Page 76 - Training 2019

1. Don’t interrogate your client

Yes, you should have a set of great open-ended sales questions before approaching
your potential clients. But please don’t bombard them with those questions without
contributing some lightness to the dialogue.

Your client will simply close and both of you will waste each other’s time. Nobody
likes to be interrogated.

An effective tactic is to mix open-ended with closed-ended queries plus add some
jokes or unrelated stories. This will make the whole conversation more informal and
trustworthy. Help your customer relax and she’ll be ready to reveal to you more than
you expect.

2. Don’t give the same comments to each answer you get

It feels just terrible when someone you talk to exclaims “wow!” or “how
interesting!” all the time. I mean ALL THE TIME no matter what you say:

“I think this thing is good” – “Wow!”
“I probably need to know more about how it works” – “How interesting!”.

3. Fake enthusiasm is annoying.

Majority of people will feel that you are not sincere and… they will close up.

It is strongly advisable to listen to all the answers carefully and react
appropriately. And it is simple if you are really interested in what your likely
customers say.

4. Don’t rush your clients with answers

Each salesperson has their business goals. And we get it, some of those are time-

bound. However, no matter what the time-pressure is, it never justifies poor
interviews with potential customers.

The costliest mistake you can make is to jump from one question to another and not
let your customer say everything she wants. You may lose valuable information and
waste a chance to build trust with your client.

Also, people tend to return to previous questions when they have something more to
say. Give them an opportunity to do so and a chance to yourself to find out more
about your clients.

SALES TRAINING – IDENTIFYING OPPORTUNITIES 12
Updated - 24 June 2019