Selling Services
 |
Free Download - A Questionnaire for Businesses By Keith Thirgood |
Selling a service isn't the same as selling a product. Your prospect is buying an intangible. There are no shiny buttons to show off. You and your company are the visible representations of the service. You need to live up to them in your image. (marketing) And in how you "court" the prospect. (sales)
When you're marketing, you focus on opening your prospect's door. You're part of the day-to-day noise, which crowds in on her, every day. Your job is to break through that clutter and produce a good enough impression that she is willing to take the next step and meet with you.
Once you get to meet with a prospect, your goals shift. The two main goals in the sales meeting are to get the prospect to reveal their desires (needs analysis) and to see you as the best solution (positioning).
The sales meeting is your opportunity to take the positive image your marketing has created, and bring the sales/marketing cycle to a fruitful conclusion. In the sales meeting, the prospect must come to feel that you are more than competent, and that you can be trusted with her company, her career and her dreams.
The most important rule in sales: Talk little, listen much.
Spend 75% of your time listening. Ask questions and paraphrase the prospect's responses. As you do this, you're defining the background to the prospect's situation, confirming what their desires are, and discovering the prospect's personal agenda.
Note I say "desires", not "needs". Too many people try to sell what they perceive, believe or understand that people need. People don't deal very well with what they need, only what they want. Sometimes these coincide, but not always. Sell what your prospects want, their desires. Making dreams come true is a stronger sell--just ask Disney.
Once you've gathered sufficient data, summarize the key issues and their implications to the prospect's immediate and long-term well-being. The use of questioning, paraphrasing and summarizing, builds the perception of your expertise and trustworthiness. Your prospect will begin to believe in your ability to understand her unique issues.
And treat her issues as unique, even if you've seen them a hundred times before. Most people feel they are the only ones with their particular set of issues. Don't make them feel common.
It's important to assess your ability to live up to your prospect's expectations. If you can live up, then reassure the prospect with a simple, confident statement such as "I can help". If the prospect is interested in proceeding, begin identifying the parameters of the project. Begin by asking: "What's the specific end-result do you want to achieve from us working together?" Ask questions and follow-up questions to guide the prospect to begin defining the desired output and process, deadlines, budgets or other important project guidelines.
Before you get too far along in this contracting discussion, determine if your prospect is the real decision-maker. (If you haven't already.) Are there hidden decision-makers? (A decision-maker has the authority to approve or reject the terms of reference, any recommendations and implementation, can authorize payment and terminate the agreement.)
Tell the prospect what you need from her. Make sure that your prospect accepts joint client/provider accountability for success. Reinforce that you must be given the tools to succeed: access to information, people and other resources. Be clear about your fee structure. Make sure that your prospect understands it.
The sales cycle is completed by confirming the agreement in person and by following up with a written Letter of Agreement, or contract. It should contain your understanding of the Background, Project Scope, Project Plan, Fees, Expenses and Terms of Payment and any other relevant terms. For most small projects, don't get too wordy--one page will often suffice.
For many of us, selling is an uncomfortable, even frightening task. But it must be done if we are to have the chance to deliver the benefits we have to offer.
Good selling.
Selling Services - To learn more about this author, visit Keith Thirgood's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
| Article Tags: |
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is a best-selling author, top-rated speaker and thought leader on sales development. He is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
|||
Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
|||
George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
|||
Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained 4000+ students worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular home staging guides made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide, Portfolio Guide and Twitter Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
|||
Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Keith's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Green Realestate CSS Template Business Building Check List Using QuickBooks Sales Orders Make It Happen Take the Lead |
|
 | ||
 |
The Top 10 Guy Kawasaki Posts
Best Posts for Entrepreneurs | |
 |
More PR Resources
Press Release Builder | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
 | ||||
| ||||
|
|
 | ||||
| ||||
|
 | ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
 | ||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||