophy without constant use. If we don't use our brain power, our brain power goes away. If we don't maintain our automobiles and our homes, they begin to decay.

Without attention, sales skills deteriorate, too. "Going through the motions"f doesn't maintain or improve sales skills. But self-analysis, role-playing, discussion with mentors, coaches, and coworkers grows sales skills.

When we force ourselves to be mindful about our selling, we position ourselves for self-improvement.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Customers Reduce Risk by Buying from Experts. Are YOU One?

Prospects and shoppers are busy and distracted and sometimes even confused. They might research companies or purchases online before they go shopping or make a call to a potential source for a good or service, but when they finally meet with a salesperson, whether in a retail store, on the phone, or in the consumer's home, they want to deal with an expert.

What is an expert?

- An individual with knowledge about how to sell the product or service;

- A person with Knowledge about the product or service itself;

- A salesperson with connections with others within the company or externally to make the transaction and any post-purchase issues get resolved smoothly and painlessly.

- An individual who has received recognition from peers (a top producer for the real estate company, President's circle member at the car dealership, senior-level sales associate at the retail company, etc.).

- A person who has received market recognition of experience, knowledge, and excellence (writes an article in the community paper every week, speaks at civic functions, received awards, volunteers expertise at non-profit organizations, is visible in the community, etc.).

- A salesperson who is easy to work with, accessible, and low-risk, with a reputation to match.

These things might not matter if you sell underwear at the mall, but if you sell a kitchen full of appliances at retail, it could matter. If you're investing in a college fund for your toddler or adding a room onto your home, it most certainly matters.

Shopping for big ticket items causes the prospect to perceive an increase in the level of risk that is present. He can seek to reduce this perceived or real risk by dealing with an expert. Anybody who has selected the wrong real estate agent to sell their home knows what risk is all about in the B2C sphere.

If you want to sell more, increase the perception and reality of you as the expert. It's not enough just to be an employee of a company anymore. Become an expert. If you already are one, become a better one.

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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Selling And Life: A Dance of Persuasion

 
I've noticed a bit of a backlash against persuasiveness in some corners of the sales profession. For instance, comments like the following one can be seen in online forums and discussion boards:

"For whatever the reason, I think a lot of people associate persuasion and/or influence as some sort of devious activity."

So first, let's dispel this unfair negativity toward persuasiveness. If we read the definition of persuade, we can see there is nothing negative or unethical or devious in the definition of the word.

I think people confuse persuasion for aggression. Persuasion is a part of everyday life. Aggression had better not be. Aggression in selling is devious and, in my opinion, should be abolished in all corners of the selling world.

I asked a beautiful young woman to go out with me eighteen years ago. She turned me down. A few days later, I asked again and she turned me down again. After several months, I persuaded her to go out with me and we had a date at the Minnesota State Fair [see the story below about the state fair which has nothing to do with selling as far as I can tell]. 

I've been with this young woman (okay, she's not so young anymore) for eighteen years now, the last ten as her husband and the last eight as co-parent to our daughter. Persuasion works! And, although persuasion can be used for evil, it also works for non-evil endeavors!

My wife persuades me to go out to dinner at the restaurant she wants to go to instead of the one I want to go to. She doesn't do this by force (aggression); she does this by persuasion. My daughter persuades me to let one of her friends join us for lunch. I persuade a job candidate to join our company. My doctor persuades me to lose weight. I persuade my wife to quit leaving bras hanging from doorknobs all around our home (at least I've tried to persuade her to do that). It's not that I don't love bras, it's just that somehow they don't seem to enhance the decor of our home; and, I keep getting my hand tangled up in them whenever I try to open or shut a door.

Life is a dance of persuasion here and persuasion there.

And sales is, too. In the sales process, we are being constantly persuaded to adopt the prospect's point-of-view throughout the interaction, and we're persuading the prospect to adopt our point-of-view. Become a better persuader, and you'll become a better salesperson.

- - - - - - - - - -

As promised, the state fair story:

After spending the summer together as friends eighteen years ago, my now wife and I decided to go to the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul. Since neither of us are big on carnival rides, I persuaded her to go on one ride with me: the double ferris wheel . As we stood in line for 45 minutes, we finally ended up near the front of the line, when suddenly we heard water balloons splatting on the hard asphalt around us.

As we looked around and at each other, we realized that these splatting sounds weren't caused by water balloons, but by someone high above us on the ferris wheel who had vomited profusely on about a dozen of us who were in line for the ride. Yes, someone had spewed chili dogs, fried green tomatoes, and cheese curds upon us. I'll never forget how beautiful my wife looked with a wisp of vomit parked just above her right eyebrow as we gazed into each others' eyes while smelling the not-lovely smell of someone else's semi-digested state fair food on our shoes, clothes, and hair.

Although everyone else in line who had been pummeled with the chunky stuff had quickly scattered in disgust, I successfully persuaded my wife to ride that ferris wheel that night, despite the fact we were drenched in vomit. After the technicians completed their task of cleaning each and every ferris wheel seat from the wayward rider's vomit, she and I cuddled up as the ride started...and wished the ride would end.

When the ride ended and we exited the ferris wheel of despair, we both instinctively ran to my car and simultaneously reached out for one-another's hands. As we sprinted to the car to look for something to wipe the smelly semi-solids from our selves, we shared our first experience holding hands, and, later that night (after each of us had taken a shower), our first kiss.

We owe it all to vomit.

Happy anniversary, Pam. Wanna go on a ride?

If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.

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An Open Letter From A Customer: Dear Sales Dude

Dear Sales Dude:

I just wanted to get back to you about that proposal you gave me. I just have two teeny things to discuss with you:

1. Please get the s*** out of your mouth.

Haven't you noticed your prospects keep saying "What?" or "Say that again?" When I was in your store I heard four or five people say "Huh?" to you.

The chances of you only have prospects or customers that are hearing impaired is fairly slim, unless you sell hearing aids, which you don't. So the problem must be with you.

Speak clearly. Enunciate one or maybe even two degrees more than you think you need to. Obviously, what you're doing now isn't working so you need to ramp up the clarity of your speech.

And slow down your speaking while you're at it. So you've given the little speech about the benefit of your widget a thousand times, I know, that's great. But I've never heard it before. And if you're words are meant to have meaning, speak them as if you want them to be understood, not as if you want to finish saying them so you can go have lunch.

2. Please get the s*** out of your ears.

You didn't catch my name when I told you? Really? You missed it when I told you I needed a large one? Or that I wanted it to be red but not bright red? Funny, you don't seem to have trouble catching it when I say "I'll take it!" or when you ask for my address or phone number.

Listen to what I have to say. Start with the words. Listen to them. Then listen for the meaning. Like most humans, I communicate not just to hear myself speak, but to ensure that you understand something about me. But you can't do that with s*** in your ears. What's it doing in there, anyway?

I have all kinds of little and big things to say when we're together, so will you please pay attention and listen to them? I'm not just saying things because it's fun to say them. I'm saying things so you can understand me. Get it?

Many thanks. Have a lovely afternoon.

Sincerely,

Your Customer

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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6 Ways Hair Stylists Can Sell More Product

Hair stylists perform a service, but they also sell product. Some resist the product selling aspect of the profession, while others embrace it and not only earn more money, but have a greater impact on their clients' well-being.

Here are six tips to improve the sales of product to your clients:

1. Don't call it "product."

I get that the industry calls shampoo and conditioner and gel and the like "product." This term distinguishes it from services offered in the salon, such as haircuts, color, etc. But that doesn't mean you should call it "product" to your customers.

"Do you need any product?" doesn't sound good to my customer-sensitive ears. I'll spend money to look good, to have healthy hair, to reduce loss of hair, to have sexy women run their long fingers through my hair; but hearing about "product" from a hair stylist makes me picture a warehouse with floor-to-ceiling stacks of pallets full of cardboard boxes. Is that the image you want in your client's mind?

2. When you use a product, tell the client what it is.

If a product is available to the client for purchase, always tell the client what it is. Never add anything to the hair without taking the opportunity to speak the name of the product.

3. Explain the benefits of using the product.

When you add product to the hair, don't just tell the client what it IS, tell the client what it DOES. Give one or two or three quick bullet points that lets the client know the WHY of the product.

Customers don't buy a drill because they want a drill. They buy a drill because they want holes. Salon clients don't buy conditioner because they want conditioner. They buy conditioner because they want healthy or soft or shiny or manageable or beautiful hair.

4. Recommend the product.

After you've explained what you're putting in your client's hair, recommend the product. Recommending a product is different than merely explaining what the product is and what the product does and why they should have it. A recommendation is personal. "I recommend you try this XYZ serum for a month, and then I'd like to hear what you think of it the next time we see each other!" is a recommendation. 

Stylist recommendations sell more product!

5. Ask for the sale.

So you've used the product in the client's hair, you're explained what it is, what the benefits of the product are, and you've recommended it to the product.

Either immediately or at the end of your session, you must ask for the sale. A direct question is great ("Do you want to go ahead and take home some of that XYZ serum?") or an alternative close is great ("Do you want some of that XYZ serum or do you like the ABC serum I used before?") or whatever closing method you like, but ask for the sale.

6. Follow up.

If a prospect has purchased product previously, make sure to follow up with them at their next appointment. Ask them how they liked it and how it worked. Be curious. If they like the product, ask them if they would like to buy more either at the current appointment or a future one, but don't lose the sales momentum of the product by stopping discussion about it after the client has purchased it.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Good Stuff From Cyberspace

1. Business-to-business companies are more active than business-to-consumer companies in the online social media sphere. Read Social Initiatives: B2B vs. B2C.

2. Everybody needs and wants validation. Watch the validation video. Well done.

3. Coupon use in the U.S. is up for the first time since 1992. Read Coupons are Being Used at a Faster Clip in the Los Angeles Times.

4. Jerry Kennedy says "Change Your Thinking - Change Your Results."

5. Read Manipulation vs. Persuasion.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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If I Hear This One More Time

I'm sick up and fed with the misuse of the word "literally." Everywhere I turn, people are using the world "literally" as if it meant "figuratively." Salespeople are doing it, too.

"I am hungry enough to literally eat an entire cow" means you can eat an entire cow. Don't say that unless you can actually eat an entire cow.

"I am hungry enough to figuratively eat a cow" means you're very hungry, but you're acknowledging that you're exaggerating how hungry you are by including the reference to the cow. "I am hungry enough to eat a cow" means the same thing because most English speaking individuals understand that you're being figurative.

Saying to your girlfriend on the phone "I'm going to literally kill my sales manager" means you are going to take your fingers, wrap them tightly around your sales manager's throat, and squeeze very tightly for a significant length of time until all life has exited his body.

I do not recommend this. I suggest something less criminal and more literal, such as "I'm literally mad enough at my boss to consider going in there tomorrow and quitting." [Notice not only the absence of the reference to "literalness" but also the skillful inclusion of the word "consider" - this leaves an out for even the most dramatic and determined among us.]

"I literally threw up in my customer's face this afternoon" means you opened your mouth and transferred the contents of your stomach rapidly through your mouth via convulsive action of your diaphragm and other abdominal muscles to the facial region of your customer so she was enveloped in gastric matter of various textures, colors, and odors.

Although this may have literally happened at some point in the history of civilization, I have never seen it happen. So I'm guessing that anyone that would have said this had incorrectly included the word "literally" in their exclamation.

Saying "I literally burped in my customer's face this afternoon" might be more accurate, although unpleasant just the same. I recommend that you control all personal gastric urges in the future, especially when around customers - then you won't have to tell everybody in the breakroom about it while they're trying to enjoy their lunch.

If I hear one more misuse of the word "literal" by a salesperson, I'm literally going to die.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Retail Zen: 10 Tips for a Blissful Sales Career

True salesmanship in retail has all but disappeared in most sectors of the industry. Customer service and merchandising seems to rule the day at the mall. Not that customer service and merchandising aren't important, mind you, but what about the ancient art of face-to-face selling?

When the stacks of sweaters are folded, the carpet is vacuumed, the glass is sparkling, and the till is counted, how about stepping into the zone of retail zen? Here are ten tips to help you do so:

1. Look shoppers in the eye.

Eye contact between salespeople and customers has been gradually waning in retail for years. Let's bring it back!

I once read that parents spend each day with almost no eye contact with their children. It has been suggested that one way to show children you love them is by honoring them with your attention, and attention means eye contact when they're talking or you're talking. The same applies to retail customers. Put down the scanner, the sale signs, the merchandising plan...and lift your eyes to your customers.

2. Be clever.

"May I help you?" is great for a nurse to say when a patient at the hospital rings the nurse call button, but it's so awfully boring in the retail arena that I wish retail sellers would abolish it. Come up with something more clever. Infuse some personality into the day-to-day milieu.

3. Do the unexpected.

An additional "SALE" sign isn't going to help your store's sales.

But whenever prospects are confronted with something unexpected, they tend to pay attention. One challenge with retail is that it has become profoundly boring for most shoppers. Do your customers a favor: do the unexpected. Bake some spinach puffs in the new oven your company started selling and serve them to customers. Show an episode of The Office in the recliner gallery. Wear a football uniform to work at the kids play equipment showroom. Play a polka on your PA system.

4. Suck them in.

Draw the customers in with your smile, your wit, your knowledge, your interpersonal communication skills. Lock down the person-to-person connection first, then worry about the product. Selling is all about people. It is not all about the carpet, the shoe, or the computer; it's about what those things do for the customer.

5. Take a deep cleansing breath. Now exhale!

Outside B2B salespeople get to drive across town to meet with their prospect, or fly to far away destinations. Retail salespeople get to visit the rest room.

Fight the monotony of retail selling by taking time to breathe, to refocus, and cleanse the mind of unwanted negative thoughts. You may not be able to select the music that's playing on the speakers overhead, but you can select how to react to it.

Relax those tense shoulders!

6. Ask customers what they think.

You just put a new refrigerator on your appliance sales floor? Great! Ask the customer to take a look at it with you, then ask them what they think of it. Ask them what they think of your company's new logo, or your store's new video game display, or the new LED lighting.

7. Be a salesperson, not a clerk.

Become proficient at opening conversation with your shopper. Become skilled at identifying their needs, even the hidden ones that the prospect isn't likely to talk about. Help the shopper understand her needs. Clarify. Do an impressive presentation. Ask for the sale. Handle objections.

That's what salespeople do. 

8. Be thankful.

Retail can be a wonderfully rewarding career. Revel in it. You will probably talk to more people in one day than most business-to-business salespeople talk to in a week or more.

You could be stuck in a cubicle, you know.

9. Sell add-ons.

Isn't it mundane to only sell what customers say they want? Why not sell some things they haven't said they want? Sell two vases instead of one. Sell a digital camera with the laptop. Sell underwear -- yes, underwear -- with the suit. Sell a satellite dish with the RV. Sell a subscription to Metropolitan Home with the dining room.

The possibilities are endless!

10. Have some fun.

Do you sparkle at work? Do you add value to your prospects lives? Do you entertain, make people smile, and truly make them feel welcome? Find your inner retail child. Remember how much fun it was to play "store" when you were seven years old? 

What suggestions do you have to help retail sales professionals find "Retail Zen?"

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Do You Make Your Customers Bend Over Backwards? Or Do You Just Make Them Bend Over?

Customers are tricky creatures. Treat them well and you're likely to reap benefits of a long-term relationship. Treat them poorly and you're likely to lose them. We all know this, but sometimes we have lapses of judgment that result in treating a customer poorly.

I was put in an awkward position last week. I am a customer of Podbean, the web hosting service that hosts hundreds or thousands of podcasts. Our Selling to Consumers Podcast is hosted on Podbean. I think Podbean made us "bend over" and I hope you and your company never does anything likewise to your customers. Let me explain...

Last week, I started receiving emails and messages through our main website that our podcast site was down or not working properly. I investigated and found that I was unable to access our sales podcast site. I tried ten minutes later and got the same results.

I went to the Podbean bad podcast hosting site. They had a message posted at the top of their home page that one of their servers was being serviced or upgraded.

Podbean bendover #1: If Podbean was going to upgrade or service their servers, and this activity would cause customers' sites to be down, they should have notified customers in advance. If the server issue was something that was an emergency, they should have sent an email to all accounts affected by the emergency to notify them their sites were down, and inform them what was being done to handle it.

When I tried to access our site a few hours later, it was still down. I went to Podbean's home page again and noticed the server maintenance message was gone. So I decided it was time to contact Podbean.

Podbean bendover #2: No phone number on their site. I had to fill out an online contact form.

I inquired about the problem with our site. I hadn't heard anything a few hours later (the site was still down), so I went into my email archives and found an email I had received from Podbean when we first set up our account. I sent them an email asking (again) what was wrong with our site and when it would be up.

24 hours later, I still hadn't received a response, so went to the Podbean site again to fill out the contact form a second time. Eventually, I heard back from Podbean via email: "We are sorry about this issue. One server is down. It is expected to be fixed in 24 hours."

Podbean bend over #3: Our site was down 3 days.

To Podbean's credit, they did send an email after the site was back up to let me know they had installed new servers ("to better serve" us they said). They also told me my site might not work properly and the podcast episodes might not play on the site and what I had to do to fix it. (That's Podbean bend over #4)

Podbean bend over #5: It would have been great for Podbean to have offered to credit our account for a month or a week or three days of service, but no such offer was included. Our company paid them to host a website for the entire month, not just 28 days of the month. It's not a large amount, but proactively offering a credit would have let us know Podbean is a class act.

In the site hosting business, having customers' sites up and running is everything. It's the reason they're in business. I'll never know how many potential visitors in cyberspace had trouble visiting our podcast site during the outage, but I do know that Podbean made me, the customer, feel unimportant. I had to bend over backwards to get information, and in the process, felt like Podbean had bent me over.

Lessons we can all learn from this incident:

1. When there's a problem, be proactive. Don't wait for your customer to contact you.

2. Communicate profusely. Communicate more than you think you need to. Problems increase the need for communication.

3. Make it easy for your customers to contact you. Old fashioned phone numbers are still the contact contact medium of choice for customers with problems.

4. Compensate your customer when compensation is the right thing to do.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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In Selling, Are You a "Waiter?" (It's Not What You Think)

Immediacy is a prized trait in business. For better or worse, businesses run on what happens today, not on what might happen tomorrow or next year. Therefore, we all live in the environment of sales targets, sales goals, sales budgets, bonuses, incentives, sales plans, and projections.

Business investors, owners, executives and managers want to know what you're selling today, and they want to have confidence that you're going to duplicate what you're selling today again tomorrow, too, and the next day and the next month and the next year (but with a 10 - 20 percent increase, of course).

Despite the length of sales cycle (the door-to-door salesperson has an extremely short one while the stock broker courting high net worth individuals might have a long sales cycle), immediacy rules the day.

"Waiters" don't do well in the sales profession. In selling, a "waiter" is someone who waits for good things to happen. It might be out of hope for the future, or it might be out of laziness or a personality trait that lacks immediacy to take action or be accountable for one's own sales performance.

If you tend toward being a "waiter", ask yourself five questions every day (post them on your cell phone, by your office phone, on your mirror, or in your car) to help keep you focused and falling into the trap of becoming a waiter:

1. Is what I'm doing right now going to help me generate revenue today?

2. If not, what must I do today to bring in sales now?

3. What business do I need to close today even though I tend to believe that the prospect really will "think about it."

4. What actionable behaviors am I going to do today that will help position me for success today?

5. What can I do today to spend less time thinking (hoping?) about the future rather than taking action today?

6. What action will I do today to take responsibility for my own success?

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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10 Reasons In-Home Sales Calls Don't Succeed

For those who sell in consumers' homes, the in-home sales consultation is the catalyst to either sales greatness or failure. If you master the dynamics of selling in the home, you master your sales career!

Here are 10 reasons why in-the-home sales consultations might not be successful:

1. Not on time.

People are busy, and while prospects will likely cut a sales rep some slack if he's late (it's always best to call the prospect as soon as you know you're going to be late), outright disrespect for a prospect's time doesn't help grow sales.

2. Focus on the product instead of the prospect.

Of course salespeople need to present their product's features and benefits in a positive and interesting way, but that shouldn't be the centerpiece of the sales appointment. Although product and technical expertise is important in all kinds of selling, it's more important to have people expertise. The way to sell successfully is to focus on the prospect and her needs, not just the product that's being sold.

3. Do stupid things.

The salesperson parks in the driveway (a no-no in the eyes of some prospects), or plods across the lawn, he tells the prospect he doesn't like cats, he sets a tape measure on a nice cherry dining table and scratches it, he doesn't take off his shoes and tracks muck into the home, etc. Stupid.

4. Wrong pace.

Some prospects are naturally fast-paced, while others are s-l-o-w. Since people like to be around people who are like themselves, salespeople need to adjust their pace of speaking and the pace of their movement to the natural preferences of their prospects.

5. Not leveraging the location.

The prospect collects Italian pitchers. They're all over the kitchen, dining room, entry, and family room. But the salesperson is too busy playing with his order form, brochures, and PowerPoint presentation to notice, much less say anything about it to the prospect. Really? Yet this bozo told his sales manager during his job interview that he's a "people person." Yes, really.

6. No sit-down chit-chat.

The sales rep is in the home to do business. A great place, probably the best place, to do business is at a table, like a kitchen table or dining table. Yet, thousands of salespeople try to do business while hovering around the broken furnace, or in the unfinished basement, or in the upstairs bathroom, or in the entryway of the home where the security system control pad would go. Why? Because that's where the products they're selling are going to be installed if the prospect buys. Almost all in-home sales interactions can benefit from sitting down together first.

7. Missed opportunities for connection to prospects.

The rep knows some of her prospects own dogs, yet she doesn't t keep a small package of dog treats her our bag to offer one to the furry friends. She knows kids can be a distraction when trying to talk business, yet she doesn't t carry a couple coloring books and crayons in her supplies to keep the lovable kiddos busy while she has a serious talk with the Mom about her needs. She assumes everyone remembers her name, so she doesn't give a business card to the prospect at the beginning of the call. Missed opportunities. 

8. Not spending enough effort on discovering or understanding needs.

The prospect doesn't buy a sunroom to have a sunroom. She buys a sunroom to sit in it on a beautiful morning while enjoying her morning coffee while looking out at their apple trees and chatting to her college-aged son on the phone. If we only spend time telling prospects how great our product is, we miss the opportunity to relate the sunroom to the needs and desires and lifestyle of the prospects, and the things that are truly important in the customer's life.

9. Odors. Bad ones.

Cigarette smoke odor on our clothing, parmesan-chicken-with-garlic-mayo-on-ciabatta odor on our breath, body odor on our bodies, or overly aggressive perfume or cologne on our selves can make a sales interaction go south in a big hurry. These are offensive at any time, but these types of odors are even more troubling when they occur on the prospect's [literal] home turf.

10. No sale.

For many products and services sold in the home, our chances of buttoning up the sale AFTER we leave the home is slim. To maximize the sale, we have to know how to complete the sale while in the home. It's truly a skill, and one that every sales professional who sells in customers' homes must learn.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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When to TELL Customers to Buy

I'm a big believer in discovering needs and desires that lie within the hearts and minds of our prospects. This is a underdeveloped skill in many sales practitioners in the B2C arena. Virtually anybody can improve their sales by doing a better job of truly understanding prospects needs.

The information we learn during a needs and desires investigation becomes the basis for our product recommendations and our sales presentation. The best people in our profession don't merely give generic presentations to their prospects, they tailor their presentations to the specific needs and situations of their prospects.

And I'm a big believer in closing skills. There are many who could improve their sales performance in the business-to-consumer area simply by understanding how to move a conversation from the theoretical to the actual, i.e. how to get the product or service we sell into the lives of our prospects.

But sometimes the best approach to improving sales with a certain group of prospects is to tell them to buy.

This group of prospects tend to be followers, not leaders. They are pleasers. They are easily confused. They often tend towards being introverted, but not always. They look to others for information. They are highly trusting and often very intuitive.

They are prone to wanting (or actually needing) to "think about" a purchase. They may not feel like they deserve a new kitchen, a new purse, or a new car, even though they may realize that they may need one. Sometimes this group of prospects have lives that are in a bit of disarray, and stress is sometimes a factor.

For these prospects, sometimes the best approach can be to tell them what to do. Here are some examples (but please keep in mind that the following statements or questions occur well after rapport has been developed, and after lots of conversation):

"Linda, you need this widget. You know it and I know it. Let's go ahead and get one for you."

or

"Travis, I want you to own this widget and have the benefits of it, so I want you to buy it. Agree?"

or

"Yikes! If anybody I've ever worked with needs a widget, you certainly do. From what you've shared with me, you are exactly the type of individual this widget was made for. You understand that, right?"

or

"Dude, you have got to buy this right now! Here, I'm going to enter the order for you."

I realize that these can sound somewhat harsh without the context of the surrounding conversation. And you certainly don't want to be throwing around these tactics with just any prospect. But when you find a prospect that needs (or wants) to be told what to do, TELL THEM!

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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New FTC Guidelines for Endorsements & Testimonials in Advertising

New Federal Trade Commission guidelines regarding the use of customer testimonials and endorsements in advertising will start tomorrow (December 1, 2009).

No longer will a mere statement like "results not typical" be acceptable in communicating to consumers that some endorsements may not reflect typical results for most users or customers. With the new rules, the advertiser will have to clearly describe what results should reasonably be expected by the average purchaser.

There are other changes in the guidelines, too, for bloggers and celebrity endorsers.

You can read a press release from the FTC about the new guidelines here, and you can download an 81 page pdf with even more detail here.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Ouch! Sometimes it Hurts to Look for Customers' Pain

 
Some define selling as a process of identifying their prospects' and customers' "pain." Books and articles admonish salespeople to "find the customer's pain." This can be valuable, since relief from pain is most certainly a motivation for buying.

Pain takes many forms in our prospect's lives.

> Pain could be a dishwasher that runs six hours instead of one or two hours, thereby increasing energy costs and reducing opportunities to remove dishes from it.

> Pain could be the car that's difficult to start on humid days, thereby reducing reliability.

> Pain could be a closet rod that fell down in the middle of the night leaving the clothes in a large wrinkled pile on the closet for.

But where I think some are misguided is when salespeople think only about pain as a motivating factor for buying, as if it is the root cause for all purchases. But it isn't. Looking exclusively at pain as the reason for buying products and services can cause you to miss other reasons why people buy.

> I didn't buy 12 boxes of Girl Scout cookies from six different girls to relieve pain.

> I didn't download the new Zero 7 CD or go to the Minnesota Orchestra concert to relieve pain.

> I didn't buy my wife a necklace to relieve pain.

> I didn't buy my daughter a book at her school's book fair to relieve pain.

> I didn't buy a collection of municipal bonds to relieve pain.

> I didn't buy our latest piece of art to relieve pain.

> I didn't buy a Vineyard Vines tie to relieve pain.

It's great to understand pain is a motivating factor for some purchases in some situations. But don't stop there. Customers buy for more than just one reason. Focusing on only pain is like focusing only on the quality of the wine while dining. Don't miss out on the rest of the meal!

Missing other buying motivations can be painful!

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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25 Fantastic Sales Questions

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers. We are thankful for your readership and your comments and interaction on this blog!

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In many ways, questions are at the heart of the selling process. Great sellers ask great questions. Mediocre sellers don't.

Here are 25 great sales questions. While not perfect for every selling scenario, each is perfect at the right time:

 
1. What else should I be asking you that I haven't?

2. Why did you call us today instead of last month or next month?

3. Who do you know that might be interested in talking with me about my widgets?

4. What brings you into the store today?

5. Would you please name the one thing that is most important to you in deciding which company to buy from?

6. Yes, I'll check our stock. If we do have one in stock, should I reserve it for you?

7. When we meet next week, is there any reason you wouldn't be ready to move ahead with your purchase?

8. You've gotten other quotes for this project. Other than price, what do you think is the biggest difference between our quotes and their quotes?

9. Do you want to buy it?

10. I'm curious; Why do you say that?

11. What else?

12. When you find the right widget, how will you know?

13. Who, besides yourself, will be using this widget?

14. I can understand you need to talk to your husband, after all, I'm a husband, too! Should we call him?

15. How come?

16. To save you from having to make extra trips during this hectic holiday season, what else should we look for while you're here in the store?

17. Just so I can make sure my notes are up-to-date, what else might you be needing in the next year or so?

18. If you're comfortable with our widgets and with our price and with me, will you be ready to place your order today?

19. How does everything sound so far - am I on the right track?

20. What was it that you liked and also didn't like about your old widget?

21. When you started out shopping for a new widget, what was your biggest concern?

22. Now that you've shopped for a new widget at several stores, what's your biggest concern now?

23. How can I make shopping for your new widget an easy process for you?

24. Who can I thank for referring you to our company?

25. Now that you're a customer and you've been through the purchasing process with me, what suggestions can you offer me?

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Curiosity Drives Sales Success

Seth Godin posted "Thirsty" on his blog today, a short but important article about the relationship between curiosity and success. This is something I've been thinking a lot about lately. 

Am I incorrect, or does it seem like some, even many, who make their living selling are not thirsty for knowledge, are not sufficiently curious about their customers, are not passionate about learning how to improve? Am I wrong?

I believe sales skill trumps effort. I know a lot of people disagree with me. But I do agree that effort helps one develop skill.

Are these missing from your daily activities? Thirst for learning? A drive to improve? Acute observation of others selling and of others buying? Being curious? 

Hard work is valuable. But getting the right tools, the right knowledge, the right skills is even more valuable. Put the two together and you have real potential for success.

Here's what you can do for yourself, and for salespeople you know, to remind them of the importance of thirst.

1. Have them subscribe to Seth Godin's blog. Anybody in business who is serious about it (and shouldn't everybody in business be serious about it?) should be reading Seth's daily thoughts on marketing, business, and innovation. Seth is one of my very favorite business thinkers, and he makes me think (but only because I'm curious! And thirsty! I hope you are, too!).

2. Copy the link to this post (the one you are reading right now):

http://blog.sellingtoconsumers.com/2009/11/curiosity-drives-sales-success.html

and paste it in an email and send it to people you know who sell. Good targets would be your sales staff, your boss, your girlfriend who sells at another company, the guy who salesperson who sold you your ATV or necklace or home, and anybody you can think of that sells to consumers.

Once here, they can, and should, subscribe to this blog by email here. If they use an RSS reader, they can subscribe to the RSS feed here.

Get thirsty. Thirst makes us drink in knowledge.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Assumptive Language Helps the Sale Move Forward

 
The real estate agent, after a long discussion of our needs and wants, begins to show us property. My wife and I are getting a tour of a cabin in beautiful northern Minnesota. It's on a smallish lake, with loons and birch trees and some hills, with vintage, quaint cabins from the 1940's.

Sure, the property is fun to see. But what strikes me is the non-assumptive language of the salesperson.

Non-assumptive language might not be appropriate early in a sales conversation, and in certain sales conversations that are more exploratory in nature. But, especially after a salesperson has done a good job of investigating needs and desires, a presentation of a product or service begs for assumptive language.

Assumptive language:

1. Tells your prospect you believe in your product;

2. Tells your prospect you believe in your product for your prospect;

3. Tells your prospect it's okay to take ownership of the product, at least during the sales conversation;

4. Helps move the sales conversation to closure, especially if the prospect is on the fence.

Here are some excerpts from the mouth of the real estate agent, along with my suggestions for assumptive language:

AGENT: "And here is the boat house, where you could have guests stay, at least in the summer."

BETTER: "And here is your boat house, where your nieces and nephew will sleep when they visit during the temperate months in the late spring, summer, and early fall." [The agent found out that one of the main visitors to the cabin will be our nieces and nephew).

- - - - -

AGENT: "The size of the lot would give you plenty of room to add a second garage in the future to store your toys."

BETTER: "The size of the lot will give you plenty of room..."

- - - - -

AGENT: "The property owner's association would be one of the best in the area."

BETTER: "The property owner's association is one of the best in the area."

- - - - -

AGENT: "If you spend much time in the winter..."

BETTER: "When you spend time here in the winter..."

- - - - -

AGENT: "If the dock is too short, you can make it longer."

BETTER: "If your dock is too short, you simply make it longer."

- - - - -

AGENT: "The cabin's fourth bedroom is upstairs..."

BETTER: "Your fourth bedroom is upstairs..."

- - - - -

AGENT: "The current owners could close before Memorial Day so you could take ownership by the summer."

BETTER: "The current owners will close before Memorial Day so you will have the entire summer to enjoy your new lake."

- - - - -

Assumptive language isn't going to make an uninterested party buy something they don't want to buy. But it will give permission to your prospect to mentally take ownership of the product during your sales conversation. And sometimes, that can supply just the tiny bit of buying inertia that can make a sale happen.

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The nice folks over at Your Business Channel put together a brief video with quotes pulled from some of my writing. See the video at beat the recession.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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7 Indicators of High Pressure Selling

The vast majority of salespeople working today don't want to be high pressure sellers. In fact, some have a fear of using pressure to gain sales and avoid assertive, professional selling techniques because of their hyper-sensitivity to high pressure selling.

I also have a disdain for high pressure selling. But I know that professional salespeople need to be assertive, to be willing to put themselves out in the public's eye, to be able to take control, to drive their prospect's decisions, and to bring in the orders.

High pressure selling is something completely different. But what, exactly, is the high pressure selling that most of us dislike so much?

I think high pressure selling can be identified by the following seven indicators:

1. When the salesperson hasn't generated sufficient rapport with, or trust from, the prospect.

2. When the sales representative dominates the sales conversation and does not create customer engagement. 

3. When the salesperson lets the product dominate the conversation rather than the prospect's needs and desires, and their unique circumstances.

4. When the salesperson displays behavior that is disrespectful, rude, or offensive.

5. When the sales representative attempts to close the sale too early or in the wrong way.

6. When the salesperson crosses the line from being assertive (a valuable trait in selling) to being aggressive (attempting to dominate the prospect).

7. When the customer has incorrectly implied or communicated a high level of interest of commitment in the salesperson's product, and then feels taken advantage of when the salesperson acts congruently with that interest or commitment.

You'll see that six of the indicators listed above are the responsibility of the salesperson, and the last one is the responsibility of the prospect. Go ahead and hate aggressive selling. But don't let that keep you from selling.

Are there any sales behaviors missing from my list that you think is an indicator of high pressure or aggressive selling?

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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Free Report from AdAge: The New Female Consumer

There's a very interesting white paper available free from Advertising Age called "The New Female Consumer: The Rise of the Real Mom." You can download it in pdf format here.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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My [Very] Personal Story: The Pain of False Objections In Selling and in Life

I wanted to make love with my wife one night last week (especially because I've been very busy and have travelled a lot). But my plans were foiled when she told me she had a migraine. [She knows that the tried and true "headache" excuse doesn't work anymore, so in recent years she's elevated "headache" to "migraine"].

But I know she didn't have a migraine. No way. Her "objection" wasn't real. It was a faux objection.

The real reason my wife avoided my husbandly advances was because she wanted to watch a TV show.

[Great. Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe takes precedence over moi. While I'm thinking about getting "dirty" with my beautiful wife, my beautiful wife is thinking about Mike Rowe getting truly dirty as he plays the role of both a dung beetle researcher and a glass blower. That's just not the kind of role playing I had in mind. But I digress...]

It's not just wives that give objections; prospects do, too. So what do you do when you hear an objection from your customer?

The first and most important task is to determine how accurate and true the objection is. Is it a real objection? Or is it a false objection?

Salespeople hear objections every day. And every day, salespeople go after those objections not knowing if they're real or if they're a cover up, a false objection, a smoke screen, an excuse, an easy way out, a tall tale, a desire to exit the sales situation without having to make a decision, a temporary anxiety attack, or a manifestation of status quo paralysis.

Before we address the actual objection, we put our investigator's hats on and dig into the objection and ask some probing questions. Examples:

- - - - -

Objection: "I need to talk to my wife about it."

Investigative Question: "Being a married person myself, I can appreciate that. Let's set your wife aside for a moment. How do you feel about owning this [insert product or service here]."

- - - - -

Objection: "I can't afford this right now."

Investigative Question: "I agree, Bob, it's important that you only consider cars that you can afford. What was it about this [insert model of car] that made you want to test drive it today? [customer answers]. Is it more that you can't afford this car, or more that you don't want to spend this kind of money?"  etc.

_ _ _ _ _

Objection: "I'm going to have to think about this. Buying a townhome is a big decision."

Investigative Question: "You know, you bring up an excellent point. Let's think about this together. Do you like the location of the home? What do you think about the fourth bedroom? (I know you only needed three bedrooms). What do you think about the layout of the rooms?, etc.

_ _ _ _ _

Faux objections throw salespeople off course. Before you address an objection (or as you address it), find out if the objection is real and true. Sometimes it is, and sometimes it isn't, but addressing a fake objection as if it's the real reason the prospect isn't moving ahead with the purchase is a serious sales strategy error.

By the way, Dirty Jobs is on TV again tonight. Argh.

 

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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How Well Do You Really Know Your Market?

Your market is made up of all the people who have done business with you, along with the people who have some likelihood of doing business with you. Everyone in business has at list minimal understanding of their market, but do you really understand yours?

Many start-up B2C companies and salespeople target people with lots of money, but these people are possibly only members of their imaginary market. People with lots of can't and won't buy every product or service out there, nor will they buy from every salesperson in the world.

One reason people lots of money is because those people don't spend it. If you're looking for prospects who will spend money with you, it doesn't necessarily mean you should look first at individuals who have lots of money. Sometimes, it's better to focus on other market segments.

When I was selling furniture and interior design related products, I can't tell you the number of big, beautiful homes I visited that didn't have any furniture. At the time in the Twin Cities, a $500,000 or $800,000 house was quite large and usually quite nice. But why didn't they have any living room furniture, or a dining table?

The answer is they either couldn't afford it (all the money was tied up in their home), or they could afford it but chose not to. After all, dining tables don't usually appreciate in value whereas real estate usually does over the long term.

Sometimes my best customers, even though I was selling what was perceived as upscale products for upscale companies, were average middle-class or families who wanted to revel in owning a beautiful piece of art or a beautiful console table for their living room. For these customers, owning these items made them feel rich even though they weren't.

Some businesses conjure up imaginary reasons why their customers buy from them. "They like our quality," the owner may say in a sales meeting. These imaginary assumptions can lead sales teams in the wrong direction by going after the wrong types of prospects.

But further investigation may reveal that the reason people buy from them is because they're located in real estate that is easily accessible by their market, for example, retired people who live in the nearby senior living facilities surrounding the company's showroom.

Collect data from front line sales reps, do market research, survey your customers who bought and those who didn't. Constantly work to refine and develop your understanding of your market. When you do, you're getting closer to key information that can have a significant impact on your business success.

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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It's Fearless Friday

I hereby proclaim today a "Fearless Friday." Be fearless today:

- Call your wealthy great uncle (finally) about your buying your product. You've wanted to do it for years, so pick up the phone today.

- Contact a local TV station about appearing on their morning show in a segment to talk about how your product can help consumers.

- Plan a publicity stunt to get attention.

- Commit to impeccable follow-up from those who have not yet purchased from you. Be a stalker (but in a good way).

- Trick out your car with signage of a complete car wrap for an advertisement for your business.

- If you don't normally canvas door-to-door, do it today. Pick a street, take a deep breath, and go knock on 25 doors. Every B2C salesperson should do this at least once in their life to experience it. And you may be surprised and get a handful of sales opportunities.

- Get a sales related tattoo. Your tatt doesn't have to be visible (and maybe shouldn't be depending upon what you sell and who you sell to), but your now-permanent tatt will forever link you to the selling profession.

- Go to your competitor to check them out, or if they sell in consumers' homes, have them out to your home. I'm amazed at the number of sales professionals who have never sufficiently checked out their competition.

- Do something outrageous today. In a sea of sameness, find a way to be different, memorable, and interesting. You sell appliances? Make a goal to sell more microwaves than anyone in the company today. You sell real estate? Serve your prospect lunch in the home you'll be showing them today. Sell TVs? Play This is Spinal Tap on all your screens today, and dress like your favorite Spinal Tap character while at work.

- Give free five minute chair massages at your retail store today.

- Wear a tux to work. Or a long, formal dress. Everyone else will be having business casual Friday, and you'll be calling attention to yourself.

- Many businesses hold promotions and fundraising for breast cancer (a very worthy cause), but consider raising money for testicular cancer (the most common cancer in men in their thirties and younger).

What can you do today that would be fearless, and would help either your business, your sales, your visibility, or your attitude?

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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What Are Your Sales Strengths?

As a salesperson, what are you good at?

Is it something broad, like "retail selling" or "telesales?" Or is it something specific, such as "Getting customers to see the investment potential in our ABC mutual fund," or "Adding lamps to the order whenever I sell a sofa." Whatever it is, celebrate your sales strengths.

What I sometimes see are salespeople who don't take full advantage of their existing sales strengths. In an effort to be more balanced, (or to respond to pressure from management), they seek to moderate their outcomes by focusing on areas of weakness, and in doing so, they lessen their success in their areas of strength.

I want to suggest that you start using your strengths like nobody on the face of the earth can do what you do. If you're great at selling lamps whenever a customer buys a sofa, why not try selling two lamps instead of just one, or three instead of two? You've already discovered you're good at selling lamps as an add-on sale, so take that ball and run with it.

Or maybe you can expand your strength into selling lamps along with beds, too. Whenever you have a bed customer, there should be two lamps on the delivery truck with that customer's name on them.

And if you're tops in your organization at getting prospects to see the potential in your "ABC" mutual fund, perhaps you can also have the same effect when you propose your the "DEF" fund to a slightly different customer with slightly different needs.

Some people are only vaguely aware of their strengths, or not aware of them at all. Start by clearly identifying your sales strengths. Ask your manager, your coworkers, your boyfriend, your customers...ask whoever would know what your strengths are. Don't settle for vague or general answers. Drill down to specifics.

As your understanding of your strengths grows, identify opportunities to use those strengths in an even more significant way. Out of this process can grow new opportunities for rising sales.

Next, look for ways to use your strengths in new, fresh, unexpected, or expanded ways. When you do that, you have even more opportunity for sales growth.

What are your sales strengths? Tell the world by clicking "comments" below...

If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.

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