Selling can at times be a very frustrating career. Messages left with no return calls. Repeatedly re-scheduled appointments. Promises broken or delayed. Getting blindsided at the last minute. Being misled or just set up. And, cancelled orders or sales when you had “spent” the money. I have experienced all of these on numerous occasions and I can tell you sometimes I just want to scream – “What’s wrong with people?”
Selling can also be a very rewarding career helping individuals and organizations achieve their dreams, potential and improve their lifestyle or success because of your effort, time, knowledge, experience and commitment.
But more often than not it all comes back to timing. Good timing, bad timing or just dysfunctional expectations on how things should happen and when. One of my favorite lines that I state frequently to my sales audiences is, “That people buy when they are ready to buy, not when we need to sell.” Timing? Effective prospecting? Attitude management? Effective selling skills? Appropriate people skills? Integrity based communication? Yes to all of these.
You can’t force the sales process. This doesn’t mean you should sit idly by waiting and hoping. What it means is that you do all you can do in a professional and effective way and then just let the process unfold. Sometimes it will work out favorably and others not so favorably. What’s the difference?
The biggest cause of sales frustration is expectations – expecting things to go the way you think they should or want them to without the simple understanding that some things take time, gestation or any number of other political, financial or decision process factors, many of which you can’t control.
So what can you do to ensure that you don’t push too hard, not enough or add tension to the selling and buying process from the prospect’s or customer’s
perspective?
- Relax
- Stay focused
- No matter what – remain professional
- Keep learning and growing
- Make no assumptions
- Always come from the prospect’s perspective
- Know the competition
- Learn everything you can about the prospect’s circumstances, needs, desires, challenges, buying patterns and decision process
- Keep the relationship open and professional
- Have a follow-up communication strategy
- Don’t let disappointment rule your attitudes
- Keep asking questions and discovering
- Manage your stress
- Accept disappointment with poise and confidence
- Don’t over sell or push
- Pay attention to little signals
I know this is a lot to consider but in the end, patience and persistence will pay off either with business now or later. Keep the “lifetime” value of the client in mind and not just the short term benefits.