Welcome to another edition of What I Learned! Today we have some sales-related learnings courtesy of training. The team I joined about a month ago had gone through a two-day sales training session. Well, the trainer returned yesterday and we had a three-hour sales training, which another team member and I joined. Our trainer, Linc, was a very interesting guy, and aggressive about getting us to change. It really pushed me out of my comfort zone, but it was for the best. Here are a few takeaways.
The Behavioral Influence of “Stranger Danger”
As you can see from today’s image, stranger danger was something we discussed. It was a brief mention, but it really got me thinking. Linc said part of the reason that sales (especially cold-call sales) are so difficult is that we have built-in and automatic reactions to strangers. In his example, it’s so easy to think of the phrase “stranger danger” – it’s just automatic, we all think it without even thinking much. So what effect does that have on our ability to approach strangers, even as adults? This was very interesting to me, and I’m still processing it, but it does feel salient.
Never Just Answer the Question
This was an interesting learning for me as well, and connected with some other things I have learned over the years but never formalized. In sales, Linc said, you should rarely just answer a question; usually the question is really driving at something else. By responding with another question, politely, sometimes that can alter the course of the conversation for the better. I connected this to other things I have learned about seeking the motivation of an individual’s inquiries, especially when the answer would depend on the reason.
Other
I needed an “other” category because there are many things I learned that would require too much explaining or would be giving away the training for free. I would like to mention a few quick extras that I learned:
- Get an initial “no” for something you don’t want, maybe even as a joke, which eases the second response into a “yes.” For example, if you were to visit a business and the owner’s secretary asks why you’re there, you might say, “We’re from the City of Phoenix and we’re here to tax you.” (This was a direct example from yesterday.) Their initial reaction is, of course, probably a mix of shock and “no way!” with a little humor, hopefully. Then, the second ask might go that much easier. It is successful probably for a variety of reasons: it uses humor to charm, it allows for that initial “no” that all gatekeepers are used to saying, and it demonstrates this is not a typical sales call from a vendor.
- Spend more time listening than you do talking. Don’t you hate being sold to, instead of involved in the process of buying something?
- Establish up-front contracts during a sales call, just one-sentence that you both agree to before beginning. It is as easy as saying, “Would it be OK if I tell you why I called and then you can decide if we should continue talking?”
And here’s my final thought, it’s a quote one of my fabulous co-workers shared two (maybe three?) weeks ago.
“Your actions are so loud, I can’t hear what you’re saying.”
I think that’s a pretty good reminder to all of us – words are important, but actions are even more important.
