and recalled how I had tried to replace it a few years ago.
It had been leaking in the winter rains, and so I called a local
skylight company to come and take a look to see if the frame
needed to be sealed or if the whole thing needed replacing.
A young man came over a few days later, got up on the roof for a
few minutes and then came down and told me, "You need a new
skylight." When I asked if it was the wooden frame or the
skylight itself, he couldn't help me.
He said someone from his company would give me a call in a few
days and give me a price. When they called they told me, "We
can give you a flat skylight or a domed one. It's $750 for the
domed and $900 for the flat."
We talked about the pros and cons of each and I left it with, "Let
me think about it and I'll get back to you."
I'm still thinking about it!
This skylight company made several selling mistakes that seemed
very obvious to me. Ultimately they instilled zero confidence that
if they installed a new skylight it wouldn't continue to leak. The
young salesman never asked when it leaked, how often it leaked
or how it leaked.
In other words, I never felt heard. After about two minutes on the
roof, the diagnosis was clear (to him); I needed a new skylight.
But it wasn't cheap, and after all, it was just a drip...
Do you make the same kind of mistakes when it comes to selling
your services?
My experience with working with thousands of Independent
Professionals, is that most are not only bad at the selling process,
they are usually worse than the skylight salesman!
See if you recognize some of these selling mistakes:
1. You make recommendations too early in the process. Selling
starts with a diagnosis where you work to understand the
prospect's situation in great depth.
If the skylight person had brought me up onto the roof with him
to look at the skylight, asked some questions and pointed out
where the leak originated, I'd probably have a new skylight today.
2. You don't learn the desired outcome or future of your prospect.
It's one thing to point out the problem, it's quite another to
explore where the prospect would prefer to be.
If I was a skylight salesperson I'd ask about all the time and
hassle you spent during rainstorms putting pots and pans under
the leaks, and then have you picture what it would be like with a
leak-free roof no matter how hard the rain was falling.
3. You don't explain in enough depth what it will be like working
with you. Your prospects don't get a clear picture of exactly what
they'll get, how you'll work with them and what will happen. They
need to be briefed in detail to feel reassured.
My skylight salesman didn't even mention the process of
replacing the skylight. He didn't explain how they ensured that it
would be leak-proof and how they guaranteed its performance. He
simply gave me a choice of two skylights.
4. You close weakly and tentatively. Instead of showing
confidence that your service is what they need and demonstrating
that working with you is a good choice, you tend to waffle with
lame statements like, "Why don't you think about it?"
I never got a solid close from the salesman or the person that
followed up. They essentially said, "Here is what we have." There
was never a real invitation to choose one way or the other. And
you know how that worked out.
Selling is a Conversation
The thing to understand about selling is that it's a conversation
where you develop a real connection with your prospects. You
must listen and strive to understand their situation and desired
future.
When you are sure you have a solution for them, then explain in
depth how they will benefit and how your services work to ensure
the outcomes they desire. Finally, give them solid reasons to work
with you and invite them to get started.
Now I don't know if I'm a particularly hard person to sell. Maybe
I'm somewhat sales resistant. But I don't part with my money
easily unless the salesperson follows these basic guidelines.
What happened with the skylight? I never replaced it and it leaks
only every other year! I still don't know if it's the actual skylight
or the frame, and I may never know until I talk to a salesperson
who really knows how to sell.
*
The More Clients Bottom Line: Just because someone seems to
need your services, doesn't mean it's a slam dunk sale. You have
to know what you're doing in the selling process or you'll get a
whole lot of people saying they'll think about working with you
but never actually hiring you.
*
http://www.actionplan.blogs.com
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