Sales...the art of persuasion!

For any company or organisation or even an individual, selling is one of the most important tasks to be and grow in business. Sales, nowadays is a very common word in daily life, but is it that simple to perform or too hard to learn? 

Sales, in very common words, mean the exchange of any commodity for money. But it's not that simple when one needs to perform it on daily basis. In life, everybody needs to sell, be it a product or service to a client or just a simple idea to a dear friend or family member.

If you see around, sales is one of the easiest profession to get a start for the career but very difficult to survive and when it comes to moving up to the top, it's one of the toughest one. And that's true because one doesn't need a very high professional degree to get the entry, but s/he needs the willingness to work hard and good command over the words. One doesn't need a very deep knowledge of language, but at the same time, poor choice of words isn't healthy. Humans are the creature of emotions and to deal with that, one requires the art of dealing with people. Machines run as per the given command, they never argue. But in the case of a human, one surely gets some or more obstacles, and that's where most of the sales people fail and try to run away from the profession.

A lot of people believe that those who are not good at anything else become sales persons. But I differ from this point of view. While it may be true in some cases, can't be true for all. I really believe that sales is more of an art and one needs a lot of presence of mind, intellect and long-term strategy with fast actions to be successful. 

But the main question arises here is what does it takes to be better at sales? Does it require only the hard work or something more than that? The obvious answer is, sales does not merely includes hard work but also requires an art of dealing with people. No good product or service can be sold only on the basis of the quality. Customers simply need more than that and that's the feeling of being important. No matter how hard you try to convince the customer just on the basis of quality, without giving the proper treatment to customer you can't enjoy success in any market. That's why a sales person needs to be more persuasive than being argumentative!

Every person who is involved in the process of sales, needs to develop a habit of dealing with people and that too with a sense of care. Today, there are thousands of books available out there in the market which are focusing on training the sales staff, but one book which is highly recommended for everyone is Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People. Though the book, written almost eight decades ago, was never meant for sales people only, but is highly effective when one is in the business of dealing with people.

For a sales person there are few points which I can think of as essential and must be practised in the process of sales.

1. Confidence

Be it your 1st ever sales call ever or a thousandth one, you must be confident enough to start a healthy conversation. If you lack confidence, nothing else may help you because; nobody wants to deal with a loser. Think of yourself for a moment, do you like to buy anything from someone who lacks confidence? 

2. Probing

First and foremost, find out the customer's need and desire, not the demand. In other words, try to offer solution, not just product or service. To offer a better solution, probing is very essential. Without it, things rarely work.

3. Comfort

Give the customer enough space to feel comfortable, so that a certain level of rapport is build during the conversation. Pay attention to what he talks, let him explain his requirements or wants, then and then only, go for pitching. In this way, you will be providing a solution, which, he will buy happily.

4. Avoid Arguments

Today's customers are smart enough to play with a sales guy, because they know that you are under pressure of target. Also, there are lots of options available in the market and that too a call away only. So, even if he has made his mind to buy your product, he may test you in various ways. Also, he will try to provoke you by talking about competitor. At this point, simply avoid the temptation of speaking ill of the competitor. Your prospect might already be the customer of your competition. Avoiding arguments will give you an upper hand at last.

5. Urgency & Closing

Now, when you have shown the benefits of your offering, don't let him run away very easily. If he has given enough time for meeting and discussion, many chances are there that he wants to buy it either from you or someone else. So why don't you? If he is avoiding closer, he probably is testing your patience and confidence. Don't lose courage and deal with this strongly and tactfully. Creating urgency is what you need at this point. If you succeed, deal will be yours. 

After all the heat is over, and the client has agreed to sign the deal, remember 'No wrong commitments' is the most important thing for a long-lasting relationship. Many sales persons commit more than they can deliver to get the deal. This practice puts them and the company in trouble at some point of time. So, promise only those things which can be delivered. It will help in winning customer loyalty.

Hope, this sales basics will be helpful in your next closing.

Happy selling!