Stay OUT of 'sell-mode'

One of the biggest issues in sales...

Salespeople jumping the gun too early and launching into 'sell mode'.

The prospect is at D, whilst the salesperson is attempting to drag them towards Z...

So, how do we know when this is happening?

Here's a few clues:

- The salesperson often does most of the talking

- The prospect does not engage & agrees to most of the things the salesperson says

- The salesperson talks 'generally' about the prospect in sales meetings. Lots of 'I think' sentences. No facts. Just assumptions.

- Pipelines full of hope

- The salesperson often gets ghosted

Trying to speed prospects through your sales process is self-serving and a zero-sum game.

Instead, think in terms of the prospect's buying process:

- Get off your agenda and onto theirs.

- Take great care to understand their situation.

- Create an open environment of trust, directness and honesty.

- Ask intelligent questions to identify problems, their associated implications and the cost of inaction.

- Listen intently.

- Respond in context.

- Empathise.

- Build a business case.

- Look for all of the reasons your solution may not be right.

The best salespeople work collaboratively with their prospects, not in opposition to them.