Posts Tagged ‘sales preparation’

Small Actions Can Make a Big Difference

Friday, May 28th, 2010

Selling in 2010, especially as the economy grows again, hinges on how you handle those critical junctures in your interactions with sales prospects. As I’ve said, what you say or do during those junctures can most impact the outcome, moving the deal more quickly to a close or immediately breaking it. The first 120 seconds with a prospect, whether on the phone or in person, is the most important or “golden” juncture — that’s when what you say or do you creates that first impression.

So, now you’re thinking, “Don’t I have enough pressure going into my sales calls?” While focusing on the critical junctures may seem daunting, it’s actually easier than you think to say and do what will win over the prospect. You don’t have to be a super-bright and entertaining conversationalist or wow the prospect with a slick PowerPoint and a stack of collateral. Mainly, you need to be prepared and you need to be proactive.

Your focus may be on your presentation of your company and its product or service, however you need to also keep in mind that minor behaviors during your interactions with the prospect can reveal more than your slides do and have more influence on the prospect’s ultimate decision to buy from you.

For example, I had sat down with a prospect in a conference room at their office to start our first meeting. To get settled in for taking notes and answering my prospect’s questions, I took off my suit jacket and neatly rolled up the sleeves of my shirt. I later won this prospect’s business and when I did the due diligence of asking them why they selected my company, they told me that removing my jacket and rolling up my sleeves (among other things) had made an impression. It showed to them that I was ready to go to work and that I was a true consultant and not some slick salesperson.

So you see how easy it is for the smallest action to have an impact on the direction your sales call or meeting takes. An action such as this demonstrates to the prospect that you are sincere about wanting to work with them and it can help you establish trust. Conversely, behavior that indicates you’re not listening (e.g., not answering the prospect’s questions or interrupting them), talking about irrelevant subjects, talking fast, and making poor eye contact gives the impression you are not totally engaged, disinterested, in a hurry to close the sale or trying too hard.

You want to proactively include behavior such as what I describe in the example as you interact with your prospect; but at the same time be yourself and make sure you are tuned into the prospect’s current mindset. It’s really easy to incorporate the behaviors that will have a positive effect when you remember to be prepared and be proactive.

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Posted in Proactive Selling, Relationship-building, Sales Strategies, The Golden 120 Seconds Of Every Sales Call, sales preparation | No Comments »

Business Activity is Starting to Stir — Are You Ready?

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

The signs are there that we’re pulling out of the recession and businesses are starting to see growth. While there are certain areas that are still feeling the squeeze from the downturn, optimism has become the prevailing outlook.

This is good news for sales professionals. With business activity on the rise, that means you’ll start closing more sales! Right? Right?

Well, that’s right as long as you go out there with an approach that works for the changing times. Remember that selling situations have evolved since the last time the economy was healthy. The business owner or executive with the buying power has developed a different mindset — they’re more focused on streamlining operations, being efficient and getting more bang for their buck. Gaining value as well as solutions is a primary goal and they’re more thoughtful about their purchases. They’re also more pressed for time.

Therefore, with the “new” economy, your old tried-and-true sales techniques won’t work. You need to start using fresh approaches and techniques, but also return to sales fundamentals such as preparation that are crucial to winning over prospects.

The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call offers a fresh approach to sales focusing on the critical junctures in every sales interaction in which what you say and do can most impact the outcome. The principles of this approach focus on what you do before (in preparation) and after as well as during the sales call or meeting. Most important are the initial critical junctures, which is when you make that lasting impression, establish trust and have the best opportunity to connect with the prospect by demonstrating what’s in it for them.

As announced in a press release last week, my Sales Training seminar that’s coming up on May 6-7 will highlight and expand on the principles in The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call. It’s the perfect opportunity to learn this fresh sales approach and gain new techniques that will maximize your sales efforts and ultimately boost your sales revenue.

Selling in 2010 is going to hinge on how you handle the critical junctures in your sales interactions. Are you ready?

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The Golden 120 Seconds When You’re On the Road

Monday, February 15th, 2010

The critical junctures in which sales people can make or break the sale don’t necessarily occur during the actual sales call or meeting. As I’ve discussed in prior blog posts and in my book, “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call,” preparation — what you do in advance of the sales call/meeting — is vital, as is remembering that the sales call begins the moment you drive into your prospect’s parking lot and doesn’t end until after you drive away.

It’s this later point I now want to focus on.

When traveling to a prospect’s office, you may not be just using a car — you may be also taking public transportation such as a train, plane or bus. If that’s the case, watching your behavior starts as soon as you enter the terminal, occupy public waiting areas and especially once you are on the plane/train/bus itself.

My public relations person recently shared with me this scene she witnessed on a flight from Boston to Florida: Two gentlemen sitting in the aisle seats across the aisle from her (one was seated behind the other) were talking quite loudly about the meeting they were going to with a well-known company. It was clearly a sales presentation and the man in the front seat had a laptop open and sticking out in the aisle so the man behind him could see it. They were working on their presentation and discussing their strategy for closing the sale, frequently mentioning the company’s name and the names of individuals who would be attending the meeting. There were a couple times in which the tone of their discussion with respect to this prospect sounded less than positive.

So many things occuring in this scenario are terribly wrong!

1. These men were talking publicly about their sales prospect.
2. They were mentioning the prospect company and meeting attendees by name (again, publicly).
3. They were displaying their sales presentation so others could see.
4. They were discussing publicly their strategy for closing this sale.
5. They were allowing a derogatory tone to enter their discussion which others could hear.

What if someone from the prospect company was on the plane (which is very likely since the two men were traveling to the prospect’s location)? Or someone who knew the company, the people who worked there or the people who were mentioned in the two salesmen’s discussion?

Just like the parking lot scenario in which the two salesmen were spitting in full view of the prospective client’s office, you need to watch your behavior when traveling via public means to a sales meeting. You just never know who might see (or hear) you.

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Posted in The Golden 120 Seconds Of Every Sales Call, sales preparation | 1 Comment »

To Close the Sale – Your Sales Team Must Be On Their Best Behavior

Friday, January 15th, 2010

I can’t emphasize how important it is for salespeople to be on their best behavior.  As obvious as that sounds, I’ve seen deals lost after a great meeting because the salespeople are spitting in the parking lot.  Don’t leave the customer with a bad impression or you’ll lose the sale.  In this video, I talk about how my sales team lost a big contract after a fantastic meeting with the client.  We had nailed it, and the key internal champion of the organization pulled me aside afterward and said, “Peter that was really good.  We want to move ahead to contract and implementation.  We’re going with you.”  Watch the video to find out what went wrong!

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The Power of First Impressions: The Most Important 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

I talk about “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call,” yet there are several junctures during a sales call or meeting that can be considered “the golden 120 seconds.” And none of those junctures is more important than the first 120 seconds of the sales call.

We all know how important first impressions are in a new relationship or situation. They can truly make a difference in how the relationship proceeds and the situation unfolds. But there is probably no instance in which making a first impression is more important than a sales call. A poor first impression will have you trying to dig your way out of a hole, and you probably won’t sell anything — no matter what you’re selling.

I know this fact may be intimidating! The good news is you have complete control of the situation and through preparation, practice and confidence building, you can be sure you are putting only your best foot forward and making an impression that will get you off to a positive start with the prospect.

Preparation involves a number of steps — the most important of which is creating a framework of what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it during those first 120 seconds. Preparation involves both mental and tactical preparation and should include the following elements:
• Researching the prospect beforehand;
• Determining objectives for the meeting;
• Knowing who will be at the meeting;
• Developing the meeting collaterals; and
• Setting the agenda and forwarding it to your prospect before the meeting.

With these elements in place — as well as the elements of body language discussed in my December 30th blog post — you can produce a flawlessly-executed opening during the all-important first 120 seconds of your sales meeting. Those two minutes will be the springboard for the rest of your meeting, so make sure you have water in the pool before you jump in. Because how you present yourself will not only set the tone for the meeting, but will make or break your selling opportunity.

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Before the Sales Call: Aspects of preparation that are often overlooked

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

One important aspect of sales that I touch on in the sales approach I developed and outline in “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call” is preparation. Often addressed inadequately and sometimes overlooked entirely, sales preparation entails so many things and much more than I can cover in one blog post. Therefore, this will be the first of a series of posts on sales preparedness that I will write over the next several weeks.

Few things factor more importantly in your sales preparation than your appearance, because, of course, it’s the first impression you make with the prospect. It goes without saying that your appearance needs to be highly professional, but what characterizes a truly “professional” appearance?

While your clothes may be clean and pressed, what you wear and how you wear it and present yourself physically is another matter. I’m talking about body language — how you use your hands, your handshake, your sitting and standing position, your eye contact, etc. Then there are the items you bring to the meeting and are part of how you present yourself — your pens, note pad, business cards, etc. All of these things communicate your level of professionalism, confidence and attention to detail.

Altogether, there are 18 critical elements of nonverbal communication that each salesperson should check before every sales call, no matter how casual the encounter. In addition to the above, salespeople need to consider their fingernails (keep them trimmed, clean and away from your face), breath (think about what you ate and drank before the meeting), make-up (women, don’t overdo it; keep it natural), and shoes (keep them polished and well-soled). Salespeople also need to keep their hair out of their eyes and their hands away from their groin (no scratching!).

These nonverbal communication opportunities can become powerful tools in your selling arsenal. You want your prospects to focus on your selling messages, especially during those “Golden 120 Seconds.” If they are distracted by your mannerisms or turned off by your appearance, even your best efforts to present your product or service will be wasted.

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