A question from the trenches

Dear Colleen,

What is the most important thing for my sales team to remember when converting prospects to customers?

Thanks, Jeff


Hi Jeff,

The most important thing to remember about converting leads into customers is that sales is about helping your customers – not yourself!

Top performing sales people always put their customers first, because they know that they will only succeed at an elite level if their goal is to help other people to buy, rather than simply focusing on selling something to them.

For most sales people, this represents a fundamental shift in their mindset. How do you begin this transition? By asking your prospects questions to find out what the problem is (or if there even is one), and then really listening to their answers – with no interruptions – to see if the problem is something you can help solve.

During any sales conversation, the best sales people only do between 20%-30% of the talking. The rest of the time, they bite their tongues, and actively practice their listening skills. Remember: selling isn't about telling a prospect what you think they want to hear. Selling is about starting a dialogue to uncover a prospect's problem, and then helping them solve that problem in the best way possible.

Top sales people never try to sell a product to a customer without first knowing whether they can help. In fact, top performers will gladly walk away from a prospect if they don't think the product or service they have to offer will be of use.

One way to improve your listening skills is to simply slow down. The next time you find yourself in a conversation with a prospect, once they stop talking, try counting to three in your head before you start speaking (and not as quickly as you can, either – think: "one one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand”).

This gives enough time for the prospect to gather their thoughts and start again if they weren't finished, but won't create an awkward pause if they are finished and are just waiting for your response.

Just trying this one simple technique will completely change the impression you or your team make on your clients, and lead to lasting profitable sales results.

Cheers!

Colleen