If you’re reluctant to sell you are not alone - it is something many people feel when starting in business. But it’s one of those things that disappears with practice - and in particular as you relax and develop your own style. Here are some tips taken from “Working for yourself”, a new guide from PRIME that’s currently in the final stages of production.
Fear of selling
Many people find the thought of having to do selling frightening. And it’s the thought that’s often the problem – not selling itself.
You can do selling any way you like, and you’ll soon develop your own style. It doesn’t have to be the traditional hard sell.
Sell your own way
” The only area where my age might count against me is in sales - because I’m not a brash young salesman. But I really don’t see that as much of a drawback. I have a nice letter that I write to people and that seems to work well.”
Graham Siggs, who started his own electrical testing service after being forced to retire from the civil service at the age of 60.
Reluctance to sell is conquered by knowing your customers well enough to know how to do them a favour - by selling them the right product or service. Being an altruist and being an effective sales rep then become one and the same thing.
Beating obnoxious salespeople at their own game
The reluctance to sell we are assuming here doesn’t apply to everyone, and it probably depends on what type of salespeople you have been exposed to in the past. But it is something many people express to PRIME, and it can be overcome by developing your own approach that simply avoids practices you are uncomfortable with.
Once you start your own business it becomes necessary to find customers on a regular basis. So don’t let bad sales experiences from your past become a barrier to setting up your own independent business. Resolve to do it differently - and better.
If you have a good product or service it stands to reason that there are people out there who would welcome the opportunity to buy it. It may sometimes be hard work, but you owe it to them as well as your own business to find such people and make them a clear offer they can understand. It’s then up to them to make the decision – to buy or not.
You need to find an approach to selling that you are completely comfortable with. You don’t have to turn into the sort of person you don’t want to be simply to sell things. Do it your own way - it may well be more effective and even fun.
Three neglected facts about selling
1. Selling is not telling
It’s more to do with listening. This is as true when writing an advertisement or sales letter as in face-to-face selling. You need to have attuned yourself to what customers are actually seeking to do it well.
In face-to-face selling, don’t talk too much. Ask questions. Listen intently for what the person really wants. Then talk about those aspects of your offer that are relevant to those desires.
2. Benefits trump features
More customers are interested in benefits than features. Enthusiasts tend to burble on about features, but what most customers are after is what these features can do in practice to benefit them and solve their problems. So when talking to a customer or writing promotional material highlight the most relevant benefits.
For example, uppermost in most people’s minds when buying a pair of secateurs is the objective – bushes neatly pruned or flowers accurately cut. Or they might be thinking about what they want the process of using the secateurs to be like – quick clean cuts rather than a difficult blunt action resulting in crushed stems. They might also want a safe and comfortable grip. These are all benefits.
By contrast the facts the secateurs you are selling are made out of Type 440 high-carbon steel and have a bypass design are features. They are things that a garden-tools connoisseur or metallurgist might appreciate, and they might very well be how the quick clean cuts are achieved. But they are not things on the minds of most people buying secateurs.
Because buyers tend to be most interested in the benefits, you are doing them a favour by concentrating on the benefits first. “These will give you a quick clean cut.” You could go on to say “that’s because of the Type 440 high-carbon steel and the bypass design”. But they might think you a nerd, so you’d be better off with “and they have a comfortable grip”, or simply shutting up.
3. It’s OK to ask for the sale
Once the customer is giving out signals that they are ready to buy, don’t just plough on with your presentation. It’s easy to do this if you are nervous, but it’s a mistake. You are wasting their time and they might get irritated and start thinking of objections just to annoy you. Selling is a human activity after all, and normal emotions come into play.
Most buyers much prefer it if you get to the point. So ask for the sale. Say something like “Do you want the green one then?” or “I can give you two for just £10 more” to move things on the decision. Then go straight to taking the money.
If you have a sincere desire to see the buyer get what they want you will feel satisfaction at the close of the deal, so move to it promptly. Asking for the money should also feel natural, because money is what allows you to provide this thing that they want - your product or service.
A very short guide to sales jargon
- Benefit - something that does good to the customer, and which you believe they may value. Something that solves a customer problem.
- Feature - how a product or service accomplishes something - hopefully a benefit that the customer wants. It’s usually best to skip over features that have don’t have relevant benefits when selling.
- Offer - the bundle of products and services you wish to sell to a particular group of customers. A special offer is a variation on the bundle promoted for a limited time or to a sub-set of the customer group.
- Prospect - someone you believe could become your customer but isn’t yet.
- Solution - just means product. The overuse of this term annoys almost everyone. Use the verb form “solve” instead. Genuinely think about the customer’s problem, and then explain what your product can do to solve it.
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PRIME has published “Encouraging older entrepreneurship” a report on how best to help older people starting or running their own businesses. It looks into the support needs of those entering self-employment after the age of 50, and at what PRIME and its partners can realistically do to help.
The production of this report, written in-house by PRIME, has been partially-funded by the Equal Diversity in Practice project, which is in turn paid for from the European Social Fund.
