5 Easy Steps to Closing the Sale
'I'm not a salesperson'. I hear that every day from a variety of business people. If you're running a business, I'm going to tell you something you already know:
Marketing brings prospects to your door. It's sales skills that make them customers.
So, what do you do about your lack of sales skills? Read a book? Take a class? Attend a seminar? All decent options, but these types of classes are targeted at people who already know how to sell. That's probably not you.
This is the first part from a series of articles will address the 5 steps to closing the sale. By the time you finish, you'll have some ideas on how to approach prospects and turn them into paying customers.
STEP 1:
Put Yourself in Your Customers Shoes
It sounds easy enough, but what does that mean? It's quite simple. You need to find out what's going on in their world. You have to remember the old saying, "It's about ME, ME, ME!" That's especially true for your sales prospect. I spent 21 years in sales, and what was the one question I was asked in a first meeting with a prospect, "Are you my new rep?" They just wanted to know what happened to the last person, and that was the last time anything about me usually entered the conversation. Prospects aren't interested in me (or you). They're interested in their business and their particular set of problems. And, each prospect has a different set of problems. You could sell the same product to the same type of customers, and each will have something unique that's going on in their business.
It's up to you to find out what concerns they have that might relate to your product or service. You can do this by asking them a lot of questions. Most people are happy to talk about themselves and their business. A few questions should get this rolling.
What are the BEST questions to ask your prospects...stay tuned for STEP II. It's all about asking good questions.
Copyright 2006 Susan Adamshttp://www.susanadamshome.com
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About the Author
Former Learjet Sales Star, Susan Adams, has sold products and services for some of the world's most respected companies.....General Electric, Pitney Bowes and Bombardier Aerospace.
She takes a 'real world' approach to all sales topics. 'Successful sales people are experts at having conversations with customers. If you can empathize with people, create an environment of trust and really listen to their concerns, you'll be a top sales performer.'
