Telling ain’t selling. If you goal is to increase sales, then maybe you need to redirect your senses.
How many times do we as passionate professional sales people talk way too much? We are so excited by our products or services that we forget that our prospects may not share that same enthusiasm.
During a business networking event, just take the time to listen to all the telling going on. The noise level is incredible because most folks are talking away, spewing what I call the 3 Ps Virus of Product, Price and Proposal.
What would happen if they just shut up? First the noise level would dramatically decrease. Second, you could actually hear what the other person is saying. Third, you just might learn something significant about the individual not too mention their business.
Think back to your last sales meeting. Who did most of the talking? What was the ratio from your perspective to talking to the prospect versus listening to the prospect. My goal is to have a 1 to 10 ratio. For every word that I speak, I want to hear 10 words from the prospect.
Mark Twain among others was quoted as saying: "If the good Lord wanted us to talk more than to listen, he would have given us two mouths instead of two ears." Listening, or to be more precise active listening secures two results:
1. CLEAR communication that allows us to: Clarify, Legitimize, (for) Emotions; Agree and Remember
2. Builds an authentic relationship. John Maxwell once said: No one cares how much you know until they know how much you care
Unfortunately, between our passion and our egos, the focus is on us through all the words that we speak and not on the prospect who may truly benefit from our products or services. We turn off the prospect by all of our words. Imagine that! Being turned off by someone walking way too much.
The ability to increase sales is a lot easier than most people realize – just be quiet. Remember, if you are telling you ain’t selling.
Telling Aint Selling - To learn more about this author, visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website.
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