Sales is not an easy job. It requires a lot of different skill sets and abilities to really be effective in this career. Often those new to sales or those transferring from one type of sales to another find themselves suffering from SDD.

SDD or Sales Deficit Disorder is not an incurable condition. In fact, by reviewing your current sales practices and making a few changes, you can actually cure yourself. Bad habits, lack of sales process and simply not having the experience are often at the heart of SDD, along with the following:

• Missing The Business Question – selling a product isn’t just about product knowledge. It is about asking the business for their business once they understand the value of the product or service. If you aren’t asking this direct question, don’t anticipate any response from your customers.
• Finding a Need – are you providing your customers with an answer to their problems, needs or challenges? By highlighting how your product resolves these issues in their life rather than on discount pricing or monthly promotions, you create an interest and a solution. Inform the client of how beneficial the service or product would be for them personally.
• Not Listening – while you are there to make a sales pitch, some very well worded, open-ended questions to find out what the buyer is looking for. Try to find the challenges they are facing or find the current deficit in their supplier, which will allow ] you to tailor the presentation to their needs.
• Being Easily Shut Down – the perception of the chance to make a sale will influence how much effort you put into the pitch. If you don’t think it will happen, you don’t try as hard and walk away on the first “not interested.”

By thinking of every sale as a strong possibility, you are more confident, better prepared and more resilient to those mixed messages that buyers may be sending.

 

Related Article: How Adding Value To Your Sales Process Will Increase Your Profit Margin

There is nothing more disheartening for a sales professional than to go through what looks, feels and sounds like a well-received sales presentation only to end up with an objection.

 

A sales objection can take on many forms depending on the relationship the customer believes he or she has with the sales rep. A good relationship may result in a more gentle type of objection such as “maybe next month” or “we don’t have the budget right now, but it is an interesting product.” For a more distant relationship or no relationship at all you may get a “not interested” or “your competitors offer better pricing, perks, service, etc.”

The key is to remember the type of objection doesn’t matter; it is all a way to say “no.” How you react after a sales objection is going to be critical to turning an objection into a successful sales closure. Learning how to overcome sales objections can help you make more sales and can also give you more confidence going into your sales calls.

Silence is Golden

Most sales reps go into hyper drive when they hear a sales objection. They immediately begin repeating key factors, sales points, and benefits of the product or service.

This is usually accompanied by the customer shaking his or her head in the negative and immediately moving to wrap up the meeting. This effectively shuts down the discussion and leaves you fumbling for a way to ask for another meeting.

A better option is to avoid this impulse completely. Take a deep breath, keep your face neutral and make eye contact with the customer. Count very slowly up to five.

Most customers will immediately move to provide a reason for the objection. That reason for the objection is a starting point for the next part of your sales presentation. In other words, they are telling you just what has to change for them to be able to make the purchase.

While silence after the objection may seem counterproductive, it is very helpful. This additional information provided by the customer allows you to ask a few more questions, getting a full understanding of the objection and allowing you to make another sale offer to eliminate the objection and move the sale forward in the right direction.

Learning how to overcome sales objections is key to your success as a sales rep. It is your responsibility to get past the standard objections that you come across in order to take your sales to the next level.

The Sales Coaching Institute is here to assist sales professionals and managers to become more effective at what they do. Visit our website to see our list of courses, coaching, and training option.

 

As a sales professional with any level of experience, there are several mistakes that, once made, turn even a promising sale into an uphill climb. These seven deadly sins of selling are easy to make, even by an experienced professional, so by recognizing the sins, you can create a plan to avoid them so that your future meetings will be more successful.

 

To help sales professionals, here are the seven deadly sins of sales and how they impact the customer and their willingness to make a commitment to a sale.

 

1. Wasting the customer’s time

Small talk, repetition, redundancy and “fluff” in the conversation is going to turn off prospective buyers, particularly if you are selling into the C-suite. Keep the sales pitch streamlined and specific to avoid this sin.

 

2. Not being fully prepared

There is no excuse today with information readily available online and in social media to not be prepared for your customer, the business, and trends in their industry. Of course, you also need to know your product. Take the time to do some extra research and refresh your knowledge of the products and services. 

 

3. Telling rather than selling

Selling is about filling a need, solving a problem and creating a benefit in the mind of the customer. Just reciting facts and numbers won’t accomplish this goal.

 

4. Personal accountability

Take the time to review your sales process and know what you are going to do in the sales meeting. Be accountable to yourself for setting goals and achieving them.

 

5. Lose faster (Get to Next)

don’t dwell on a point once it is made. Engage the customer or client, explore the possibilities of the product or service as a solution and move on to the next part of the process. Bogging down will lose momentum and interest.

 

6. Don’t internalize rejection

Avoid feeling personally rejected with a “no.” Instead, look towards the next meeting and plan for a new, creative approach to working with that client based on new information gleaned from this meeting.

 

7. Close at every customer touch point

Don’t wait until the end to close an order. Close and confirm on all points of agreement as they occur in the meeting and the conversation.

 

Another key factor to remember is that listening is a critical part of sales. By listening to the customer, you will gain insight into their needs and problems, helping you to avoid several of these deadly sins.

 

At The Sales Coaching Institute, we provide training and support for new and experienced sales professionals. To find out more, visit us online at salescoach.us.

Breaking Your Bad Sales Habits Is Possible

 

A habit is something that you start frequently doing, whether you were taught it or learned by trial and error. Many salespeople get into the habit of doing the wrong things, whether they realize it or not. If you wonder about bad sales habits and breaking them, you’re not alone. Many top salespeople have worried that they’re falling into a rut or doing the wrong things.

 

Poor/No Follow Up

 

One of the biggest bad sales habits includes not following up after the call or doing so incorrectly. Breaking this habit is something that should work hard on as soon as you notice that you’re slipping. Why would you bother to start something if you weren’t going to finish it? The follow-up is how you gain control. If someone doesn’t seem that interested, a follow-up could be just what they need to decide to buy.

 

Related Article: The Power of Positive Sales Habits

Busyness Instead Of Business

Almost everyone knows how to seem busy without doing anything. You may act like you’re cleaning the equipment at a fast-food restaurant, but you’re really leaned over playing with your smartphone. Every moment of your work day should be productive, excepting breaks and lunch hours, of course. Time is precious, and most people squander it away, not realizing how much it hurts their productivity and output, as well as their income.

Comfort Zone

There are times to be within your comfort zone and times to get a little uncomfortable in selling. However, always selling inside your comfort zone is just one of many bad sales habits that should be broken. You can’t achieve progress or growth if you never branch out and expand your mind. There are times when you want to work within the comfort zone, but it’s just as important to realize when to step outside the area and get a little uncomfortable.

Related Article: How Successful Sales People Grow

 
Contact us today if you are interested in breaking your bad sales habits for good.
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