JOE GIRARD "the worlds greatest salesman"

What Does Your Customer Really Value?

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by: hunter on Date: Thu, 9 Dec 2010 Time: 10:06 AM

Sell to the customer's value 

 expectations,

not to your value propositions.

We've all heard the rule of listening to what the customer has to say, and there's not a salesperson who thinks they don't listen to the customer. Reality, however, is quite the opposite. I find time after time when I'm working with salespeople across any number of industries that the failure to listen is a huge issue.

Too many salespeople believe because they know the products they represent much better than the client, they know exactly what the customer will see as real value. Yes, you as the agent are going to have a general indication of what a typical customer wants. However, when it comes to interacting with a specific customer, you can't rely on a "general indication" of value.

The only way you are going to know what a customer will place value in is by asking them and getting them to tell you what they're looking for. Sounds simple enough, and yet so many salespeople don't do it.

If you don't believe what I am saying, then let me share about the situation my wife found herself in while buying a car. The car she was looking at was an SUV with all the amenities of what people expect when looking for an SUV (4-wheel drive, ability to handle rugged winter driving, etc). The salesperson continued to press my wife on the value of these features of the SUV. The problem was that my wife wasn't particularly interested in those features. Yes, we wanted an SUV, but my wife -- the primary driver of the vehicle -- was looking for an amazing sound system and heated, comfortable seats.

I can't tell you the number of salespeople who lost the sale because they failed to understand what my wife's value expectations were with regard to the car. We could easily have been sold on an SUV other than the one we bought, had the salesperson listened and put aside their pre-conceived notions of what a "typical buyer" of an SUV might be most interested in.

I share this example so that you can see that it's not just about "understanding" this dynamic; it's about learning from it and changing how you interact with customers. The learning is simple: Listen to what the customer is saying. They will tell you what their needs are when you ask them the right questions. This means not only do you need to ask the right questions, but you also need to hear what the customer is telling you and then ask them a follow-up question on what they just told you. Asking the follow-up question is key, because the vast majority of time, the customer will share with you much better insights when you show interest and involvement in what they're telling you.

Once a person feels the other person is truly listening, it's only natural for the quality of the conversation to become more real and engaging. By asking the follow-up questions, the salesperson will learn what the customer's value expectations are. The salesperson can then finally work to close the sale to the customer's expectations. When that happens, they will do more than just close the sale. There is a significant likelihood the sale will be closed at a higher profit, because the customer sees more value in what they're buying.

About the Author

Mark Hunter, "The Sales Hunter," is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. For more information, to receive a free weekly email sales tip, or to read his Sales Motivation Blog, visit www.TheSalesHunter.com. You can also follow him on www.Twitter.com (TheSalesHunter), on www.LinkedIn.com (Mark Hunter), and on his Facebook Fan Page, www.facebook.com/TheSalesHunter.

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DOOR TO DOOR

 

Door to door sales

 is a tough business involving a lot of walking, talking and what turns most people off; Rejection. Being rebuffed time after time after time can really make this type of selling very hard and if you are the kind of sales person that thrives on success they may be so few and far between that this becomes depressing and not worthwhile. There are many door to door sales tips and tricks used by great sales people but the real building blocks for success come from motivation, planning and persistence.

1. Motivation Tips

Staying motivated from street to street, door to door and day to day is an ongoing challenge.

It is said this sort of sales is just a numbers game, the more you knock the more chances you have to get a sales and while this is true it is only a part of the truth. 

If you knock unsuccessfully for too long it can get to you and the next call you will not be as lively or persuasive, having high motivation and energy throughout the day is essential for being persuasive and making each call count.

The first thing you must do is

not take any rejection personally,

you are in an industry where you are selling to people who are not actively looking for your product and do not know you are coming, the conversion rate of sales is very low and you must expect this.

Just think that every unsuccessful call has enabled you to get to the next call that may be a winner quicker!

Another way to stay motivated is to keep track of sales but do not keep track of unsuccessful calls,

only focus on positives not negatives 

and you will find success comes more easily,

celebrate each sale, 

revel in it and stay on top of your game!

2. Planning Tips

While this may be a numbers game not all calls are equal so the adage of more is better is somewhat false.

Good planning and research can help you to find the most profitable calls to focus on instead of just calling on whatever doors come your way. That also being said too much planning and too little calling is also a recipe for disaster.

Choose your locations well for your products,

some areas simply will not generate the same sales as other due to demographics.

Also the time of day you call is important, 

calling at the wrong time can lead to a wasted call. 

You must strike a balance between numbers and quality of calls for a good sales conversion rate.

3. Persistence Tips

Persistence can be

a double edged sword; 

I was once told that the difference between a good sales person and a great sales person is persistence.

However later I learned that the difference between a great sale person and an annoying harasser is but small degrees apart.

While you must be persistent in sales there is also the danger of following dead end too far and wasting time.

If there is no chance of a sale why continue to try to make them come around?

If you are pressing too hard you simple put people off,

the art of listening is more important

in this situation or even just giving up.

That right, persisting when the outcome will not change is not good!

If you apply your persistence where it can get results you will go far but you must prioritise calls and customers quickly or be stuck in dead end avenues.
Having more time for more calls can often yield better results than simply trying not to take no for an answer!

Remember that door to door sales is about quality and quantity,

sticking with a low quality call means you have no quality

and you are missing out on more quantity!

There are heaps of other small tips you can use from your opening to your closing to overall door to door coverage. Keep in mind these overall concepts for running your territory and you will be able to increase your overall sales however and more door to door sales tips will come to you in the process of your work!

Did you find this article helpful?
Feel you are a great door to door operator but just can't get past some customer objections?
Do you want the ability to turn those objections into guaranteed sales?
If so click here to find out more!
http://sales-secrets.1001-solutions.info

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