As I prepped for my sales conversation over the weekend, one phrase stuck in my head, “Don’t over-talk and ask as many open ended questions as possible.” In my opinion, I think I stuck to this phrase. Unfortunately, it led me to an issue I did not think I would have. The issue was that I did not get to the point soon enough and talk about my product.
While it’s important to learn your client and see if your product truly can solve their problem, all of that will go to waste if they don’t know what your product or company is.
We talked in class last month about how many clients can be solely focused on the dollar amount and demand to know the price upfront. Professor Sweet walked us through ways to bring up the bonding and rapport and promise to come back to the money question later. If I had been in that situation, I likely would have had an upset client who would kick me out because they know nothing about the product they want to know the price of.
For any of you who still need to have their sales conversation or somehow end up in a traditional sales role in the future, I would recommend learning from this mistake. When it comes down to it, you are there to try and sell something. Of course you want to care about the client and make sure it’s a good fit. Once you find out it is a good fit, don’t be afraid to talk about your company like I was.
testacr22
Very interesting perspective! I had never considered the danger of asking too many questions and never getting to the point. Being able to use experiences like this to better yourself in the future is a fantastic attribute to have. Hopefully I can learn from your lesson for my sales conversation!
I’ll definitely remember this when I have my sales talk this coming week as well as when I find myself in situations in the future where the client wants to know about the price and product. The purpose of a sales call is to make the sale which ultimately means you have to talk about your product or service to some extent. It’s always important to read your client and base your questions and/or statements around where they are at in the sales call.
I felt that the price question can be a make or break point for the sales conversation. It’s a delicate balance that must be navigated with the utmost care.