What does it take for small businesses to make a sale?
According to statistics, one of the main reasons people fail at a sale is because of a lack of perseverance and trust. Sales are not usually closed after the first interaction.
They take a meeting and many follow-up calls before you can close the deal. So, what does it take to close a deal?
Know your prospective client
It is important to have a clear image of who your potential client is. You can do this by looking at the top ten customers in your business.
What do they do? How do you solve their pain point? What is their basic information? When you have a clear view of who your prospective client is then you can go looking for them.
Be persistent and build trust
Many customers do not like the hard sale. They will quickly put up a barrier if you approach them with hard selling tactics. It is better to be more-subtle and persistent in your approach.
If you have a website, create a blog where you share details about how your product can be used to relieve a potential client’s pain point. You can also show that you are leading thinker in this area of expertise by writing about topics which are relevant to your target audience.
Respect your prospect’s time
Even though you need to build rapport with your client, it is better to cut to the chase and state why you are contacting your client straight away.
A person’s time is precious and should you respect it when interacting with your client you will get a better reaction. Don’t waste your client’s time with useless chitchat.
Be honest
It is important that you are honest with your client. If there is a problem with their order let them know as soon as possible. Should you lie or delay letting your customer know about the problem you are experiencing, you could lose their business permanently.
Keep a record
When you interact with your customer keep a record of what you have said to them and what they have said to you. You can use this information in your follow-up call.
For example: let say you call your client and he says sorry I am not interested now and you ask if you can call again in 6 months and he says yes.
Then when you call back in six months you can mention when you last called and you can tell him how the product would suit him or if improvements have been made that will solve the previous problems he had mentioned.
Listen actively
Most sales people think that they understand the customer’s problem before they have spoken to them and found out. It is important to listen actively to what your client says and try to figure out if your product is a good fit.
Ask open ended questions and give your customer time to express what they need before you give them your solution.
Don’t be afraid of rejection
You need to have a thick skin to be in sales. You will often hear “no” but you need to analyse why the customer has said “no” and incorporate changes which will be useful to your sales pitch and discard what is not useful and move on.
By following these seven simple steps you will be well on your way to being a great salesperson
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