Wednesday 17 October 2012

I sell therefore I am (a salesperson)

The real truth is that we are all salespeople whether we run a business or not, some examples in life are when you have been for an interview you have to sell yourself, when you meet new people you sell yourself and even when you were a kid and you wanted something from your parents you had to sell the idea to them to try and get what you wanted.

I was once on a training course and the question of what do you sell was asked around the room. When an electrician was asked this question the reply came "I'm an electrician, I don't sell anything", He couldn't have been more wrong and I believe that this thinking was possibly limiting him in his business and how big he could have grown his company.

The real issue in the UK is that salespeople have been tarred with a brush that some people believe that a salesperson is going to make them buy something they don't want and overpriced at that and won't do what they need it to, or that they will come to your home and not go until late and only when the police are called.....This is an unfair stereo type developed by TV companies for 'entertainment' purposes, in truth it's a very small minority that will mis-sell or sell with pressure.


Selling is all about listening to people asking the right questions and helping them with their need. Good sales people sell with integrity and in a holistic way. An old adage is 'we have 2 ears and one mouth, use them in that proportion' - Sometimes it can be tough to listen intently to someone, especially if we think we have something important to contribute, If you have trouble listening to people then use the technique of repeating what they say to you back in your head, this way you'll find it'll be harder to think of what to say next and you'll find you can more easily remember what they say.


So if you run a business, you have a product or service that people buy from you, therefore you are a salesperson, embrace it and become even better by learning how to sell and your business will flourish.



To your success

Paul

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