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The Sales Buzz Issue 233 - Selling With the Customer
August 13, 2014
Hi,

Selling With the Customer – You’ll Close More Sales

Selling with the customer will close more sales because the buyer will ask you for information they will let their guard down, and they won’t see you as a salesman.

Ask yourself this question: Who will potential buyers open up to, a knowledgeable technical professional who uses the product, or a salesman?

When you are selling do you sometimes feel that your customers start to back away from you or put their guard up?

Do you get smoke screen objections early in your sales pitch or when you try to make appointments with prospects?

These can be signs that your potential customers see you as a sales person and you would close more sales if they saw you as something else.

When a prospect sees you as a sales person they can sometimes perceive you as someone who has your own reasons to make the sal.

Someone who is thinking of the benefits to themselves rather than the benefits the buyer may gain.

They may also doubt your technical knowledge of the product as you are just a seller and not someone who uses what you sell.



In the sales training I present to my sales teams we look at how to change the buyer’s perception of the seller...


Changing the buyer’s perception of the seller

Changing the perceptions that your customers and prospects have of you is a sales technique that will close more sales.

You can use it in all types of selling roles: Direct sellers, B2B, Retail sales, and sellers that bid for high value contracts and tenders.

As a sales manager I’ve seen some really great sellers who smash their targets because the prospect views them as something other than a salesperson. They becomes someone the buyer trusts and views as an expert on their products or services. See the examples below to understand how this sales technique works.

Think of it this way, would you rather buy a car from a mechanic or a car salesman, which one would you trust?

So let’s start thinking about how you can use this technique...


Here are some examples of people already selling with the customer:

A waste and recycling salesman that gives new prospects the impression he is a driver or a service operative rather than a salesman.

A work-wear seller that has such a good relationship with customers that they see her as a Health & Safety advisor and regularly come to her for advice.

A utilities energy seller who approaches customers as they enter a national store. The seller connects the product with the store by offering the customer a way to increase their store loyalty points by changing their energy provider. He tells them they are currently spending so many dollars and getting no rewards. By changing suppliers they can claim loyalty points for one of their biggest monthly outgoings. No lies, no deception, just a re-framing of the prospect’s perception of the person approaching them.

The owner of a small business who sells and fits double glazing to homes. When he comes to do a quote he is in his work clothes and drives a van. The prospect sees the guy who will be fitting their windows, not a salesman on commission who takes their payment and they never see again.

And the easiest way to sell with the customer: Instead of a sales person you can become an account manager and be there to look after your customers old and new.


To make the sales technique work

The technique is to align yourself with the provision and use of the product or service that the prospect will be buying. You should also aim to get the right balance of re-framing the prospect’s viewpoint without going too far and telling, or insinuating, untruths.

On a car sales forecourt the sales people are replaced by overall wearing technicians. Their mission: to give the customer information and guidance on the best car for their needs.

In a retail fashion store sales assistants can be image advisors with a clear cut opening line that says: I’m here to help you to look good, not to sell to you to earn commission.

In a furniture store: Interior designers help you with colour choice and style of furniture. They are skilled advisors not shop assistants.

And wouldn't it be nice to buy a pair of trainers from someone who actually knows what they are talking about.

Change your character and use the sales technique of selling with the customer. A sales person offers few benefits to a buyer, but a consultant, guide, authority figure, adviser, and many other titles depending on your market, helps the customer. See more free sales skills training at Sales Skills...








I'm Stephen Craine from the website Sales-Training-Sales-Tips.com

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