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Video: Sandler Rule #25: When You Want to Know the Future, Bring It Back to the Present

“Can you get me an estimate?”

“Why don’t you write up a proposal for me?”

“Well, just get me an outline of your plans for us and we’ll get back to you.”

Do these sound familiar? Possibly a “free consulting” nightmare that sales professionals see way too often? Well, we’ve got some bad news for you. You’re probably still going to hear these questions down the road. But that doesn’t mean you have to actually do the work.

As Sandler Training’s Roger Wentworth explains, you have to start a dialogue that gets the prospect to predict the future for you. It isn’t invasive, it isn’t a transparent question, and it simply forces both parties to understand the next steps in the relationship. If your prospect can’t answer a question about what would happen if a proposal fulfilled everything they wanted, then you may have to seriously consider if you’re in a “free consulting” situation.

Posted in Prospecting, Qualifying, Sales Development | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #21: Sell Today, Educate Tomorrow

As Sandler Training’s Karl Scheible explains above, it may be in the salesperson’s best interest to stop talking from time to time.

As odd as that sounds, especially when you consider that the stereotypical salesperson is never a stranger to conversation, it’s definitely the case that your verbal enthusiasm for selling your product may keep you from doing just that–actually selling.

Your early contact with a prospect shouldn’t be about diving into your service offerings or capabilities. That can be overwhelming and a bit transparent to someone who has had little contact with you. Your job is to qualify the prospect so that you can more effectively use the countless materials and selling angles you’ve accumulated to make a better presentation at a later meeting.

Devote your attention to asking questions and listening to the prospect build their own case for how you can help them. Once you’ve started the dialogue (not a monologue), you’ll soon be able to use your product knowledge to “wow” the prospect, not overwhelm them.

Posted in Presentations, Product Positioning, Prospecting, Qualifying, Sales Development | No Comments »

Sales Training and Golf: A Lesson in Repetition

So what does a professional golfer–someone who gets paid to play the game every day–really get out of coaches and practice sessions?

Trophies.

As Dave Mattson outlines in the video above, golf greats like Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer made winning second-nature. Sure, there was something to be said for natural ability, but any all-star in any sport or profession would only be a skilled novice or weekend warrior without constant training, reinforcement and daily practice.

There is no way to know what your competition is doing every second of the day. But do you really want to play the game where you take the risk of staying put while they are sharpening their skills? Practice is a no-lose situation. Once your prospecting marathon results in a good fit, you’ll have an unparalleled level of practice and preparation to take into battle.

Make sure you practice every single facet of your sales process. While closing a deal may be fun to think about, it doesn’t do you any good to simply practice that final step if you other skills fail to get you there. Like golf, it may be fun to think about getting a hole in one, but practicing your overall game will get you the best score at the end of the round. Get a coach, take an active role in developing your skillset and prepare to have bragging rights when it is all said and done.

Posted in Motivation, Reinforcement | No Comments »

Sales Training for the Prospecting Marathon

By Ken Edmundson

What does a marathon runner know about making prospecting calls?

Probably very little. Maybe nothing! However, the strategy the marathon runner uses to prepare for a race can help you become a better prospector. No runner started out as a marathon runner. They trained over time to build their strength and endurance to go the distance. The first day they couldn’t run 100 yards before gasping for breath. The first week was torture. The second week was a little better. The third week better yet, and so on. With continual practice, desire and effort, they became a marathon runner.

Take a lesson from the marathon runner. If you are struggling with 10 or 15 prospecting calls a day, how will you ever make 30, 40 or whatever number your prospecting plan calls for? If the novice marathon runner is gasping for breath after 100 yards, how can he eventually last for two miles, eight miles, 12 miles or 26 miles? He must condition himself.

While marathon runners may have their own trainers, you’ve got me and the rest of the folks at Sandler Training to give you a little sales training advice:

Pace yourself, and you’ll get there.

You may not get past six calls the first day without gasping for breath, but the next day you can do seven, the next day eight, the next day nine or 10 and continue that practice until you can go the distance.

An average sales cycle to move a new prospect beginning from your initial introductory call to closing a sale takes an average of 12 quality touches (and that is not 12 irritating voicemail messages) over an 18 month period. That’s at least one meaningful connection every 45 days. Remember, it’s 12 touches over 18 months on average. You can be better than average if you get better at your technique and better at your strategy. You don’t have to be a marathon prospector right away, but you better start your training program, rest up and get ready for the long road ahead. As long as you have a contact schedule and strategy in mind, you’ll see that finish line.

Ken Edmundson is the CEO of the Edmundson Northstar Institute, a Sandler Training franchise based in Memphis, Tennessee.

Illustration by Rob Green

Posted in Prospecting, Reinforcement, Sales Development | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #26: People Buy in Spite of the Hard Sell, Not Because of It

Countless people go through sales training seminars every year only to emerge with slick tricks, a few doses of confidence and a belief that they’ll be able to bully any prospect they meet into signing on the dotted line. While this may do just fine for the quick, lucky payday, it is not a system that builds long-term, profitable relationships.

The hard sell isn’t just about your demeanor, either. No matter how gentle you are with your words and interactions, you are still hard selling when you build your sales strategy around your needs–and not the prospect’s. Take the time to remember that the prospect buys for their reasons and not yours, and you’ll then be able to move toward deciding whether or not the transaction or relationship would be beneficial for all parties.

Posted in Adapting Sales Techniques, Closing, Customer Relationships, Prospecting, Sales Development | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #38: The Problem the Prospect Brings You Is Never the Real Problem

Wouldn’t it be wonderful for a prospect to accurately and honestly lay out all of their issues for you in your first meeting? This means no more seemingly-perfect deals to disappear, no more “perfect matches” to end with unreciprocated phone calls, and best of all, no more “What went wrong?”

The first part of any sales training program should teach you that your questions never end when the prospect first tells you what they believe to be their “problem.” When you refuse to take a prospect’s “diagnosis” at face-value, you’ve begun the process of accurately diagnosing their real problems.

That diagnosis, as outlined in Sandler Rule #38, is precisely why salespeople are paid for their services. A good sales professional listens to the prospect, probes further into their immediate symptoms and uncovers the prospect’s true pain–oftentimes revealing the actual problem to a prospect who couldn’t diagnose it on their own. When you treat their first symptoms with some skepticism, you’ll find that the real problem will later reveal itself–but only to those who know that the diagnosis doesn’t begin and end with “What seems to be the problem?”

Posted in Customer Relationships, Overcoming Obstacles, Prospecting, Qualifying | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #31: Close the Sale or Close the File

Through any sales training seminar you may have attended or any job training you’ve experienced, people seem to put a lot of energy into teaching you how to avoid or resist one word: “No.” The fear of rejection alone is enough to drive the timid and easily-bruised away from sales altogether.

So what happens when you spend months chasing after a “no” when you know it’s probably not going to be a good fit? The true “yes” that’s out there may have done business with your competitor. Sure, you’ve technically avoided a “no” for a while, but keep in mind that your job isn’t to run away from failure. Your objective is to chase after success. Avoid the slowdowns involved in spending countless hours trying to force a poor fit to do business with you.

Close the sale or close the file.

Posted in Closing, Overcoming Obstacles, Prospecting | 1 Comment »

Video: Sandler Rule #35: If Your Competition Is Doing It, Stop Doing It Right Away

If you simply differentiate yourself as saying you’re “the best” sales professional out there, then you can look forward to clients and prospects who will wander around to see if one of the millions of other “bests” out there are cheaper. This rule is simple. See what your competition does, and then make sure that what you do is incomparable. Having a unique game plan will help set you on the path to one-of-a-kind success.

Posted in Product Positioning, Prospecting, Sales Development | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #41: There Are No Bad Prospects, Only Bad Salespeople

Sandler Training’s Jody Williamson explains Sandler Rule #41: “There Are No Bad Prospects, Only Bad Salespeople.” Sure, it’s easy to externalize your problems if things aren’t going well. “The economy,” “they don’t know what they want” and “they just buy on price” seem to be repeat offenders in the sales world. Remember: as a salesperson, it’s your job to sweep those excuses aside. You’ll never grow as a sales professional if you leave every call thinking you’re just unlucky to run into the world’s pickiest prospects. Take responsibility, and you’re well on your way to a “Yes.”

Posted in Behavior + Attitude, Overcoming Obstacles, Prospecting | No Comments »

Video: Sandler Rule #49: Leave Your Child in the Car

Sandler Training’s Dave Hiatt explains Sandler Rule #49: “Leave Your Child in the Car.” No, we’re not advocating neglect. Just understand that the salesperson should be looking for neither approval nor acceptance from his or her prospect. Leave your emotions out of the equation.

Posted in Behavior + Attitude, Customer Relationships, Motivation | No Comments »