Mastering the Art of Present-Moment-Selling
Mastering the Art of Present-Moment-Selling
You have bills to pay; genuine pressures, and you’re going to fall short, unless you make this sale, and the next, and the next after that.
Your prospect is sitting pretty, a salaried type that can string you out, forever. Calm and cool, he is your diametric opposite.
This seems like a prescription for failure, doesn’t it? You NEED this order, and he doesn’t.
At times such as these, you start monitoring your dashing heartbeat, sweating palms, becoming introverted. Nonverbal cues signal distress to the buyer, who interprets your insecurity as the product’s defect.
He starts having an aversion reaction, feeling there is something wrong with you, the offer, or both. Leaning away, you become more aggressive, and tension fills the room.
Clearing his throat, he
tells you to follow-up with him later. It’s an excuse, but you treat it as an objection, invoking all of your “buy now,” urgency appeals.
But the more you press, the more resolved he is to deny you what you need. Leaving the office, dejected, you start thinking there’s no way you’re going to reach your quota.
Your energies turn to making excuses, which only leads you to feel worse.
Sound familiar?
What pushed you off the slope into this sales abyss?
You weren’t doing what I call, Present Moment Selling. Instead of treating this engagement as if it were the only conversation that ever mattered, you succumbed to your concerns about the past and future.
You worried about your bills, instead of preparing your presentation. You counted the commissions you HADN’T yet earned, and
worried about the future.
Tacitly, you bought into the idea that the present and future would exactly mirror the past.
Yet, there was no evidence to support this belief, and you made it an unfortunate actuality by diverting your focus from THE NOW.
Sales aren’t made in the past or in the future. They can only be made, NOW.
How many times have you counted on earning approval for a deal that never came to fruition? How often have you been surprised that someone said, “yes” after you used a standard close, one that rookies are taught?
Observe winning sports teams, especially how they treat TIME.
They put their losses behind them, especially lopsided scores. They focus on the current contest, and take it one game at a time, never getting too high or too low,
emotionally.
A famous book’s title sums up the idea, in its title: BE HERE NOW.
Be completely present for this sale. This means you have prepared, you know more or less what you’re going to say, how the prospect will probably respond, and the questions and concerns that will be raised.
But you are not 100% scripted.
There are three types of scripts:
(1) Manuscripts: This is where each word is planned in advance, and the communicator needs to stay on message.
(2) Impromptu: These are off-the-cuff remarks, developed on the spot.
(3) Extemporaneous: These talks blend planning with a certain amount of spontaneity.
Successful sales talks are generally of the third type. As a seller
you need to convey a certain amount of detail before a prospect can be expected to make an informed decision. Skip this information, and your offer will be misjudged.
But you have to permit room for customizing. I recall speaking to a buyer in Colorado, and before I got into the main part of the sale I asked, “Do you know where Delores, is?”
She did, it was about 4 hours away. As it turned out, she played sports there, volleyball and soccer. I attended a summer camp, there, along the Delores River.
After sharing these anecdotes, we had established common ground, literally, and we went on to have a very affable conversation.
I realize you may not be able to chit-chat like this, with C-Level executives in the big city. Still, it shows how customizing a talk can be beneficial. Providing this opportunity, and
sounding as if you are IN THE MOMENT WITH THE PROSPECT, are essential to succeeding.
But I should note that you can be in the moment, but if the prospect isn’t, you’re not going to make a sale. So, taking rhe time to ask how they are and to listen for their responses, is crucial.
For instance, if they sound distracted, as if they’re having a conversation with someone else while you’re on the phone, pause for s second or two. It makes no sense to continue without their attention.
If they force you out of your comfort zone, by barking, “Let’s cut to the chase!” you’re going to be tempted to skip over vital information that they need to hear, without which they cannot intelligently buy.
Say, “I’ll make it brief,” but don’t leave anything out! If they interrupt, let them go, telling them you’ll call back when
they have time.
When seller and buyer are both in THE NOW, there’s less effort, more fun, some sharing, and for that time you are genuinely relating to another person, which is gratifying.
The bonus is that you both forget your cares and woes, fostering a pleasant mood for buying and selling.
That’s a benefit that most people would pay for, and appreciative prospects actually do.
Be Here Now often enough, and you won’t have to worry about your bills or your quota!
Dr. Gary S. Goodman is a top-ranked sales speaker, negotiation speaker, and customer service speaker at Google, and a distinguished, sought-after telemarketing speaker, motivational speaker, and attorney. President of Customersatisfaction.com, he is a frequent TV and radio commentator and the best-selling author of 12 books and more than 1,700 articles that appear in 25,000 publications. Gary conducts seminars and speaks at convention programs around the world. His new audio program is Nightingale-Conant’s “Crystal Clear Communication: How to Explain Anything Clearly in Speech & Writing,” which you can try at: http://www.nightingale.com/prod_detail.aspx?product=Crystal_Clear_Communication&promo=INTAF416. Professional speaking, seminar, and consulting invitations can be addressed to:gary@customersatisfaction.com.
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