Every sales person has his or her own technique, or method. That's a good thing. Selling techniques are the result of numerous forms of input that eventually became a technique. A sales manager may instruct their minions that this is the way their product or service needs to be sold.
The sales person themselves might have created a series of techniques acquired through their own personal experiences. Suffice it to say, there are numerous ways selling techniques get originated. I'm not suggesting that one format or learning experience is better or worse than another. But here's where it gets interesting.
How do you know the technique you're utilizing is effective? Some would suggest that the results speak for themselves—or do they? If a sales person experiences a certain percentage of success does this mean the technique is itself successful? Or, would the success percentages be even more impressive if a different technique had been utilized!
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to analyze results, but it does take an experienced sales trainer or sales coach to determine if another technique, or incorporating various other factors to an existing technique, would yield even more impressive results. With a plethora of information available from a host of sources, it's not too difficult to analyze selling results. The issue becomes more complex in the sale of most products or services because there are no absolutes in effectively analyzing the numbers.
I recently posted a blog on a recruiting web site relative to selling. Not surprisingly, several readers responded with the standard argument, “I don't know their specific product and therefore am not qualified to make suggestions relative to selling techniques when it comes to recruiting and placement.”
How absurd. Any effective sales trainer and coach can work with sales people to improve their results. Effective sales techniques transcend product or service.
As a sales person (whether selling a product, service or idea) when is the last time (if ever) that you had a professional sales trainer or sales coach listen to your selling methods or techniques? There's no justification in saying things like, “this is the way we do it at our widget company.”
Open yourself to outside review of how you approach the sales process. It's always productive to have your methods critiqued to enhance or change the way you are presenting your sales opportunity; however, this process should include someone with effective selling experience if it is to yield the desired results.
