Sales 2.0 and modern day selling are hot topics right now, as more and more sales professionals and business owners are seeing the benefits of applying these concepts within their day-to-day sales processes.

Social media and the internet have become big players in the business world, but few professionals really understand how to use these online tools to develop their sales techniques and generate qualified leads.

As many of you will know by now, MTD Sales Training’s MD Sean McPheat is at the forefront of the modern day selling revolution, and has written a bestselling book on the subject– entitled eselling® – which provides readers with a step by step guide on how to use social media and the internet to prospect, network and engage with the c-suite decision maker online. 

In November of last year, Sean was invited to give a keynote presentation of the concept of eselling® to over 1,000 sales professionals from across Europe at the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management’s (ISMM) Successful Selling Conference at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry.

The short video above is a quick excerpt from Sean’s presentation on modern day selling at the ISMM, which will give you a good overview of what eselling® is really about, and how you can put these techniques into practice within your business.

Enjoy!

Regards,

Louise

Louise Denny

Marketing Manager

Be honest; have you ever walked into a sales interaction or had a prospect come in the door and immediately say to yourself, “OMG! This is a losing situation?”

No matter how hard we try, often it is difficult NOT to make predetermined, and usually unfounded judgments about people based on first appearances. It is also likely that you have been the recipient of such prejudgement yourself.

I thought I’d just give you an example of the dangers in doing this in the form of a short, light-hearted, yet very significant sales story.

My friend and “super salesman” from the U.S, John Landrine writes below of a situation that happened to him very early on in his sales career that taught him never to judge a book by its cover.

Here’s what he wrote to me…

“Selling home cleaning and maintenance systems, I walked into the prospect’s home only to find it was very messy. In addition to the obvious potentially disqualifying conditions, it appeared that there was no working adult in the household. Add this to the fact that this was not a very good area of town, and well, I was a little disheartened from the outset.

Although we had some basic pre-qualifying parameters in place, it appeared, to put it mildly, that the senior-aged woman and her daughter were quite poor, not to mention that they also provided care for an elderly parent in the home.

The presentation went well, too well. They wanted the system. The problem of course, was how in the world they would pay for it. So, in presenting the offer, I went to the bottom line, immediately dropping to the lowest possible nuts and bolts price, which they accepted.

Never even thinking about a cash purchase, I went into trying to figure out how I could finance the system for them, and went into credit application mode. What I needed to figure out was what was their source of income, since no one had a job.

The daughter, astutely noticed that I was tip-toeing around asking the hard question, and exclaimed, “Oh!! You mean, where do we get our money?”

“Ah, well, yes.” I admitted. “I just need to know how you pay the rent.”

“That is Mrs Chappers! (Not the real name)” the daughter explained as if I was supposed to know what that meant.

Dumb founded, as the small group starred at me with smiles, I shrugged my shoulders to say, “I don’t get it.”

“Mrs Chappers!” The daughter insisted. “You, know…Mrs Chappers!”

I come to find out that the old lady owned a chain of beauty salons and beauty supply stores all over the state, about 25 locations! She was the Mrs Chappers of “Mrs Chappers Beauty;” a wildly successful business.

How did they pay the rent? They did not pay rent because the famous Mrs Chappers owned the whole building and many others. She was a millionaire! Also, the state of the current home was due to a recent death in the household and they were in the midst of cleaning and rearranging.

Well, I closed the sale and got a ton of referrals, which almost all resulted in sales. However, the price point was a serious problem. I could not go and sell all of her friends and relatives the same system for more than I sold it to Mrs Chappers, and she made that very clear.

Judging that book by the cover cost a ton of money. I never did it again!”

Of course, if your sales process includes ways to disqualify prospective customers out of the funnel, then do so. However once they have qualified, then trust the numbers and treat everyone, every prospect as if they are worth a million pounds!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by  Digital Art)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Can you oversell your product or service?

Is it possible to oversell to the point where you actually lose the sale, causing the buyer to change his or her mind?

In a word, YES!

Here are four common ways that you can actually lose a sale after it’s done and dusted!

#1. Continue to push benefits after a buying decision
The prospect has said “Yes,” and made the decision to buy. However, the sales person continues, usually while writing up the order, to push the benefits of the product or service. This can often cost you the sale.

You have to remember that features and benefits are not solutions. They are only solutions and only matter to the buyer if they solve a problem. When the buyer agrees to make the purchase, he or she has determined that the problem for which the product solves is so bad that it outweighs the cost of the product or service. That is an emotional conclusion, not a logical one. However, as you continue to push benefits without also reemphasizing the problem, you force the buyer to THINK more logically, and buyer’s remorse can set in before the ink is dry.

It is good to continue to reiterate that together, you and the buyer have solved the problem, but do not just push benefits.

#2. Bash the competition
The buyer already agreed to buy, and the sales person, now feeling victorious, begins to bash the competition in an effort to put more cement on the sale and completely shut out the competition.

This usually comes across to the client as fear and uncertainty. If you truly were not worried about the competition, you would not be talking about them so much. The customer begins to wonder if the competition may be better.

#3. Reassure the buyer
The buyer agrees to the sale and the sales person begins to do and say everything to make the buyer feel confident that their decision is a good one. The sales person tries to assure the client that they made the right choice.

While a bit of reassurance is necessary, it is very easy to overdo this. Don’t go on and on. The more you tell someone it is the best thing to do, the less they believe it. Know when to shut up.

#4. Try to justify
After the prospect has chosen to become a customer, some sales people feel the need to try to justify certain aspects of the product, price or contract. This additional form of attempted reassurance can be detrimental. Remember that the TRUTH needs little if any justification. Do not try to PROVE things AFTER the sale.

They say that talk is cheap.

However, too much talk can be extremely expensive!

Have you got any other examples of overselling? I’d love to here them.

Happy Selling!

Sean

(Image by Salvatore Vuono)

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Sales people can find a plethora of tips and tricks on closing sales, and sales managers can easily locate information on how to find good sales people to work with. Yet, there is not a lot of information for the sales person on how to find a good company to work with. Here are a few tips to help you find that company that will pay off for you, as you pay off for them!

#1 – Caution!
Unfortunately, besides actors and models, sales people are the most mislead group of employment seekers in the world. The sad truth is that there are tons of unsavoury, slip-shod companies selling all kinds of unproven and substandard products and services. These companies prey on new and eager, yet unsuspecting sales people that possess little knowledge of the industry.

These companies often promise pie-in-sky, get-rich-quick schemes that have little or no basis in reality. So as a sales person, the first word is be careful and do not be too quick to believe everything you hear.

#2 – Believe in the Product or Service More Than the Money
The second step in choosing a company to work with is to choose a product or service that you can truly believe in. Only sell something that you would sell to a close loved one, should they be a qualified prospect for the product or service. You have to believe in what you sell and choose the company on that, rather than the potential income.

To choose a company primarily because of the money you think you can make will usually prove to be a serious mistake. See the product or service in your heart before you see the money in your pocket.

#3 – Research
Now, do a lot of research on the company and the entire industry. Not only check the company’s web site, check everything else including complaints against the company, industry laws and future, competition and longevity. Keep in mind that a lot of the information you get from the internet may be bogus, so consider the source of all the information.

#4 – The Numbers
Finally, if the company qualifies to the point where you get an interview, ask the sales management some of these questions where applicable:

a. How long has the average sales person worked with this firm?
b. How long has the longest, most senior sales person been here? No matter how you phrase it, find out about employee turnover. If sales people leave within a few months, there is a problem.
c. What sales support do the sales people receive? How much of their time are sales people able to commit to actual selling, and how much is non-income producing responsibilities?
d. How long is the average sales process from ‘hello’ to check in hand and commission paid?
e. How long is the sales interaction, presentation?
f. What is the closing average for the average sales person?
g. What is the amount of the average sale?
h. How much is the average commission?
i. What is the closing average for setting appointments? How many calls does it take to secure one solid appointment? How many contacts with DMs does it take to set one appointment?

The Essential Questions
Please note that if the management is not intimately familiar with such numbers as closing and other sales performance and activity statistics, consider that a serious red flag and be concerned. If they have to guess or give you hypothetical numbers, watch out. They should be able to give you real data based on actual performance.

With the above type questions, you can figure out what is true about the commission structure and potential income.

As an example, let us say the sales manager told you that you can easily earn £1,000 per week and that most sales people make at least that much. However, from your questions you found that:

1. It takes 20 calls to reach 10 DMs to set one appointment. You realise that at a reasonable 5 or 6 minutes per call, it is likely to take you two hours to set one good appointment. Therefore, in a full day, you can set 4 to 5 appointments.

2. You also find that, including travel, the average sales interaction takes 2 hours. Thus, you can perform maybe 3 or 4 per day.

3. Therefore, if you took 2 days a week and set 10 appointments, you can then run the 10 appointments the other 3 days of the week at 3 or 4 per day. So, you can run 10, and as many as 12 appointments per week.

4. The sales manager also informed you that the closing average is 20% or 1 out of 5 and the average sales commission is £200.

As you can see, the numbers do not add up to what the manager is telling you. If you ran 10 appointments and closed at a 20% rate, that’s only 2 sales at £200 each which is only £400 not £1,000. If you were somehow able to run 16 appointments a week and close at 25%, you still only close 4 sales and you would still come up short.

Of course, that is a generic example, but if you ask the right questions, you can figure out what is real and what is smoke-and-mirrors.

Use caution – don’t believe everything you hear.
Choose a company because you believe in what they sell.
Exercise real due diligence in researching the organisation.
Study the numbers.

Then go to work!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by JS Creationzs)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Confidence: it is one of the most essential ingredients in a successful sales profession. You have to have a great deal of confidence and believe that things will work in your favour even when all looks lost and when you are getting a lot more “NOs” than “YESs.”

As a professional sales person, you must believe that you can achieve and succeed and do things that most people would consider impossible, and you have to do it every day! For many sales people, you do exactly that: you do what is seemingly undoable, overcoming enormous obstacles and closing the most difficult sales.

I Am Superman, Wonder Woman!
Let’s face it, when you made that sales presentation that had everyone salivating, when you asked those questions that seemed near telepathic, when you closed that prospect that said ‘NO’ 27 times; you felt invincible! It’s a great feeling. So then, how do you maintain that belief that you can do anything, yet keep your ego in check?

Below are a few quick tips to help you continue to feel like you can fly, while keeping your feet planted firmly on the ground.

Give Credit Where Credit Is Due
To keep a balance between confidence and arrogance, make sure that you apply the accolades in the correct areas and to all involved in the success.

You and Your Skills
Yes, part of the reason you closed that big sale was due to your sales skill, personality and training. You should have confidence in yourself and your skills. However, where did those skills and techniques come from? Did you learn everything you know about how to sell your product or service from yourself, or did you have help? Did you write and design all of the training material and sales literature you used? That great close, did you really make it up yourself?

Keep in mind that you are the product of the hard work and sacrifices of many people over a long period of time. You may be good, but you did not invent this wheel.

The Product or Service
Yes, have confidence, but remember that it is also not all about you. Understand that the reason you can be so confident is that you have a great product or service to back you up. You are selling something that will provide the buyer with a value greater than the investment. Did you invent your product or service? Was it your idea, concept and funding that lead the company to its current position in the market? Did you really have anything to do with the product or service you sell, or did you just apply for a job?

The Numbers
Now, I don’t want to burst your ego here, but you have to understand how this works. The fact is that when you close that big difficult sale and it looks like you did such a fantastic job, often it is merely the numbers, the law of averages.  In a word, “You were DUE.”

If you study how your selling averages work and the amount of attempts to closes, as well as the average sales ticket, you will see that as long as you maintain a consistent work ethic, those big sales simply equal out the averages.

This is not to say that you did not do a good job or applied extra effort. Applaud yourself for doing such a good job, but remember that it is not just that one sale. It is the accumulation of a long and diligent, continual work ethic.

It’s ok to be a proverbial superhero in sales. But just remember, there is also a proverbial kryptonite!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by  Ambro)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

“I’m in a slump right now…” “Our sales are in a slump…”

We hear this terminology all the time in the world of professional selling. However, just what is a sales slump anyway?

Most sales people refer to a sales slump as that time when sales slow down, and business slips into a quagmire. The main thing is that most sales people relate a sales slump and its cause to unfortunate circumstances, usually beyond the sales person’s control. It’s not their fault. I mean, no one gets into a slump deliberately, right?

To that common definition of a sales slump, I say…

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A SALES SLUMP.

Are there times when your sales may drop off? Yes. However, it is not due to unfortunate or even unforeseen circumstances.

#1 – You Reap What You Sow
The primary reason you see sales fall off in what sales people commonly call a slump, is due to an inconsistency in work ethic and a lack of understanding the science of selling.

As an example, a sales person sets a goal to earn £1,000 in commissions for the week. He has a 20% closing average. However, since he earns an average of £200 per sale; he sets a goal to close 5 sales, and here is a sample of what happens that coming week:

Monday – Sales person does three presentations and closes two. Earns a total £500
Tuesday – With referrals from Monday, he does two presentations and closes both! Earns £350
Wednesday – He does four presentations and closes two of those! Makes £450
Thursday – He does two closes and sells none, but having already reached his goal, he takes off early and hits the local pub.
Friday – He runs another strong referral: one presentation, one sale. £250. He then takes the rest of the day off for a well-deserved early weekend.

Our sales hero closed 7 sales instead of 5 and earned £1,550 instead of £1,000. He is ecstatic and feels he has a great month and career ahead.

What’s the Problem?
The problem is that this sales person performed only 10 sales presentations and he closed 7 sales. The problem with that is that 7 out of 10 is a 70% closing average. His average is only 20% or 1 out of 5. With a 20% closing average, he should have done 25 presentations in order to make 5 sales. He should have done 25, but he only did 10. He owes the “street” 15 sales presentations. What do you think is going to happen next week?

I Fought The Law and The Law Won
The “law of averages,” is a LAW, it will come true. If you flip a coin 100 times, it may land on heads 15 times in a row, but when it is all over, it will come out very near to 50 heads and 50 tails. Our sales person’s 20% closing average is going to come back with a vengeance!

The Following Week…
Still riding on the high of last week, our hero sets a goal to make £1,500 again this week with 7 sales.

Monday – Does 4 presentations, sells one. £185
Tuesday – Does 3 presentations, no sale.
Wednesday – Works very hard and gets in 5 presentations and sells one. £200.
Thursday – Getting desperate, he gets out and does 5 more and sells one. £225.
Friday – He begins to feel that he is doing something wrong, different from the previous week. So he alters his sales presentation on the next 4 calls, and sells none!

This sales person now begins to say, “I’m in a sales slump!”

The fact is that he is exactly where he put himself.  He is in the exact situation he created.  This is not a slump.  For this sales person to earn £1,000 per week, he needs to do 25 sales presentations every week, week in and week out, regardless of how many sales he closes. Instead, he is experiencing the results of the sales process for which he invested.    

#2 – You Reap What You Sow – Again
Just as the lack of work ethic will come back to haunt you, so will a consistent input of positive sales activity. When you consistently do the proper number of sales closes, phone calls and other sales actions, you will still occasionally have a period of a few “no-sales” in a row. However, that too is part of the process and not a slump, as you can count on closing several sales in row to even up the law.

Be consistent with the number of sales calls, sales interactions and other foundational sales activities and erase the word slump from your vocabulary. Watch your averages and do not allow your work ethic to lag when you have a good selling week.

My associate John Landrine in the U.S. has a saying…

“If the street owes you, it will pay you back with bonuses and rewards. However, if you owe the street, it will collect with interest and penalties!”

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by JS Creationzs)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Most sales people have aspirations of being the best in their field. Most have a desire to excel beyond their peers and rise to the top of their industry. One of the most frequent questions I get is, “How do I become a top sales person?”

Well, let’s relate the selling profession to other professions. In many areas, one way to recognise someone who is a qualified expert in their field, who has an abundance of knowledge on a particular topic, is someone who holds a PhD in that field.

The abbreviation PhD stands for “Philosophiae Doctor,” which is Latin for Doctor of Philosophy. Of course, I would say that term could not be any more appropriate to describe a master sales expert! If you want to become the best, then get a PhD, a doctorate in sales!

Sales Doctor
On average, earning a PhD or Doctorate’s Degree requires 8 to 12 years of study or at least 4 years after earning a Master’s Degree. However, one of the most appealing aspects of the sales profession is that time is not the issue. In the sales business, it is all about merit. Like a car, it is the mileage, not the age that counts.  In sales, it is not about time; it’s about productive activity.

How Many Prospects Have You Seen?

In sales, the true test of knowledge and experience eventually comes down to how many qualified prospects you have seen and how may closing attempts you have made.  The challenge then is to figure out how many closing attempts you need to perform in your business to be able to compare your knowledge to the level of a PhD.  Well, of course, there is no available science for this, but I believe below is a very sound idea on how to earn a PhD in sales.

How Many Closing Attempts Earns You a PhD?

Remember, the goal is to come up with a number of closing attempts, sales presentations, or interactions that demonstrate a doctorates level of knowledge and experience.  In addition, the method must take into account the vast differences in products, services, commission structures and sales processes.

My idea is to figure out what is the top annual income in your sales profession, determine how many closing attempts (on average) it takes to earn that earn income, and then multiply that number by three. 

In other words, find out how many closes it takes to earn the top annual income, and then close three times that amount.  Why three times the yearly amount?  I think it demands more consistency in work ethic, which is an integral part of achieving any successful sales career.

Use These Steps

You want to find out how many sales presentations it takes to earn the top annual income in your business.  Multiply that number by three and you have the goal to earn your PhD.  Here are the steps you can use to go about this.

#1 – Top Income
First, find the top earning sales person in your profession or industry.  That does not mean just in your firm, but in your industry.  Find a top-level sales person or consider what the highest level of sales achievement is in your company. In either case, get a number in terms of annual income that the big dogs make.

#2 – Average Sale and Commission
Now, find out what is the average sale in your business, and the average commission for that sale.

#3 – Divide the Average Commission into the Top Annual Income
Next, take the average commission earned on the average sale and divide that into the top annual income. This will give you the number of sales needed to earn the top income.

#4 – Times the Closing Average
Multiply the number of sales needed by the closing average to get the number of closing attempts needed to earn the top income for one year.

#5 – Times Three
Finally, multiply that number by three.

The resulting number is the amount of closing attempts you need to earn a PhD.

An Example
Let us assume that in your field the top sales people earn £100,000 a year. You then find that the average sale commission is £250. Therefore, on average, it will take 400 sales to earn the £100,000.  (£100,000 / £250 = 400)

Of course, the top sales people may have a much higher average sale. However, use your personal current average or the company average, not that of the top sales person.

Now, with 400 sales, consider the closing average. Again, this is your average or the company closing average and not that of the top producers. The closing average we will assume is 20%, or one out of five. Therefore, we will say that it will take 2,000 closing attempts to close 400 sales.  (400 x 5= 2,000)

Finally, take that 2,000 and multiply it by three and you get 6,000.

If the above numbers represented your business, and you put yourself in position to close, to ask for the order 6,000 times, you would have earned a PhD!

You see; prospecting skills, setting appointments, closing skills, knowing your business, understanding the competition, account management, referrals, everything must come into play for you to be able to perform the required number of sales interactions. 

How Long Does it Take?
How long  it will take to achieve a sales PhD in the above example, is completely up to the sales person.  The goal is to do 6,000 sales interactions. That may take one sales person three years, doing an average of 2,000 per year.  However, another, harder working sales person, may see 2,400 people per year and get it done in two and a half years.  Yet still, a sales person with exceptional cold calling and appointment setting skills, may see 3,000 people per year and earn a PhD in just two years!

Alternatively, for a less organised sales person with a lackluster and inconsistent work ethic, it may take six years to get there.   Figure out how many closes you need to get your doctorates. 

Then earn your PhD in selling your product or service and you are sure to become a tenured member of the sales elite in your industry!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Many sales people ask if they should buy the product or use the service that they sell. My answer is also a question in, “Do you truly believe in what you sell?” I will make this short and sweet:

“If you qualify as a prospect for what you sell, then the first sale you should make should be to yourself.”

I want to stress, that the prerequisite is that you must be able be a qualified prospect for the product or service. In other words, if you sell jet aircraft to Fortune 1,000 CEOs, then you probably do not qualify as a viable prospect.

However, if you fit the parameters of a prospect that you would normally go after, then yes, you should own the product.

Can’t Afford It
If your first thought is that of course, you would buy the product and you will someday, but right now, you just cannot afford it; then you do not believe in what you sell. This lack of true belief will cause you a ton of problems. You will lose more sales than you can ever realize because you will have to empathize with the prospect.

I Understand How You Feel
Any excuse you use for yourself, for not owning the product; you will have no choice but to believe and understand when the prospect gives you that same reason for not buying. You feel that you simply, and very honestly, do not have the money to buy the product right now. You know you are not lying to yourself, as you know your own financial situation. It is the truth, not a stall or an excuse. Ok.

However, when a prospect, who is equally as sincere, tells you that he or she honestly cannot afford it right now, you will have no choice but to believe them and accept that answer. You may use all of the rebuttals in your sales script, and rattle off the usual off-pat answers to the objection, but deep down inside, you will be saying, “Yeah, I understand how you feel, Mr Prospect. I can’t afford one either.”

Come Back Next Month
Likewise, when the prospect pleads with you, “I really love the product, and I want it. I just can’t do it today. If you come back next month, I’ll be ready to buy…” When this happens, your words may try to overcome the objection, but your eyes will be saying, “Yes, I think I will get one next month too.”

Create the Objection
In addition to the above, you will actually create more objections than you overcome, and ironically, they will be the same objections YOU use not to buy. If you feel you cannot afford it, you will get ‘I can’t afford it’ objections all day long. If you believe the price is too high, watch how many prospective customers tell you the same thing.

Get On or Get Off
If you believe in what you sell, and are a qualified buyer, then buy the product. That means, PAY for it! I am not talking about getting some free-be from the company. Aside from perhaps a small discount, you need to buy the product the same way your customers do.

Huge Return on Your Investment
If you want to energize your career, and dramatically increase your income overnight, try this: No matter how difficult it is, stretch the budget, sacrifice a bit, and buy your product from yourself. The brief pain of the expenditure will dissipate quickly, leaving you with the great benefits your product offers. You will reap the rewards and realise that it was worth the money.

When that happens you will begin to close with such strength, you may not recognise yourself, and your closing percentage will sky rocket along with your income. In addition to the benefits you get from owning the product or using the service, you will essentially get a raise. Oh, and let’s not forget, that when you closed yourself, you got a commission too!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by Digital Art)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

Due to circumstances well beyond your control, the new software version upgrade will not ship as promised. The sales team has anxious clients waiting for the upgrade, in addition to many prospects who are interested in seeing the new version. Moreover, the delay means that regular monthly maintenance fees are suspended and the sales team will not receive their monthly residual commissions!

Now it is your job to deliver this uplifting news to the sales team. Arrrgh!

In business, things do not always go as planned and there are times when your firm may have to endure negative, costly and painful information. How you deliver such information to your sales team is critical.

The Positive Sandwich
You may have heard of the concept of the positive sandwich, in when delivering disconcerting information, you simply position the bad material in between two positive discussions. Lead off with something good, quickly disseminate the bad, and then close with something good. While there is nothing wrong with this concept as it makes sense and works quite well in many situations such as public speaking; today’s modern sales people may need a bit more.

Start at the Bottom and Go Up
Eliminate the emotional rollercoaster. Begin with the worse news possible, and then deliver good news. Follow that by even better news and then the best news. Finally, show some example of this good news in action.

As an example, using our hypothetical software upgrade above, you would deliver the bad news that the upgrade is late as are residual commissions. Then, share the good news that the upgrade has additional features and benefits. Better news; that clients who upgrade will get a reduction in their monthly service fees. Follow that by best news that sales people will get a raise in their residual percentage. Finally, share an example of the good news with the fact that the new features will open up new markets and more sales opportunities for the sales team.

Expectations Shape Perception
The most powerful way to deliver bad news to your sales team is to shape their expectations of that news.

Have you ever felt a movie would be the best movie of its genre you have ever seen, only to find that the movie was not as good as you thought? Alternatively, the movie you thought would be a flop, was not as bad as you thought it would be.

A company earns $200 million in profits. However, the company failed to meet the Wall Street expectations of $206 million, and therefore did not perform very well. Expectations greatly influence perception.

When you need to deliver bad news to the sales teams, start by shaping their expectations of the upcoming news. Let the team know that in the next meeting, you have some very bad news to share. You do not want to exaggerate or lie, and you don’t have to. Individual human imagination will run rampant as sales people envision their own worst possible nightmarish fears.

Now, by the time you deliver the actual news, you can rest assured that it will be nowhere near half as horrible as they thought. Now use a nonchalant, light-hearted tone of voice when delivering the news and the sales team’s perception will be that the news was really not that bad at all!

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…

You made the initial contact through LinkedIn. You then directed the prospect to your company website for additional information. You emailed more documentation and now it is time to call to set an appointment. Fear begins to set in. Will you face a strong gatekeeper screen? Will the prospect have time to talk? Will your voice present the wrong image and ruin the sales process?

Right before your eyes, the phone seems to be growing larger, heavier and you wonder if it is your imagination, or if the handset suddenly grew teeth! You begin to think that maybe it is a good idea to try to set the appointment by email as well.

Depending on your business model and sales process, perhaps a purely or mostly e-selling process makes sense. However, for most sales people, the telephone is still an indispensable part of the sales process, and using too much email has increased their phone phobia.

Email and other e-prospecting and communication avenues are a critical part of doing business today. However, there are times when you need to put down the mouse and pick up the telephone!

5 Reasons Why You May Still Need To Make The Call

#1. Image Is Everything
To truly secure your image in the mind of the prospect, especially before your first face-to-face meeting, the prospect needs to hear you voice. Sending great emails, photos and everything else, cannot replace your voice.

#2. Personality
Has the prospect needs to hear your voice, you should hear his or hers as well. By speaking to the prospect, you can determine many personality traits not evident in email correspondence. Does the prospect speak very fast or slow? Is the prospect a formal, business-like person is she more laid back and casual? These are important things to know before a sales interaction, and people do not write exactly the way they talk.

#3. Rapport
Once you have some insight into the prospect’s personality, you can slightly adjust your approach to match. To create rapport, you need to appear similar or familiar to the prospect. You can accomplish this in a telephone call.

#4. Questions
Many questions and fact-finding methods require instant feedback. When you pose a question, often you need to know the prospect’s reaction right away to be effective. Sometimes, waiting for an answer just does not work.

#5. Real Person, Not an Avatar
Until you actually speak with the buyer, you are in a sense, an avatar. That is, you are a graphic representation of your alter ego. We all know that people can represent themselves to be anything they want via a virtual environment. Pick up the telephone and put a real voice and personality behind the image.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

(Image by Stuart Miles)

Stop scratching around for sales and learn how to sell the modern way with my FREE 40 minute online training session. Click on the image below to find out why you’ve got to be changing the way that you prospect and sell…