Many cringe when the topic of selling, or sales, comes up.
When told we are in the position of selling every day of our lives, its enough to make tummies turn upside down, but it’s true.
Whether you are an attorney whose livelihood depends, either now or in the future, on having another human being spend money for your services, or you are an IT professional whose responsibility it is to sit at a help desk and take phone calls from frustrated users, you are in the business of selling.
My first jobs out of college were in sales, so I’ve been right there with you. I’ve been through some of the best sales training in the world with L.M. Berry. I was sent out of town for two weeks of sales training before I was ever allowed out on the streets for what was, in retrospect, some of the toughest kind of selling in existence. I also sold real estate and title insurance. I’m in sales again as I run my own company.
Knowing we can’t get away from it, and it is our responsibility to be good at it, let’s talk about how to do it so it’s not so intimidating, okay?
Here goes:
The key to selling is…………………STOP SELLING!
What do I mean stop selling?
That’s right. Stop selling and learn how to ask good questions that you really want to know the answers to, not just questions you’ve been taught because someone told you to ask them.
- Learn what the other person’s business is all about.
- Learn what they do every day to make their product or sell their service.
- Learn how they got there.
- Learn where they want to go.
- Learn what’s working.
- Learn what’s not.
- …and so much more
So, yes, the key to selling is to stop selling, and start listening. Only then can you adequately even begin to think about what you have to sell that might be remotely interesting or necessary to the other person.
Bottom Line: The key to selling is to stop selling and start listening. Your time will come.
Thank to MB for the use of the image.