Selling Is 90% "Understanding People"

Guest post by: Virden Thornton
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The "Cold Call Presentations" Myth - By Virden Thornton

When Joe Gandolfo, a life insurance salesman was asked how he had sold over one billion dollars of life insurance in 1975, he said that all it takes is “understanding people.” Although Joe's response makes selling seem simple, his formula for success is one that can be recommended to you without hesitation, because it will work well for you as it does for insurance agents or for any sales representative for that matter.

In the insurance industry, as you may be aware, members of that profession get excited about someone who sells in excess of one million dollars in life insurance each year. In fact, they have an elite group of sales representatives they call the million dollar round table where individuals are recognized for their outstanding sales performance. To put Joe’s accomplishment into better perspective, it would take an average million dollar round table producer one thousand years to equal Joe Gandolfo’s production figures for 1975 alone.

Joe’s performance is almost unbelievable from any perspective. However, from his sales productivity, we see he is one of an elite group of superstars who have discovered the secrets to sales success. Therefore, when Joe suggests that it is the ability of a sales representative to understand and work with people, rather than technical skills or product knowledge that produce sales, you really should pay attention to what he has to say. Joe’s sales philosophy is simple if you don’t learn and use the techniques that will help you to get to know and understand your prospects, you will never be able to effectively use your product knowledge or skills of persuasion to produce a steady flow of sales.

In out Sales Success Strategies self-directed learning series , we explore some vital techniques that will help you to set the stage for getting to know people better. The first and most important step in the sales process is to build rapport with the people you serve. This is a vital step because if you fail to build trust, your prospective customers will never reveal enough about themselves to give you the inside track to help them meet their needs through the purchase of your products and/or services.

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The "Cold Call Presentations" Myth - By Virden Thornton

About the Author: Virden Thornton

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VIRDEN J. THORNTON is the founder and President of The $elling Edge®, Inc. a 23 year old firm specializing in sales, customer relations, personal coaching and management training and development. Clients have included Sears Optical, Eastman Kodak, IBM, Deloitte & Touché, Bank One, Jefferson Pilot, and Wal-Mart to name a few. Virden is the author of Prospecting: The Key To Sales Success, Organizing For Sales Success, 101 Sales Management Myths, A Realtor's Success Formula, and two best sellers 101 Sales Myths and Building & Closing The Sale. He also has a video/audio tape training program entitled Close That Sale, published by Thompson Learning. He has also authored a Self-Directed Learning series of sales, coaching & team development, telemarketing and personal productivity training guides. To obtain a substantial discount on two of Virden's new manuals, 101 Sales Myths and Organizing For Sales Success, just go to http://www.TheSellingEdge.com/book1.htm Note: You can contact Virden at virden@TheSellingEdge.com. You can also see an expanded biography at: http://www.TheSellingEdge.com/bio.htm
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Selling Is 90% "Understanding People"

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