Tuesday, May 15, 2007
What Makes Your Customers Wince
What Makes Your Customers Wince
You probably never considered this, but every customer/prospect you
call on has a built in wince-o-meter. The meter is activated every
time you do or say something stupid or pathetic.
Here's a list of things to avoid if you don't want to activate your
customer's wince-o-meter:
Wince - when calling for an appointment, avoid saying you're going
to be in their area and you want to stop by and introduce yourself.
Wince - when you're talking with someone and they seem agreeable to
seeing you, never ask, "When would be a good time for you," - you're
giving up your calendar. It's something only an amateur would do.
It won't make a prospect wince - but it makes me wince.
Big Wince - don't show up late for an appointment without calling
to give a good reason why.
Wince - don't begin your sales presentation by saying, "I know
you're busy, so I won't take up too much of your time." Everybody
says this.
Wince - don't end your sales call by saying, "Before I go are there
any other problems I can help you with?"
Wince - don't use questions that begin with are you, do you, can you,
and would you, because they invite one-word responses. It's also
the language of the mediocrity brigade.
Humongous Wince - never start talking about your product/service
until you know how it solves a specific dollarized problem.
Wince - don't talk too much - because the less you say, the smarter
you'll sound.
Wince - never say, "How soon do you need it," because it triggers an
"I need it yesterday response," which puts you in a reactive fire
drill mode. This one will make you wince!
Wince - never leave a sales call, with a qualified prospect without
setting up and confirming the next appointment. Failing to do this,
guarantees you'll be jettisoned into the telephone tag zone. This
may not activate your customers wince-o-meter but it sure does
activate my cringe-o-meter.
Let's switch roles for a moment. Imagine you are the customer and
you are scheduled to see 14 salespeople during the next week.
What can you expect to hear and see?
=> you'll see salespeople twitching and sneaking a peek at their
vibrating blackberries and cell phones.
=> you'll hear salespeople, before they ask the first question,
tell you how they can save you time and money.
=> you'll hear salespeople talk sales babble because they really
like the sound of their own voices.
=> you'll hear salespeople bring up the subject of pricing before
you (the customer) can do it.
=> you'll see salespeople who show up without a written sales call
objective - you can always tell.
=> you'll hear salespeople pepper their conversation with seal
talk - "Ahs" and "Ums."
=> you'll hear and see salespeople get discombobulated when they
try asking for the business.
These behaviors are enough to make anyone wince.
If your customers are wincing you won't be doing any convincing!
PS - are you the consummate sales professional? Do you have what
it takes to do what it takes to run circles around your competition?
Do you have a system for working new leads, a system for making
appointments, a system for qualifying your prospects, a system for
presenting your products and services, a system for dealing with
the dreaded price objection, a system for preparing proposals, a
system for following up, a system for securing the commitment, a
system for getting referrals?
Now you can get my 10 mini systems called, "Are You Complete To Compete."
Use it and you'll become the complete package!
Use this link to get the CD version
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/netcart.asp?MerchantID=39581&offerid=15605&q=2
Use this link to get the printed version
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/netcart.asp?MerchantID=39581&offerid=15607&q=2
You probably never considered this, but every customer/prospect you
call on has a built in wince-o-meter. The meter is activated every
time you do or say something stupid or pathetic.
Here's a list of things to avoid if you don't want to activate your
customer's wince-o-meter:
Wince - when calling for an appointment, avoid saying you're going
to be in their area and you want to stop by and introduce yourself.
Wince - when you're talking with someone and they seem agreeable to
seeing you, never ask, "When would be a good time for you," - you're
giving up your calendar. It's something only an amateur would do.
It won't make a prospect wince - but it makes me wince.
Big Wince - don't show up late for an appointment without calling
to give a good reason why.
Wince - don't begin your sales presentation by saying, "I know
you're busy, so I won't take up too much of your time." Everybody
says this.
Wince - don't end your sales call by saying, "Before I go are there
any other problems I can help you with?"
Wince - don't use questions that begin with are you, do you, can you,
and would you, because they invite one-word responses. It's also
the language of the mediocrity brigade.
Humongous Wince - never start talking about your product/service
until you know how it solves a specific dollarized problem.
Wince - don't talk too much - because the less you say, the smarter
you'll sound.
Wince - never say, "How soon do you need it," because it triggers an
"I need it yesterday response," which puts you in a reactive fire
drill mode. This one will make you wince!
Wince - never leave a sales call, with a qualified prospect without
setting up and confirming the next appointment. Failing to do this,
guarantees you'll be jettisoned into the telephone tag zone. This
may not activate your customers wince-o-meter but it sure does
activate my cringe-o-meter.
Let's switch roles for a moment. Imagine you are the customer and
you are scheduled to see 14 salespeople during the next week.
What can you expect to hear and see?
=> you'll see salespeople twitching and sneaking a peek at their
vibrating blackberries and cell phones.
=> you'll hear salespeople, before they ask the first question,
tell you how they can save you time and money.
=> you'll hear salespeople talk sales babble because they really
like the sound of their own voices.
=> you'll hear salespeople bring up the subject of pricing before
you (the customer) can do it.
=> you'll see salespeople who show up without a written sales call
objective - you can always tell.
=> you'll hear salespeople pepper their conversation with seal
talk - "Ahs" and "Ums."
=> you'll hear and see salespeople get discombobulated when they
try asking for the business.
These behaviors are enough to make anyone wince.
If your customers are wincing you won't be doing any convincing!
PS - are you the consummate sales professional? Do you have what
it takes to do what it takes to run circles around your competition?
Do you have a system for working new leads, a system for making
appointments, a system for qualifying your prospects, a system for
presenting your products and services, a system for dealing with
the dreaded price objection, a system for preparing proposals, a
system for following up, a system for securing the commitment, a
system for getting referrals?
Now you can get my 10 mini systems called, "Are You Complete To Compete."
Use it and you'll become the complete package!
Use this link to get the CD version
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/netcart.asp?MerchantID=39581&offerid=15605&q=2
Use this link to get the printed version
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/netcart.asp?MerchantID=39581&offerid=15607&q=2
# posted by Jim Meisenheimer @ 1:32 PM 
