Selling Simplified

Via my friend Brandon Hull over at Sales Team Tools, I found out about a new location to store and share sales related info, ideas, tips, posts and much, much more.

It’s called SalesMarks.com and is the brainchild of Jan Visser.

I joined immediately and got the tool added to my Firefox browser.

Now all I’ve gotta do is go out looking for sales related info to add, so I won’t feel bad about going over there and scarfing up all the links that other people have added for me to soak up like a sales sponge !

If you live to sell or sell to live, you need to join up and join in, so head over and tell ‘em Mike sent you. Or join and don’t say a word, just join.

Here’s Round 2 of the stories my friend Debbi Bressler sent me.

A guy and his wife walk down from their NYC condo to a restaurant for Sunday brunch.

Two little elderly ladies are seated next to them.

Waiter: Hi ladies ! Can I start you with some soup ?

Little Lady: That would be great ! What are the soups of the day ?

Waiter: Well, we have chicken noodle and vegetable right now. Our really good soup won’t be ready for another hour.

Little Lady: ………… ( speechless).

Okay. So the guy doesn’t have a career in sales ahead of him. But what would you say to that … besides:

” Okay thanks. I’ll be back in an hour. “

Again, why do salespeople, and waiters are salespeople, cast doubt, confusion and anger into a situation containing a prospect ?

Again, the answer is, they don’t. Not everybody in sales is a salesperson. Just as not everybody who walks into a garage is a car.

What would you think of customer service like this ?

A really good friend who knows sales, marketing and customer service called me today and dropped two bombs on me.

She knew I’d write about ‘em and she didn’t have time to write ‘em up herself.

A guy and his wife go into a furniture store for a mattress. Here’s the gist of their conversation with a sales associate.

Them: Hi. We’re looking for a king size mattress.

Salesman: Ooooh ! Too bad you weren’t here 2 days ago. We had them on sale for 15% off. Today they’re $999.

Them: Uh… yeah, that sucks. Can you get us that price ?

Salesman: Nope. Sorry.

Them: Can we talk to a manager ?

Salesman: Sure thing. I’ll get him.

They tell their story about having cash and wanting to spend it, but since the mattresses were on sale only 48 hours ago, can you sell it to us for that price.

Manager: Nope. Sorry, but I don’t even get an override on sales, so it won’t help me at all to do that. Can you believe this company doesn’t pay the manager on the sales made ?

Them: Never mind. We’ll go somewhere else.

Why would a salesman ever tell a prospect about a lower price that isn’t in effect any more ?

And why would a manager ever tell a prospect about his compensation plan ?

The answer is neither would, which means that neither are.

In case you didn’t catch that, there are a myriad of ways to converse with a prospect besides instigating anger, confusion and doubt.

Over at BloggingPro.com I saw the first of many posts about WordPress’ plans to set up a marketplace for themes.

I personally don’t mind if someone wants to create a professionally designed theme and them maintain and support it … for pay.

I’d rather pay for professional products and support than wait 3-7 days on someone who has a day job, a social life and an unprofessional attitude.

But that’s not the main reason I wrote about that post.

The first comment is. Check this out:

” … I tell you what, ill split profit 25/75. “

That was in response to the news that Automattic might charge 50% of the sales cost for their fee.

Why is the first response of an unskilled marketer/salesperson always a price cut ?

I’m thinking the unskilled, unlearned part of that equation is the main reason.

That and the fact they didn’t read this post .

There’s about 30 comments, as I write this, with people telling us they want quality, not necessarily the cheapest price.

Instead of cutting the Automattic price by 50%, why not sell the themes at the same 50% split, but add value in some way.

For instance, a tutorial on installing and pimpin’ your purchased theme.

Or you could offer free installation.

Or add value in any of 103 other ways.

Just don’t cut the price … unless you’re Pete The Price Slashin’ Pirate Parrot !

The next submission in my newly named The Simplenomics of Sales People is one of the two or three real secrets of my success. Without this trait, you’ll really struggle in your quest for excellence.

Persistence

It takes persistence to break down resistance. Simple, but true.

Some prospects have been purchasing from another supplier for a long time. Rarely will you break thru in one visit.

They don’t know you. They don’t trust you. They don’t need you.

Get over it and then get to work making yourself useful.

Repetition, with some variations to your message, will eventually allow you to become a fixture in their inner circle.

Persistence doesn’t equal aggravation, so don’t make a pest of yourself.

I’m not alone in touting persistence, so check these links for more info:

Don’t quit trying to sell

Persistence is a virtue

Sales Persistence Pays

My thanks go out to Glenn Ross, Mr. Customer Service, for helping me find the name for this series.

The next submission in my (potentially named) The Simplenomics Guide to Desirable Traits For Sales People or maybe Mike’s Simple Guide To Desirable Traits For Sales People is one of the traits that some old time sales masters believe you have to be born with:

Confidence

Before you attempt to sell your prospect a product or service, you must first sell him on you.

Unless you portray confidence in your company, it’s product or service, you have little hope in selling something to anyone. You may be lucky to be the one taking the order from someone else’s previous work, but don’t fool yourself into believing that you did all the right things at the right time.

As soon as you let your voice crack or your confidence waver, you start down the slippery slope that has a big ‘ol NO waiting at the bottom.

To further your sales education, here’s three articles that will help you build your sales confidence.

Build And Protect Your Sales Confidence by Shamus Brown

How To Unleash Unstoppable Sales Confidence by Gerry Robert

Exude Sales Confidence by Tom Hopkins

The next submission in my (potentially named) The Simplenomics Guide to Desirable Traits For Sales People or maybe Mike’s Simple Guide To Desirable Traits For Sales People is one of the hardest traits to master:

Diplomacy

It doesn’t matter if you call it tact or judgment, what matters is that without it, you’re never going to be anywhere near the top of your industry, sales wise, without it.

It’s simply saying the right thang at the right time and not saying the wrong thang at the wrong time. No more, no less.

What does in allow you to so that’s so important ?

It enables you to handle difficult, but profitable, prospects, clients and customers with a finesse that keeps you far away from those embarrassing situations.

It also gives you the ability to get rid of the difficult, but unprofitable, clients, customers and prospects, without destroying your credibility.

It allows you to answers sales objections without being argumentative, which turns prospects into customers and then into walking advertisements.

It also speeds your trip up the organizational ladder, without burning bridges.

The next submission in my (potentially named) The Simplenomics Guide to Desirable Traits For Sales People or maybe Mike’s Simple Guide To Desirable Traits For Sales People is one of the least understood traits:

Creativeness

If a salesperson has creative abilities, his or her future will be limited only by fear and/or willingness to take calculated risks.

The salesperson who can create desire gets the first opportunity to fill that desire.

I’ve been lucky enough to do this a lot in the past and when I caught on to the formula, which happens to work in my industry, I played it every time I could … and still do, with the clients it’s been proven to work with.

When a salesperson creates a feeling of optimism in a client, who then gets awarded a bid, that salesperson usually benefits from that feeling they created.

The least understood part I alluded to is this:

Stupidity is stupidity, even if you try to dress it as creativity or being different. Don’t try to be different, unless it’s necessary. Try to be creative, without going across the line into dumbdom.

I get salespeople calling on me all the time who bring up the dumbest, least thought out plans I’ve ever heard.

They attended a seminar or were told by some consultant to be different and the best they can do is to be dumb.

Lest I leave you without any actionable ideas, here’s the links I found thru Google’s Blog Search, pertaining to “being creative”

Copyblogger’s 10 Mental Blocks To Creative Thinking

How You Can Improve Your Creativity

5 Excuses For Not Being Creative

The Creative Approach To Marketing In Uncertain Times

Next up in my (potentially named) The Simplenomics Guide to Desirable Traits For Sales People or maybe Mike’s Simple Guide To Desirable Traits For Sales People is one of my favorite traits:

Imagination

When you were younger, slimmer and had fewer bills, you had a vivid imagination. If you still have it and can harness it, you can make a lot of sales, money, friends and have a grand ol’ time doing so.

Warning ! - if you hang around coffee shops all day and imagine things, without the effort to make things happen, you’re not on the right track, you’re basically a worthless fool, but the mental fitness type things in life are best left to my better half.

Somebody claims that Napoleon once said,” Imagination rules the world. “ Since I never met the man, I’ll take their word for it.

How can you rule the world of sales, using imagination ?

When you’re talking to a customer, use your imagination to help them visualize all the profits they’ll make when they use your product or service.

Tell ‘em a story that weaves in the facts about your cooperation, your service and your willingness to send them ideas and potential clients.

A constructive imagination will sweep away your competitors like yesterdays trash. Imaginative stories and ideas will seem like a breath of fresh air to customers who’ve only been “entertained” with dry details, facts, figures and me-me-me-ness by your former competitors.

If you’ll develop your imaginative powers to the utmost, you’ll develop your sales numbers in the same proportion.

You’ll also face fewer pricing debates and less resistance to your offers. Those might be good things.

As entry number two in the soon-to-be-officially-namedThe Simplenomics Guide to Desirable Traits For Sales People or Mike’s Simple Guide To Desirable Traits For Sales People, I bring you…

Enthusiasm

Are you genuinely and simply slobberknockingly happy with your job, position or career ? Or are you just goin’ thru the motions.

I love what I do. I could sell, market, teach and educate all day, every day and be happy. I don’t even want to really ever retire. I want to sell !

Enthusiasm breeds enthusiasm, so it’s easy for me to get my customers excited about their purchase.

Without enthusiasm, I’d be an advertisement, not a salesman.

With enthusiasm, I try every day to move a mountain … and then try to sell it !

If you don’t have it, start trying to find something you actually like to do and then find someone willing to pay you to do it.

That would simply be called success.