Selfless Selling
January 11th, 2007 by Maribeth Neelis
The other night, I heard a knock at the door. I answered to find a young man with an agenda. Although I was not interested in donating money to an alternative art school in Des Moines, I couldn’t help but appreciate this guy’s delivery
He engaged me asking questions about my artistic passion and informing me of opportunities to contribute creatively; only then did he solicit me for a donation.
No money was exchanged, but I listened to his entire spiel because of his approach.
A recent post on Landing the Deal reminded me of this encounter. It discusses Chief Sales Officer Jill Konrath’s take on the detriment of being ‘over-zealous sales guy.’
As a rule people despise being sold.
“Whether you want to or not, you always communicate your intent. Prospective buyers sense it instantaneously and react accordingly. If they feel you have their best interests in mind, they’re attracted to you. Conversely, they’re repelled by any behavior that smacks of self-serving intentions.”
Some advice on selling a la Jill Konrath: Change your question, change your language, and change your role.
Your question. Regardless how much you need a sale, go into a meeting with a prospect asking–How can my product serve them? –How can I improve their situation?
Simply asking those questions instead of –How can I complete this transaction?–will change your behavior and put your prospect at ease.
Your language. When customers’ needs are at the forefront, you shouldn’t begin by discussing your product, but rather compel them to divulge their concerns, wants and worries. Sounds a little schmaltzy; but once you have them figured out, you can create a pitch that fits.
Your role. So yeah, you’re an insurance agent. But you have many roles–buddy, parent, co-worker, Lost fanatic. So when you attempt to make a sale, don’t think of yourself as a seller.
“Sales is the outcome of what you do, but it is not your purpose.”
Although you obviously sell insurance, remember that you offer a service to those you insure. You are knowledgeable in a complicated field; you’re not only selling a policy, but the security that goes along with it.
Read the entire post.
