Marketing
Increasing Sales With the Right Wordsby Lorna Riley CSP
Words have the power to launch a thousand ships, or sink a fleet. When used effectively, they can skyrocket your sales. To increase sales, we must be effective wordsmiths.
When I took my first sales position, I thought, "No wonder this is a tough business. Look at what reps are taught to do: sell to sell--not assist, sell to quota--not needs, cold call to contact--not relate, be aggressive to get--not give, pitch to persuade--not confer, present to convince--not assist, overcome objections to close--not resolve, close the sale to end--not open." I was taught to cold call on strangers, take up their time with a "pitch," and then use closing techniques to grind them down--the "Half Nelson," the "Intimidation," the "Negative," the "Kids Against the Parents," the "Three Devil," and the "Sharp Angle" close. Give me a break. I had graduated from college as an English major and for four years, had been playing with the power of words to produce results.
Today’s savvy consumer will not tolerate cheap sales "talk." The old style techniques are in part responsible for branding the professional salesperson a "snake-oil slime-dog." Is it any wonder why the buying public resents sales people, when those who could have been friends are taught how to trick, manipulate, cajole, and strong-arm them into buying? (At least one old adage still applies however—make a friend, make a sale.) Many of today's buyers are well informed and well skilled. In fact with today’s on-line information access, they may know more about your product or service than you do.
So, what’s a pro to do? Reinvent yourself by adjusting your words. The old talk no longer applies in a sophisticated, global economy. Today’s professional sells out of integrity, decency, fairness, and genuine interest in the welfare of others, without compromising the best of one's offering. This approach strengthens the sale, increases the enjoyment level for everyone, and dramatically increases the likelihood of referrals and repeat business.
The new words start with an adjustment in our internal language, which triggers changes in our external behavior. The words are relationship based, consultative in approach, and create a bond upon which all sales must be based--trust. We must advise of the good and the bad, and make sounds recommendations based on the long-term welfare of the client. As Will Rogers puts it, "If you tell the truth, you don't need a memory." If you tell the truth not only to your customers but to yourself, you don't need to remember the "Half Nelson, Triple Devil Underhand," or any other old-style technique. Let’s take a look at the new words.
#1. Assist, don’t sell.
For starters, we’re not really "sales" people anymore. People love to buy, but don’t want to be sold. So, why fight city hall? Stop selling and telling—start assisting. Today we facilitate the buying decision by acting as "assistant buyers." We discover the needs, do our homework, compare options, make recommendations, and guide the decision. If you believe that you represent the best, then your enthusiasm will naturally transfer to your prospect. Every product or service has the ability to solve problems—find out what yours does best and assist the decision towards its strengths. When you are genuinely excited about helping people solve problems, you will help a lot of people solve problems and that means more sales.
#2. Fill needs, not quotas.
If all we focus on are the numbers, prospects sense desperation and tension in fulfilling a sales managers needs, not theirs. When the sales person adjusts the word "quota" to "needs, they can concentrate on the "deprived" population still needing their offering. With the missionary zeal of a Paul Revere, reps will enthusiastically look behind every bush for someone they can help with their product or service. Quotas are exceeded, because you are needed.
#3. Introduce yourself, don’t cold call.
I'm always amused when I hear managers bellow, "I want fifty cold calls today. Don't forget to be warm and friendly-now get out there!" Then they wonder why no one’s making cold calls. Today we make "introductory calls." Everybody can introduce themselves to the folks in the neighborhood, whether it's farming in real estate or visiting corporate high rises. When you live in a neighborhood or run a territory, introducing yourself to the neighbors is the polite thing to do. My father was employed by IBM and tells me that Thomas Watson Jr., former Chairman of the Board of IBM, would sometimes travel from New England to Florida by car. To make good use of his time, he would pick up an IBM plant manager en route and conduct a business meeting on the road. As they motored down the freeway, Mr. Watson would look out the window, point to various buildings and ask the manager, "Have we called on them yet? Are they our customer yet?" If the answer was no, he would instruct the driver to pull into the parking lot. He would then walk into the building and simply introduce himself. It’s the polite thing to do, and the right thing to do.
#4. Be assertive, not aggressive.
Aggression is out. It implies negative force, hostility, an attack, or violating rights. Look it up in the dictionary--you'll blush. Today we are "assertive." This means you've got the confidence and courage to ask for what you'd like to have happen. With aggression, someone wins and someone loses. Assertiveness is a positive focus and results are win-win. Which would you prefer?
#5. Confer, don’t present.
We don't give presentations anymore either—we confer. Conferring means "to consult with." Presentations are a one-way street. Who does all the talking in a presentation? The salesperson. According to Milo Frank in his book, "How to Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds," the average attention span is maybe three to four minutes. If you're yammering on for ten minutes, your "listener" punched out seven minutes ago. And then you wonder, "Why aren't they buying?" They probably weren’t listening. Listening is hard, active work. It’s easier to talk than listen, so why not give the easy role to your prospect? It actively engages their attention and allows you the opportunity to learn about who they are, their interests, and needs. It builds helps the prospect feel at ease, builds rapport, helps qualify, and pinpoints issues which can be addressed before they become concerns. When the prospect talks, they are literally teaching you what you need to know in order to assist the buying decision. Even if you are conferring with a large group of people, run a dialogue by asking questions and creating interactive participation.
Remember, whoever asks the questions, controls the conversation. You will still be in the driver’s seat, and also a more informed professional who can make the best recommendations.
#6. Resolve concerns, don’t overcome objections.
This is my favorite. We don't have to "overcome objections" anymore. It's just too hard to do. Today we "resolve concerns." Let’s say you’ve had a great dialogue and a concern is raised. The word "objection" sounds argumentative, so the typical approach has been to get defensive and argue the situation. "I’m right, you’re wrong." The atmosphere in the room thickens and tension builds. When tension builds, the relationship flounders, trust diminishes, and the sale can end in a power struggle. A concern however, is really a request for more information. People naturally have concerns, and it's part of our role to help resolve those concerns calmly, working WITH the prospect to mutually arrive at a new level of understanding.
#7. Open the sale, don’t close.
"Closing" connotes an ending. A wall comes down and a process stops. Do you really want to end the sale? Aren’t what we really doing is opening something? Don’t we want to open an account, open a relationship, open services and products to the prospect? Opening means the beginning. When we open the sale, it opens to a long-term, mutually rewarding experience. Let’s say you wanted to become someone’s friend, or get married, or start a business. Isn’t this effort an opening to the future? Making a sale is the same thing. You want that person to be your friend, get "married" to your product or service, and start a business relationship. The last thing you want to do is "close" this off. If what you offer has competition, we need to keep the sale alive by keeping it open. If we close ourselves off from our clients, we will lose them to the competition waiting with open arms.
Words have the power to transform our thinking and pull our actions in an empowered, positive direction. Psychologists say that positive word choices teach the subconscious mind what to think. About 90% of our thinking occurs in the subconscious mind, which cannot distinguish between what is real and what is not. If it’s fed positive language, it will replay that language back to the conscious mind in the form of thoughts and feelings. The mind then helps pull you in that positive direction. Instead of fear we feel connection. Instead of desperation, we feel relaxed. Instead of dread, we feel joy. This is what is meant by empowerment. The sales professional has every cell of their body and mind pulling to make the sale a reality, but only if the interests of the prospect are foremost. That comes from listening to the truth in your heart. If the product or service is a fit for your prospect, you’ll know it from the questions you've asked. If you truly believe it is in their best interest to buy, your sincerity and enthusiasm will be your best sales tool of all.
Bottom-line is this--the most effective selling today starts with using the right words. Words create thoughts and feelings. Thoughts and feelings produce behavior. If the behavior is positive and non-threatening, the sale will take place. See what happens with a strong word? If you think "will, not "might," "will" pulls you in that direction. When we think of assisting, introducing, asserting, conferring, resolving concerns, and opening the sale, we’ll bring out the best in everyone, make a friend, and make a sale.
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Lorna Riley, CSP, is the president of the American Training Association. She can be reached at lorna@lornariley.com or 760-639-4020.
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