There isn’t a relationship in our lives that wouldn’t benefit from this advice. This includes our relationships with clients.
What are some of the things that give sales people a bad reputation? They are pushy. They try to sell us things we don’t need just to get commission. They attempt to get us to buy products that we don’t really want.
I know this isn’t true all the time, be I fear it’s the experience I might have when I go in to buy a new car or talk to my friend who just started selling the latest wellness product. If you think about it, it comes down to feeling like they simply won’t listen, that they won’t truly hear my needs.
Think about how you handle different situations. If you meet someone and they have a need you can fill, do you start talking excitedly about what you have to offer? What about the last time you did a booth or expo? When someone came to your booth, did you have questions to ask them or did you just start talking about your product in the hope that they’d be excited about what you had to offer?
So often we worry that if we don’t talk about the product while we have the chance, we’ll miss out on our opportunity to sell it. We talk about what we have to offer as quickly as we can, hoping that something we say will make them think, “I’ve gotta have one of those.”
Step back and think about that rationally. When someone is talking to you as a salesperson, and they are spitting out as much information about their product as fast as they can, don’t you usually think, “How quickly can I get away from this person?” Whereas, if you were talking about yourself, how great is your desire to get away?
We all like talking about ourselves. By slowing down, asking questions and using your two ears twice as much as your one mouth, you are actually more likely to make a connection and a sale. In addition, you can show a person the right products because you’ve taken the time to understand her needs.
Put yourself in the customer’s shoes for a moment. Imagine attending an expo and you walk up to a booth that carries jewelry and accessories. What if the associate approaches you and asks some of the following questions?
“So tell me, what is your one piece of jewelry that you just can’t leave the house without?”
“Do you lean towards wearing silver or gold?”
“What colors do your wear most frequently?”
“What was the last outfit you purchased?”
“What struggles do you have when finding the perfect accessory?”
Did your responses pop into your head? Did you want to run away, or were you impressed that he was so interested in you? Now imagine being shown a couple pieces that fit the description of what you mentioned. How badly would you try to get out of the booth? After all someone has shown interest in you. How much longer would you stay in that booth compared to others that only talk at you?
Preparing ahead of time makes it easier for you to ask meaningful questions when you run into people. By asking questions instead of pitching your product, you show people that their needs are more important than yours. Instead of driving them away, you create a genuine connection.
If you use your ears in conjunction with some carefully crafted questions, your ability to serve people with your product skyrockets. You truly care about people and their needs, so ask questions that show you care. Your authentic self with shine through, and your business will grow in ways you never imagined.