5 Tips for Successful Selling
When I usually say that all of life is about sales and marketing people might think I am saying all of life is about pushing a product or service. Not at all. What I am saying is all of life is about being of value to others in order to make a living.
A sale is the business transaction whereby an item of value is exchanged for money.
Here, try on Wikipedia for size:
“Marketing is the process by which companies create customer interest in goods or services. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business development.[1] It is an integrated process through which companies build strong customer relationships and create value for their customers and for themselves.”[1]
Simply put sales is a transaction, marketing is a process. Just think of the old literal market where you had to prepare you stall, display your merchandise, and use the best sales skills to vend the items. In the modern sense these activities will be divided among individuals, organization even.
Should You Be in Sales or Marketing?
Smart money says that great salespeople don’t usually make good marketers and great marketers don’t usually make good salesperson. Logical really. If you are good and analyzing, promoting, branding, researching, advertising, all that backroom stuff you may not be the best person to pitch an idea or product in the intensely competitive real world scenario. For the art of the salesman is to sell and resell while keeping the customer happy that he or she has made the best choice available on planet earth.
1. Sell a product that you believe in.
Hey I can’t tell you to forsake the family business which is bringing in billions simply because you don’t have a passion for frozen yoghurt. Just learn the sills of management and get good advice. I’m talking about when you have a choice, sell something that you really care about that will make you money. That way you will look forward to waking up n the morning.
2. Remember that you sell yourself before you sell your product.
No, I’m not talking about prostitution. Though every salesman is an intellectual prostitute. The buyer must first buy YOU. We are talking good hygiene here. We are talking personality here. And beyond personality we are talking character here. Whether you are a relational seller or you just want to demonstrate the utility of the product make sure you are friendly and credible. You want to make sure to:
a. Smile
b. Be alert
c. Make eye contact
d. Listen
e. Manage body odour
f. Wear clean clothing
g. Pay careful attention to hair and nails
h. Demonstrate product knowledge
i. Be confident, motivated, and honest
3. Is Your product really worth it?
Business is about making money but it is also about adding value to people’s lives. To what extent is your product or service going to enhance the lifestyle of the prospect?
4. It takes time to spend a lot of money.
Don’t rush for a buying decision when selling
high-value products like real estate. People
who are smart enough to amass the capital to purchase a 5-bedroom in the suburbs
will need time to sleep on that decision.
5. Change happens.
This fifth tip will appear to contradict tip#1 above, but I must insist that you take this very seriously: don’t go broke trying to sell a product which has lost its appeal. You would not be foolish enough to try to sell black & white TV sets in an age of high definition colour. Right? So why are you hanging on to that sales job which has run its course. Go get retrained and sell something else. Life moves on. Adapt or die.
There are many more useful sales tips I can share with you another time but try these for now and ramp up your sales success.
