A Bad Sales Tactic
I want to talk to you about sales. Good sales and bad sales. Let me start with bad sales examples. Yesterday I was reaching out to an organization that I was interested in working with. I called them and got some information from this guy and toward the end of the call he starts to give me the hard close. I appreciate that this is their job, they get paid by commission, and that they need to make a living. The unfortunate part was that I wasn’t in a position where I wanted to close on that particular thing. I got my information but what he was selling wasn’t something I wanted to use or purchase at this time. The salesman then began to insult me! He accused me of being a tire-kicker and I promptly ended the conversation. Because of that one telephone call, even though he’s not the one that runs the organization, I have no desire to work with anyone in that organization. Whatever you say when you’re trying to sell reflects the culture of the organization.
My sales team evokes a very specific personality as a direct result of my belief that your sales people are a reflection of the culture of the organization. When I make a call to people about my Mastermind, I start off with, “I’ve got something cool. Would you like to hear about it?” Because some people are like, “Eh, I don’t really want to do it.” That’s perfectly fine. If they do want to know more, I give them a little bit of information about how it works, why it’s really cool and different from anything I’ve ever done. I ask yet again if they want to know more. This is yet again, another opportunity for people to say no and close the door, but everyone has said yes! I go ahead, and I keep on going. I might ask a question or two, like have they done Masterminds before? Some people have.
When I make a sales call to someone, especially if it’s a first-time call, I say, “I don’t want you to make a decision today. This is not a low-ticket item. It requires an investment, which is going to get you an amazing return, and it requires time, which is also going to see an amazing return. Because what you learn is how to get more done in less time, and amazing sales, marketing, and mindset strategies. I say don’t make a decision. I want you to think about it, and I’m going to call you back in two days, and you’re going to give me all the questions you have about this Mastermind, because you’re going to sit on it, you’re going to think about it, you’re going to look at your calendar, maybe talk to your accountant, your financial advisor, your spouse, your partner, or whatever, and then you’re going to get back to me.”
The close rate for those calls is astronomical, and a big part of that is that I simply won’t accept a close on a first-time call, even if the client is begging for it! I want them to really think about what they’re investing in, so it removes any pressure they may have to commit. This is especially important if you are doing any big-ticket sales. If you are selling big-ticket programs, or big-ticket items, it’s really important to take that stress out of the conversations. When the pressure is off, I can express to them in a safe way that the only intention of my call is to have them feel like they would be doing themselves a disservice by not taking advantage of this particular mastermind, that they would be missing out on something really cool and awesome if they didn’t do something right away.
My main point is that you should never be made to feel low, insulted, or forced to make a decision in a sales call the way that crumby salesperson made me feel. Even though he later emailed me to apologize, I told him it was too late. Words said can never be taken back. Ever. That’s something I learned a long time ago.
Truth and authenticity are so important to me. In my past, I was surrounded by, influenced by, and acted like a pathological liar. I used to lie about small, stupid things. Things that had no reason to be lied about. 12 years ago, I made a vow to myself to never, ever again tell a lie. Never ever again will I ever say something I do not 100% mean. Otherwise, you hurt yourself or you hurt others in the process. In this case, it hurt this guy’s business because he thought if he would insult me he would bully me into my purchase. He wasn’t bullying for nickels and dimes either, he was trying to get a lot of money from me.
What I am trying to hit home is that for those of you that are in the selling business, take all the pressure out of the call as much as you possibly can. Ask as many questions as you can. Listen more than you speak. I was not a born saleswoman, and the way that I stop myself from babbling on, is to remind myself to ask prospects questions. I continually remind myself if I’ve asked a question recently, if not, then do it!
My last tip about selling is a lesson I learned from the Tony Robbins, Dean Graziosi, Russell Brunson live cast on April 30th. Full disclosure, I’ve already purchased this product but I truly believe in it which is why I’m sharing this knowledge with you as well. The lesson I learned is that the most powerful tool you can wield is your own enthusiasm. I am extremely excited about my Mastermind, and so when I speak to people, they feel my enthusiasm. They feel my excitement at doing what it is I am doing, and the outcomes that people are able to achieve. When you have a combination of enthusiasm and no stress, that’s how the most successful sales calls end.
I would love to hear what you do in your sales calls, because as I said, I am still a newbie saleswoman. I am learning from the best of the best, and if you’ve got some tactics, I would really love if you would share them. Don’t just share them with me! Share your knowledge with people who are also striving to be better sales people, better closers. Remember, sales isn’t about getting leads, it’s about closing deals. It doesn’t actually matter how many leads you get if you can’t close them. That’s why I do what I do now. I teach people not only how to generate those leads, but how to close them with videos and training like this.
I hope you have an awesome day. Be amazing. Be authentic. Be enthusiastic. Take the stress out of your sales calls, and you’re going to close way more than by trying to push people into something that they regret right after, or they really get pissed off like I got pissed off at that nasty salesman from yesterday.