In one of our earlier blogs, we have argued a case where tech alone cannot help in selling and selling well. Selling is an art and a science and weaves together psychology, business learnings, and personal skills. If we are to base our five on science, there has been enough research in the last 5 decades or so, to arrive at some conclusive findings that help in hugely enhancing selling effectiveness. We are primarily going to talk about some specific behaviors, which are easy to follow and practice. You will see a difference and a hike in your sales effectiveness that will prove how effective these behaviors are in selling.
1. Label the prospects: Labeling the prospect is very simple. Here, the salesperson assigns a certain behavior to a prospect and by doing so, sets an expectation of similar behavior from the prospect. In this case, it is not so important what the prospect was thinking earlier. Research has proven that when you label your prospect, he is more likely to behave the way you want him to. For example – If a prospect is being elusive while answering some important questions to the salesperson, and the salesperson labels him by saying – “You are very open you’re your answers and thoughts, thank you!” The chances that the prospect stops being elusive and starts being more open are much more. In fact, going by research, he will be more open. Labeling the prospect is a wonderful thing that can be used in enhancing selling effectiveness.
2. Rebel. React: It is found and proven that prospects rebel when salespeople create a sense of urgency for them to respond. When the above was analyzed, we observed that prospects feel threatened that their personal freedom to decide is being restricted and threatened and the salesperson is taking over their freedom to choose and decide. These create a reactive behavior in a prospect and he rebels without even thinking. This kind of behavior is extremely human and the pushier one gets, the more the other person rebels. Instead, if the salesperson ends by saying to the prospect – “This product will help you improve your quality 3x. But of course, the decision is yours.” There are greater chances the prospect falls into a responsive mood and is more positively inclined to you, rather than saying – “You won’t get a better product than this and since we are running out of our special offer, you must make a decision fast.” The latter statement will put off the prospect for certain. Salespeople should say the right things and ensure they never end up pressuring the prospect. It calls for tremendous patience, but it is a great skill to master.
3. Turn value statements into value questions: Typically, prospects never understand your value statement easily. They take their time. But one easy and scientifically proven way to make them understand your value statement easily would be to convert the value statements into value questions. These questions help amplify the persuasiveness of sales messages because they guide prospects in mentally digesting the value you offer and give them a feeling that it is they, who are going to take the decision. It is simple to create a value question – you need to add a questioning phrase, a short one, to your value statement. Example – “This software would reduce your HR operational costs annually by $200,000, wouldn’t it?” You could even keep a set of value questions ready, based on your key value statements.
If all the above sounds simple, it is. But it is proven to produce amazing results. We urge you to try these three selling behaviors to overcome sales effectiveness bottlenecks. Do share with us, your views and experiences. And get ready for a superlative increase in sales enablement, effectiveness and performance. Also, do read our other sales effectiveness blogs.
