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Earn Your Doctor of Selling Degree

Written by: George Ludwig

Article Overview: To Become a Sales Superstar, Diagnose Before You Prescribe!

Earn Your Doctor of Selling Degree

I once traveled with an insurance salesperson who was meeting with a well-qualified potential client. After a few pleasantries, the salesperson asked a couple of minor questions and then began hammering the potential client with tons of information regarding insurance options. After ten minutes, I could see the buyer's eyes begin to glaze over. That's when I stepped in and asked the potential client, "What are you really trying to accomplish here? What's most important to you?" The client's relief was palpable. It brought home to me a timeless truth about selling: Buyers don't care how much you know until they know how much you care .

"But I really do care," you may protest. And I believe you. Most salespeople care deeply about their clients. It's just that many of us develop bad habits that create the perception of someone who cares only about making the sale. Buyer suspicion is high, and for good reason. After all, haven't you been pressured to buy something by a salesperson who hasn't taken the time to make you feel understood?

Even the best salespeople sometimes offer solutions before they fully understand all aspects of the prospect's situation. And it's understandable. Why? Because we live and work in a nanosecond society, which is all about moving fast and saving time. Potential buyers expect you to have the information they need now , and if you don't provide it, they will go elsewhere. On the other hand, too much information can easily overwhelm the buyer, causing him or her to-you guessed it!-go elsewhere.

In the face of this information quandary, what do you do? I'm convinced that being a sales superstar is all about diagnosing . You must narrow down and sift and sort through the information that's relevant to the prospect's specific needs, and use this research to prescribe a well-tailored, customized solution.

Of course, you know this already. The key is remembering to walk this delicate tightrope at the critical moment. Here's a visualization device I suggest to clients: Think of yourself as a "Doctor of Selling." That's right. Picture yourself in a white lab coat with a stethoscope and an encyclopedia of knowledge in your head and a wealth of appropriate treatment options at your fingertips.

Physicians know they must clarify the patient's problem and conduct a pragmatic diagnostic process before they can prescribe any treatment. Doctors of Selling follow an identical process: They diagnose potential buyers fully to uncover any needs for the salesperson's product or service. Through careful questioning, they assess buyer problems and areas of desired growth, and then lead the buyer to recognize those unfulfilled needs themselves.

The primary diagnostic tool of the sales doctor is questioning . Therefore, you must make sure that your questioning and listening abilities are top notch. Let's admit the truth: Too many salespeople believe that it's the "gift of gab" that makes them successful. They overwhelm, intimidate, and, subsequently, alienate potential buyers. But top sales professionals-those who truly earn the title "Doctor of Selling"-know that the art of questioning and listening is far more important than the dubious ability to "talk them into buying."

Sales doctors practice the 70/30 rule. They talk and ask questions 30 percent of the time and then listen intently to their prospects 70 percent of the time. To make the most of the 30 percent "question" time period, the RPM Questioning model is helpful: Reality, Pain-Gain, and Magnification:

Reality Questions: These questions assess the situation and perceptions of the potential buyer. They're generally used at the start of a face-to-face engagement to gain background information, establish rapport, and gain credibility.

Pain-Gain Questions: These important questions uncover the potential buyer's true need level as it relates to your product or service. Pain-gain questions reveal that the buyer has a hidden need or a very visible need, which in turn indicates the buyer's degree of receptivity. How motivated are they to close the gap between where they are and where they want to be?

Magnification Questions: These rarely used questions help buyers see all the negative ramifications of staying with the status quo. Sales doctors use questions to magnify the problems the prospect will experience if they don't purchase. Magnification questions also help prospects visualize all the benefits of resolving their problem or experiencing their desired growth if they purchase your product or service. In short, these questions magnify the buyer's problem and magnify your product as their best solution.

Do you see the elegant "science" inherent in this method? Of course you do! You're a doctor, after all! Now, I want you to do one small thing. Visit my website at and create your own "Doctor of Selling" certificate. Then, print it out (you can even frame it if you wish) and put it on your wall. This is the first step in retraining yourself to be a diagnostician first, a prescriber second. And it may be the best thing you ever do for your sales career.

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Article Tags: bad habits, critical moment, customized solution, good reason, insurance, insurance options, insurance salesperson, minor questions, perception, pleasantries, quandary, salespeople, suspicion, tightrope, timeless truth, truth about, visualization
Referred by: http://www.JustChangeIt.com



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