The number 1 mistake that the website, Sales Mistakes: 10 Mistakes Every Sales Rep Needs to Avoid! (superoffice.com) says salespeople are making is not listening and talking too much. The author of this website Plaksij, states that when you are selling something, your instincts are to talk a lot, but this method isn’t effective. He then explains how pushy salespeople don’t go to far… meaning that we need to be considerate and honest. The next mistake that people make in sales is offering too much for nothing. By this Plakskij means that, “in trying to win the customer, some salespeople tend to offer too much help for nothing and in this way become an unpaid consultant.” He then explains to not give out too many insights without getting anything in return. The 3rd mistake that people make is not focusing on the solution, meaning as a salesperson you want to talk about the cool features of your product or service but this isn’t going to make a sale unless you can solve the most critical problem you prospect is trying to tackle. The next sales mistake that Plaksij touches upon is focusing on price and not value. The 5th sales mistake is making promises that you can’t keep. You should never overpromise or lie to your prospect because this will ruin there trust in you. The 6th mistake in sales is not having an intention to close a sale. The 7th mistake is not being ready to overcome objections, the 8th mistake is arguing with a potential costumer, and the 9th mistake is not doing your homework. The 9th mistake in sales means that need to prepare for the sale and find out everything you can about the prospect. Finally, the last sales mistake that Plaksij writes about is not getting access to decision-makers. In this he is saying that you can’t just sell to anyone and that to close a deal, you need to deal with the people who are qualified to make a purchasing decision. Otherwise you will waste your time. All of these mistakes from Plaksij are all things that we have talked about in class, and are very important to remember when going into sales.
BoweryJE22 3 thoughts on “10 Sale Mistakes”
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The ninth mistake you mentioned is definitely a big one because it is something not everyone thinks to do. Doing your homework on a potential customer can definitely help out. However if you find out too much it may come off as being creepy which would also not be a good thing. FInding a happy medium is the best thing to do as far as doing your homework.
I think that these are some good pieces of advice. I think that we naturally want to talk about ourselves rather than engaging with the client, which can be a big mistake. Doing your homework is also vital to a great sales experience. Nice post.
-Asher
I think talking too much is a natural response for a lot of people when they are nervous. Sometimes they may have no clue what they are saying and get side tracked so much that the conversation just dies. I have this problem a lot of the time, but I think this is why it is important to ask good questions.