One thing almost all businesses have in common is that they rely on sales. Whether you are selling or employing others to sell for you, you need to understand the basics of sales success. Contrary to popular belief there is no such thing as a “natural salesperson”. However, anyone can build a career in sales if they have the right tools.
In this article, we tell you what those tools are and how to put them to use. We also discuss some successful sales techniques and qualities of a successful salesperson. So, what makes the sale successful? Keep reading to find out.
Sales are not about being pushy. In fact, that’s one of the worst ways to approach sales. The consumer is smart, they know what they want, and they can sense dishonesty.
To be a good salesperson you need to respect the consumer. Understand what they want and how you can deliver it. Show empathy, read their emotions and tailor your pitch to suit. It should be a collaborative process between you and your client.
Lastly, you need to be able to handle rejection. No one has a perfect strike rate. You will fail to make the sale sometimes and that is ok, as long as you learn from it.
Here at ActionCOACH, we have developed a secret recipe to success. We call it "The Three A’s- Attitude, Activity and Ability".
Having a good attitude will help you in life. This is true for sales - being confident is key. But this goes beyond just self-belief. You need to believe in the product you are selling. If you don’t believe in it then neither will the consumer. Ask yourself these four questions:
If you and your team cannot confidently answer yes to each question, then selling may be a challenge. Time to make some changes? Focus on improving the product or the delivery of your service.
Educate yourself on the benefits of the product. This might even mean testing out the product yourself. Knowing the ins and outs of what you are selling is crucial.
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This is all about what you are actively doing to generate sales. Are you marketing effectively? Are you generating leads? You need to be proactive! Go out there and find people to sell to, don’t wait for them to come to you. You need to generate buzz around the product or service you are selling.
You can do this by cold calling, direct mailing, advertising, networking and referring. You need to be doing a combination of these things consistently, plus thinking up new strategies. The most successful salespeople are innovative. Don’t get stuck in a rut, think of new ways you can generate leads and make sales.
Be sure to follow up on possible leads, without being too pushy. You also need a sales revenue formula; this is the income generated by your sales. It will help you highlight areas of improvement and set goals. The best way to find this is to multiply the number of sales by the average price of your goods/services.
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When we talk about ability, we mean the salesperson's capacity to uncover the needs of each customer. And then provide a solution to those needs (i.e. make the sale). To do this successfully you must remember two things:
You need to be able to listen to what your customers want. Not just listen on a service level, but actually listen. Then you can understand what they want and provide a solution. Next, you need to know your product inside out and back to front.
Apart from the technical knowledge, you need to have a list of benefits and reasons why a person needs this product. Once you have unlocked the ability to do these two things, you will be able to have a successful sales meeting.
So, there you have it, the basics to sales success. Always remember attitude, action and ability when approaching each new sale. We hope these sales tips help you with your future sales.
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