Consultative selling: Having a partnership philosophy
Here's the second half of the basic elements of consultative selling covered last week. I challenge you to read them a new way. The old way is to read and say: "I know that." The new way is to ask yourself: "How good am I at that?" If you read these elements and evaluate yourself from one to five on each one, you will emerge with an individualized game plan for evolving to consultant status. Here are the rating categories: 1=poor, 2=average, 3=good, 4=very good, and 5=the greatest.
Know the desired objective of the meeting or phone call before you begin. Write down a one-sentence objective before starting. Don't leave the meeting or hang up the phone until the objective has been achieved.
Relay your personal success experiences. Your ability to feel success within yourself and relate success to your customer builds character. If your belt is notched with successes, it means you have done it for others (giving the prospect more confidence in you), and you have more confidence in yourself.
Have a strong desire to help others. This is the second rule of life and business success. The caveat is that you must help without expectations or keeping score. Give and you will always get.
Develop excellent speaking, listening and writing skills. Delivering and receiving a clear message is at the heart of the selling process.
Sense when to sell and when to back off. There's a fine line between being persistent and being a pest. There's a finer line between knowing when to ask a question and when to listen. A consultant walks the line without falling off.
Be capable of asking powerful, intelligent questions. Ask the customer for information only he knows, such as: their goals, who their customers are, how they do business, what their budget is, and how they intend to achieve their objectives. Ask questions that set you apart from others.
Understand, relate to, and fulfill customer needs. Success in sales depends on understanding and servicing the customer. He needs to be understood, he wants to be befriended, and he expects to be served.
Provide information and support beyond the scope of the sale. Add value to everything you do. Bringing new information about the client's business to them is as valuable as any service you could perform.
Get business for others. New business is more powerful than information. When your client realizes that you're trying to bring value to his company in the form of new business, there is no thank-you card big enough to express his gratitude.
The customer must win first. They must perceive help before they are willing to pay you. Bring them value, and bring them victory. Make them want to pay you.
Make friends first. Establish rapport, find the link. The object is to incorporate information about the things that you have in common with the prospect into the sales presentation and the sales process. The result is a sale and a relationship.
Be creative at all times. Your creativity is your trademark, something that distinguishes you from the rest.
Have a great sense of humor. Humor means tacit approval. If you can make a prospect laugh, you can make them buy. Humor also reveals a truth, which talk may not.
Be physically fit. There is a delicate balance between physical and mental fitness. There is also a relationship between the self-discipline required to be healthy and sales self-discipline.
Be capable of establishing and building long-term relationships. The true consultative salesperson will make short-term sacrifices for long-term gain ... every time.
Think and act like a partner to your customer and your company. Having a partnership philosophy means working on everyone's behalf.
Exceed expectations. When you consistently exceed the client's expectations, you create an atmosphere of need and loyalty, which is perfect for the long term.
Relax in meetings and conversations. The best way to sell is never sell. Just talk in a relaxed manner with a powerful demeanor.
How strong is your desire to succeed? Desire is one element that binds all the others together.
Do it with passion. Love what you do. Do you put the same intensity into your selling as you do into your game of golf, your skiing, your vacations, and your hobbies? Find that passion at selling and you can succeed at it beyond your dreams.
Here's how to rate yourself. There are 33 individual elements for a total of 165 points.
150-165 Congratulations, Mr. Consultant. You're a resource.
132-149 You can taste it. Keep at it every day for the next year and you'll break new ground (and new sales records).
99-131 You're in the big club of salespeople who think of themselves as consultants, but aren't. Make a personal game plan to improve, and execute it day by day.
77-98 Whatever type of selling you're doing, it's just a sale and not a commitment to help others. Make a conversion plan.
33-76 Welcome to your new sales job ... at McDonald's. Would you like fries with that?
Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of "The Sales Bible," and "Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless." President of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts training programs on selling and customer service. Inquiries should be emailed to salesman@ gitomer. com or faxed to the WBJ at (48-22) 646-0576.
