I read a very thought-provoking article a couple months ago on Ian Brodie’s email blog (for those of you who don’t know Ian Brodie, he’s a British sales and marketing consultant). In this article, Brodie presented an interesting take on how you should be approaching sales calls and meetings. I think this concept is worth exploring, so I wanted to share it with all of you.
A lot of people approach a prospect with the expectation that they’re going to get business. According to Brodie, this mindset is fraught with peril. The minute you walk into a room or make a phone call with that attitude in mind, it will be telegraphed in your body language, your micro-facial expressions, your word choices, and so forth. It’s better to go into sales conversations with the intention of figuring out whether or not you and your prospect are a good fit for one another, and whether you as a sales professional have something of genuine value to bring to the table for this particular prospect. This takes the pressure off your prospect and builds trust.
If you determine that you are a good fit and that you have something valuable to offer the prospect, the simple closing question is, “Would you like some help with that?” This strategy is so coy, and I find it very intriguing. If you have an opinion on this topic (either positive or negative), I would love to know your thoughts! Just reply to this email (or if you’re reading on the blog, you can send an email to info@eefg.com).
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