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Yet another example of how NOT to sell

Written by: James Yuille

Article Overview: The meeting with the sales rep from hell...

Yet another example of how NOT to sell

Hello again

Last week in my rant about non-existent customer service from my bank, I talked about my meeting with the sales rep from hell. Funny, as I was relating this story to a client, he mentioned a similar story. Only his was where the rep told her manager the meeting was with a prospect from hell.

The irony is that BOTH meetings were with reps from the same industry. Both related to the salesperson's level of knowledge, or rather, lack of it.

The industry? Web hosting.

Now you'd suppose that I know a little about the Internet. I've built several sites myself, I use an autoresponder, distribute products via Clickbank and use PayPal, have an affiliate program, publish articles, run pay-per-click ads etc, etc.

So when I meet a salesperson selling web hosting and design, I'd expect them to know about this stuff.

Imagine meeting one who didn't know what a sequential autoresponder was. Who had never heard of an affiliate program; who said that Alexa rankings were worth nothing and who thought the only way to promote any website was offline...

He was showing me a shopping cart site building program. None of the examples he showed me had any sales copy, none had name capture. Yes, they looked nice; but would they sell? Did they sell? He didn't know. His job he said, was to sell the system not tell the clients how to make them work. Ho, hum... talk about responsibility for outcomes.

To make matters worse, we met at a cafe where he'd agreed to buy me a coffee and didn't. Ever sat in a cafe with the owner looking at you like you were a leper? And he sat through (that's thru for those in the US) the entire meeting chewing gum like has standing at third base. With his mouth open.

Why I sat with him for close to an hour, I don't know. It was like I was educating him and he was selling to me.

That's exactly what happened with my client. This man has about 25 domain names and five sites. He's looking to consolidate everything into one or two sites. He's just bought SiteBuildIt! at my recommendation but thought he should talk to a local host as well.

Again, he controlled the conversation. At no time did the salesperson ask him about what his needs were. back at the office, her description was "The meeting from Hell"

The commonality?

Both reps had no real knowledge. OK, they may have known the features of their product but they failed in terms of understanding the needs of their buyer. Neither asked questions to identify the reasons why the buyer was in the marketplace.

Neither controlled the conversation.

Neither made the sale.

You must take the time to understand your buyer's motive. You must ask questions.

Find out how here.

Have you made all the sales you want this year? Would a huge increase in new clients be good for you?

If you think sales training is expensive, try not having it.

Related Articles
  Best Sales Strategy for Your Company
  Heart of Marketing by Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski
  HOW TO AVOID SOUNDING LIKE JUST ANOTHER SALES REP
  Finding The Right Prospects For your Business
  Have You Ever Felt You Didn't Know How You'd Get Your Next Sale?

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Re: private label rights - Don't think of PLR as just articles or written work. Also consider actual products. Example if you were to create or have someone create a "backlink creator", you can sell the PLR to that. In this case it can be easier to make more money and faster. Instead of you having to market and sell something for $20 sell the PLR to 100 people for $100 then they can sell for whatever they want. If you were to get 100 people to buy it at $20 that is $2000 for you. Now if you were to sell the PLR to your product to 100 people for $100, obviously that is better... So if PLR is done properly you can make a lot of money... I have some things I will be getting into in 2009 that relate to this subject, so I will share as I progress.
Make your strategy - First up, you need to identify where you want to go; 1. Who do you want to sell to? 2. How do you want to sell it to them? 3. What do you have to work with in the way of resources. 4. How much do you need to sell it. 5. What do you need to sell it. 6. What makes your product different to everyone else’s? I saw your design, you're a talented graphic artist, but immediately selling a design featuring only your logo without an existing market presence to back it may prove to be a mistake. Have you thought about offering a range of apparel, or even offering custom designs to people as an option?
Online Teen Magazine... Tips - If you're starting a teen mag, it's going to be about parties, sex and celebrities. anything else won't sell...you're going to have to decide whether you're going to sell to guys or girls...sell to guys...I hear that category is growing and easier to break into (less competition). what about wired meets playboy, with a new CD in every issue? 2. magazines are started by you going around to get LOI signed by prospective advertisers/sponsors 3. if you can do that, you can then think about how to get an editor
Re: Finance - Budgeting - A great way to stick within your budget is to find the right wholesale spot. Some wholesalers sell cheaper products than others, so it's definitely something you want to take into consideration. You want to get the best BULK cost possible for the products you need to sell. The smaller the cost, the more you can buy and the more you can sell it for. Come tax time, you'll have enough money in your pocket to satisfy the costs of the store's taxes.
Re: Do you have to have your own business in order to - Hi FreshGoods, In my country you can register a patent even if it's only in the idea stage. My x-boss used to register them all the time, then register again at the product phase. If you have a good idea, it's best to have a prototype to sell, however, idea is good too if you don't have the funds to build it. If your product is something people will benefit from you can always register it, manufacture and sell until the company grows and you can sell the company and retire young. Basically, the more advanced you are in the steps you can sell for more, and the investor will more likely to look at a real product than only idea.


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