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Effective Selling Over The Phone

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The Mechanics Of Selling

Sales can be an extremely profitable and rewarding endeavour if practiced correctly.

It isn’t magic! You need to know the mechanics of selling to succeed and do well.

Sales can also be an unbelievable grind if it isn’t going well for you.

Ask an experienced salesperson who is in a slump, and they will spew out a litany of excuses addressing why it isn’t happening for them.

Slumps are evidence that something is very wrong. Ignore this signal at your peril.

Sales Book Reviews

Many people reading this blog ask me if I can help them improve the way they sell over the telephone.

They ask if there are any resources I can recommend.

I am going to offer you suggestions in a series of posts starting today.

Soft Selling in a Hard World:
Plain Talk on the Art of Persuasion

In Soft Selling In a Hard World, Jerry Vass says: “This book is about mechanics. It is designed from the street up – tactics, not strategy.”

He goes on to say: “There is no underlying motivation or belief system. It isn’t about something larger than yourself. You don’t have to believe in it to make it pay. You don’t even have to believe in yourself. You just have to use the mechanics.”

If you understand that the art of persuasion is actually a science,
this book will confirm what you already know.

For people new to sales or struggling to make a living selling,
this is a must have resource to be studied and learned.

Make Soft Selling in a Hard World part of your DNA.

“Building Your Sales Presentation”

There are many ideas to challenge you in this amazing book, regardless of your experience.

You will also find actionable information – the mechanics of selling.

If you are having trouble building your presentation, there is a clear template – use it. When you are selling on the phone, you don’t have time to make mistakes, seconds count.

If you implement the lessons he has put forward your career will improve.

As a professional salesperson, you have the opportunity to enrich your life and the lives of others along the way. That makes sales a critical service, be professional and competent.

“Soft Selling In a Hard World” is filled with essential material which should be incorporated into your life. Use it and you will become a better salesperson.

This is a guide for selling to anyone in any industry but there is nothing “soft” about it. Jerry Vass dispels all the myths we’ve been told about selling and typical salespeople.

Throughout life we all face challenges and methods which yielded results in the past may not do so well now. Your ability to reinvent yourself is key for improving and running your business.

Soft Selling Techniques

Experience can often be the enemy. In the book, Jerry Vass puts it this way:

“It is much easier to teach soft selling techniques to new salespeople than to experienced, “high-mileage” salespeople. The new kids don’t have all those hard-sell habits getting in their way. High-mileage salespeople are a seething mass of illusion, bad information, enculturation, poor role models, flaky images, and hardened habits. They confuse motivation with sales training. They feel that they are so good and so experienced they don’t need to practice. Their hard-sell agents tell them that really good salespeople don’t need to study the profession of persuasion, which is like saying the quarterback for the Super Bowl team doesn’t need to practice and should only play during the game itself.”

Jerry Vass

The Mechanics Of Selling

I have read many books on sales and the sales process, and many rely on outdated and aggressive tactics which do nothing but make buyers wary and defensive.

If you are an experienced salesperson that is finding it difficult to be consistent in your performance, this book is definitely for you.

“Soft Selling in a Hard World” is an excellent sales resource for anyone in business. The actionable information and sales knowledge inside serves as a useful manual to achieve sales success.

Soft Selling In a Hard World will open a path you can follow to achieve your goals,
if you accept the ideas and practice the methods provided.

I highly recommend it.

Jim

All excerpts taken from:
“Soft Selling in a Hard World” published by:
VASS, Inc., 1093 A1A Beach Boulevard #448, Saint Augustine, FL 32080

Buy it Here: Soft Selling in a Hard World: Plain Talk on the Art of Persuasion
This innovative guide to the science of selling is a how-to book about fulfilling your selling potential and enjoying it. Open to any page and find practical pointers and outstanding advice. “Soft Selling in a Hard World” is all you need to become a successful salesperson in today’s tough business environment.

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Closing Skills | Always Be Listening

Closing Skills | Listen

One of the most important closing skills in Telesales, is listening. Listen very closely.

When you make a cold call over the phone and your prospect answers the call,
the next 30 seconds are crucial.

You must break the ice, establish a measure of civil decorum and generally feel each other out.

You explain what it is you want the prospect to buy, and they indicate they would like to hear more. After you go through your whole presentation, because you have closing skills, you ask for the deal.

The prospect says – No thanks.

And that’s it!

Ok, it’s selling. If it’s not a yes, your question is: Do you mind if I ask why?

This is your cue to listen.

It is critical that you stop talking after asking a question, especially this question.

Don’t offer up reasons why “you think” the prospect might not buy.

Are you a mind reader? If not, be quiet!

The purpose of asking a question is to get an answer. Ask and Listen!

Many salespeople can’t handle waiting for an answer if it takes more than 3 or 4 seconds! Instead of thinking up something to say, you should be quietly listening.

Stay quiet and listen, your time will come.

It doesn’t matter how long it takes for the person to answer. Maybe the prospect is thinking? Maybe the prospect is realizing they really should take advantage of your great offer.

I recently observed a salesperson, before the prospect could answer, blurt out:
Is it the price?

I have heard this and more from many salespeople over the years.
This behaviour will not lead to a sale.

I have also witnessed people answer their own question in everyday life as well. Don’t do it – it’s rude!

In the instance above, why would the salesperson identify any reason not to buy?

On this call the salesperson then says: Cause if it’s the price, I may be able to do better, or give you terms.

The prospect hasn’t answered the first question, and the salesperson is rambling on and not listening. The salesperson is also giving away leverage without knowing anything.

Getting back to asking any question. You must respect the person enough to wait for their answer. This is where savvy salespeople follow the simple sales rules.

Here is one of those rules: When you ask a question, on the phone or in person, let the person answer, without interruption.

Listening is one of the closing skills you must employ and just to be crystal-clear – do not answer your own questions.

You should pay very close attention while the prospect speaks. Let them answer your questions, one at a time. This is your opportunity to find out how to get them to buy. They will tell you. Don’t blow it!

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How To Close A Sale

Do you know how to close a sale?

Photo by Berkeley Communications on Unsplash.

How To Close A Sale.

Sales is Closing.

Closing is getting a decision.

It’s a yes or no moment!

How would you like to pay?

You already instinctually know how to get someone to do what you want them to do.

Without being able to systematically close a sale, you’ll make a career change, I guarantee it!

Know this: People make decisions and ask other people to make decisions.

What is Closing?

Closing skills are continually being exercised in your life every day, by you and on you.

Can you pick up the groceries? Yes? No?

Think about that!

Closing is asking for a decision. What’s so difficult about it?

Question: Would you like to pay by credit card or debit?

Answer: Oh. Let me think about it.

Is that a decision? No it is not, and your work is not finished.

Closing is getting the decision! Successful closing is getting the yes decision. And if it’s no, you need to clearly know why! You need to identify the real objection to your earlier closing question! Will it be mastercard or visa?

Question: What do you have to think about?

Yesterday I received this email:

I have just started selling cell phone contracts over the phone. I can’t seem to continue aft they say no, I’m not interested, I have a contract already. I jusr say ok thank yu. And also once I have explained the benefits of the contract I don’t know whether I shud ask, Do u wanna take the offer? Or what

Please help, I need to master this.

Ask for the Sale

You should always ask for the sale – short, sweet and to the point.

Once you have explained the benefits of the contract, your question should be – Can I sign you up? Do not speak until the person answers.

How you close a sale, will depend on incorporating many other closing moments.

As you engage with your prospective customer, as a good salesperson, you will get decisions on every aspect of the product or service.

Understanding what is necessary for the customer to buy is critical.

How do you find out what it will take for the prospect to buy if you don’t ask? Be direct! If they say no, ask why? Find out the reason? Is there anything you can do to neutralize their concern?

Success here comes down to how well you handle objections.

You must have reasons for a customer to make a purchase or they won’t. There must be unique features and benefits to your product or service. It’s your job to highlight them and find out if they are important to the prospect.

How To Close A Sale

Always be closing… on something. Get decisions throughout your sales presentations.

The art of closing is knowing the questions to ask, when to ask and how to ask.

The science of closing is the knowledge that you must ask questions!

You have to close on every incremental item that a customer must agree-to if they are going to buy.

If you don’t ask the prospect to own it, why on earth will they buy?

Be proactive, ask them how you can get them to buy!

The prospect will always tell you.

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Objection Handling | How to Reduce Objections

If you are a seasoned sales professional you know that overcoming objections will often be the key to landing a sale. Learning how to reduce objections has also probably helped you as well.

If you are a new salesperson learning the ropes, you may be struggling with Objection Handling and may have found, in some instances, that your lack of effectiveness has actually cost you business.

Learning how to handle the objections which arise in the sales cycle will be key to your survival as a salesperson.

What if you could eliminate an objection before it even came up? Good idea? You bet it is!

Handling an objection is crucial and because it’s often difficult to deal with a customer that has an objection, I want to explore how you can keep those objections to a minimum.

Objection Handling Basics

So what exactly constitutes an objection?

Objection: a problem or concern voiced by your prospect that is an impediment to closing the deal.

It is essential for you to know the difference between the questions and statements made by the prospect during the sales process. Many times an objection is confused with a prospect needing more information or wanting clarification of some point you’ve spoken about.

An objection is not the same as asking for more information about your product or service.

For example, if you sell cars a client may ask you if the model is available in any other colors. This is not an objection, it’s a request for more product information.

However, it’s an objection when you show your prospect a blue car and he or she blurts out – I don’t like blue!

Handling this objection might be dependant upon whether or not you have that model car available in other colors but even if one is available, you’ve lost a measure of control at that moment and it will be up to you to get it back.

In your initial contact with the customer, you could have found out what color cars they like so you could show vehicles available in those colors.

It’s up too you to control the experience and not be caught flat footed!

Anticipate Objections

The point here is that you must find out how important the color of the vehicle will be in their buying decision before the showing so you can eliminate the potential objection of color.

As a salesperson it’s your responsibility to be thoroughly knowledgeable of your product or service. This knowledge also extends to knowing what variations of the product is available and which configurations and features are popular. You can find out this type of product sales history from past invoices.

You must involve your prospect in the conversation by asking questions all throughout your sales presentation. It is also important to ask questions before you start presenting your offer.

The process is called Probing and it helps you get information from the customer about what will determine their requirements to make a purchase before they have a chance to object. More about probing in a future post.

So, when you understand your product or service and it’s sales history, you will often be able to anticipate what your customer might want or not want. This will instruct you on what kind of questions to ask your prospect.

Get your prospect to tell you what is important to them before you try to sell them something. When you ask the right questions you can reduce objections because you will better know what features and benefits to focus on in your presentation!

This will enable you to, at the very least, reduce most objections and eliminate some altogether before they ever come up.

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Sales Tips | Are You Selling With Integrity

Are You Selling With Integrity?

There are situations in life that require people to take drastic steps.

Salespeople, like everyone else, must ensure there is enough money to pay the bills and provide for themselves and their families.

Can desperate situations mitigate certain values?

What about normal circumstances?

When does integrity come into play in relation to sales?

Do you have a personal code of conduct or a concise set of rules to follow?

Do you have a compelling reason to sell something to someone other than making money for yourself?

I would like to believe that every salesperson has the integrity to be truthful about the products and/or services they sell.

But face it, it just ain’t so!

These can be difficult questions to answer for many professional salespeople.

I strongly believe this type of behavior greatly contributes to a general skepticism about selling and salespeople as I explained in my previous post, if you are Sold on Selling, you must also commit to Selling With Integrity.

We all know many products and services can only be described as trash and the market will, over time, gravitate toward the best and cause the worst to fade away.

However, there are often less than ethical methods employed to sell great products and services along with the other trash.

What about the salespeople who employ these methods? Is it only about the money and how much of it you can get?

Where do you draw the line between ethical selling and unethical selling?

Selling With Integrity

I remember one of my first sales jobs

I had taken a summer job selling vacuum cleaners to help make money for school.

This vacuum was the best vacuum cleaner I had ever seen. I was looking forward to learning everything there was to know about the product and how to sell it.

There was in-class training designed to educate the sales force about everything the vacuum cleaner could do, why it was better that others, and how easy it would be for anyone to own because of the accessible financing options.




I was sold on the vacuum and was eager to hit the road. It was a fine product, solved a common problem – cleaned carpets and more, and was competitively priced. What more could a salesperson want! I was going to have more than enough money for school.

After the in-class training was finished, I was taken into the field by a sales trainer to be shown the ropes. All the appointments had been pre-arranged by telemarketers offering free gifts which is a common practice – Door Openers.

The first sales call was to a lady with a huge house filled with wall-to-wall carpet. It was a breeze. The trainer went through his presentation and didn’t miss a beat. When the guy demonstrated how the vacuum could suck stuff from the carpet that her machine left behind, he didn’t even have to ask her for the sale, out came the cheque. I couldn’t wait for the next call.

The next house we went to was very small and as we approached it I was wondering how anyone inside could possibly afford an expensive vacuum cleaner.

But out of the car we got with the gift in hand. A young lady with a baby in her arms answered and agreed to let us demonstrate our cleaner. In we went with the $1500 vacuum cleaner.

While the sales trainer was getting into his pitch and asking the girl questions, I couldn’t help but notice there were no carpets anywhere in the little house, only a rug under the kitchen table. It was obvious, to me, we were wasting our time here.

The fact that there were no carpets and only the small rug didn’t deter the sales trainer one tiny bit and he was soon trying to close the sale.

When asked if she would like to pay for the vacuum with cash, credit card, or our convenient financing, the girl said she loved the vacuum but really had no use for it as she only had a small rug.

The objection was an easy one to overcome and again the sales trainer tried to close the deal.




When asked again to buy, the young lady said she was on social assistance and couldn’t possible afford it, even if she could qualify for the financing. The trainer assured her she would qualify, he would make sure of it!

The back and forth went on as the salesman tried to convince the young mother that she shouldn’t live without our vacuum cleaner until finally, he took the machine apart, dumped the contents of the dust chamber onto a white sheet he had set on the floor and said:

What kind of Mother would let her baby crawl around in that dirt?

The girl was in tears and agreed to fill out the form.

In a matter of moments, we were done and gone! The trainer turned to me in the car and said he had just made another $600 and that was $1200 so far that day. He said I was going to do the next sale.

I was about to burst! Instead of getting into a big argument, I said the job wasn’t for me and could he drop me off at the office. End of story!

Do you think the sales trainer was Selling with Integrity?

Don’t get me wrong, the vacuum cleaner was a very fine product, but I did not want to be that salesman or trained by him! His tactics may have gotten him the sale, but at what cost, not one I was willing to pay.

I believe a salesperson must have integrity. Of course, I try to overcome objections and try to close the sale. I will not insult or take advantage of people to get a sale. That’s Selling With Integrity!

Tactics like the one in my story will rarely work on a confident strong individual and I can think of many young women that would have tossed the guy out the house. The fact he would use such a tactic on that vulnerable young girl says more about him than her.

I like to feel that I have made a positive contribution when I sell my product or service. I also want to be viewed as a trusted advisor. It’s the only way to gain repeat customers, clients that truly appreciate the value you bring to their lives.

If you think about it, To Sell with Integrity is not the only way to make money selling, but the more honest and ethical you are, the better you will feel about yourself and that will help you be a more successful salesperson!

All The Best
JD

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Selling Tips | How do you feel about Selling

I guess at one time or another we’ve all had a go at selling something.

I’ve been selling for over 30 years and have sold many different products and services. I have Sold to all kinds of individuals, organizations, and businesses and enjoyed mostly every minute.

I can say with full confidence I love helping my customers solve problems, and I view the Act of Selling as helping clients solve problems.

I have watched Salespeople come and go over the years and I have marvelled at the different way people approach Selling. Some people take to Sales like a duck takes to water and others never seem to get anywhere.

I like to think I have a very positive outlook and I try to see the good in any situation. I can also be a very analytical person, so I have tried to figure out why some people succeed in Sales and why some people fail.

Why is it some people Sell Well and others struggle? Why do some people Love Selling and others hate it? What is the determinant factor for An Aptitude In Sales?

After all this time, I think there is a common thread.


Perception of Sales Determines Sales Aptitude

Whether a person will succeed or fail in a Sales Job obviously relies on a multitude of factors and one thing alone will not determine their fate when it come to successful selling.

One of the main indicators is a persons’ Perception of Selling and Salespeople. Their attitude about the occupation seems to make a huge difference right from the start.

If you view Salespeople and Selling in a positive light or even not a negative light, you’ll be much more mentally equipped to Excel as a Seller.

Face it, there are a lot of Negative Stereotypes of Sales as a profession and Salespeople in general. Considering all the derogatory images, is it any wonder many have a negative perception of the job.

Ask a little child what they want to be when they grow up. Yup! Selling has an Image problem!

If you Sell for a Living, I’m positive you’ve heard you’ll be viewed in the same light as the last Salesperson with whom your prospect or client had dealings! This situation illustrates a problem which goes much deeper than a previous meeting or interaction. It’s a symptom of a widespread negative view of Salespeople and Selling.

Have you ever heard a friend say they can’t Sell anything? I’ll bet you have. They’re just no good at it! Right! I do not believe anyone can’t Sell. I think they mean – I don’t want to Sell or – I don’t see myself as a Salesperson. Anyone can be taught Sales Skills.

As a matter of fact, I believe some people have such a negative view of Selling and Salespeople in general, they don’t ever want to be associated with it as an occupation.

Make no mistake about it, the negative view which is held about the Sales Profession is a huge problem to overcome. Why? Because – In every aspect of daily life you’ll encounter someone trying to Sell something to someone.

As a result of this inherent aversion to the Act of Selling, most people are constantly on guard.

The crazy thing is – People love to buy, but most hate to be Sold!
Now talk about a conundrum. You’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t!

So how do you overcome the negative stereotype? How can you push through to Sales Nirvana, where everyone loves to see you coming and can’t wait to buy from you? You’ll need to analyze how you feel about Selling.

Ask yourself how you perceive salespeople. What they could do to make you respond better? Maybe the answers will give you insight on how You can Be A Better Salesperson and help you to understand some of the issues.

It has been said Nothing Happens Until Something is Sold.

If You’re in Sales, You will need to be Sold on Selling, it’s Your first step.

Jim

Telesales-pro.com is primarily concerned with B2B Telesales. Selling over the Phone to business is a highly specialized activity and depends on many Sales Techniques specific to Telesales.

Whether you are looking for Sales Jobs or Sales Leads, TeleSales-Pro exists to provide you with valuable Sales Tips and Resources.

If you are trying to build your Sales Skills, improving your Telephone Sales Skills will give you a great foundation in Sales. After all, as salespeople, we all want to be Selling more.

Learning to Sell over the Phone will help you understand the Sales Process and will enable you to improve your overall Sales Negotiation Skills.

If you have any comments, feel free to comment about anything you read on telesales-pro.com. If you want to contact me you can email me: jim@telesales-pro.com