Have you ever lost a prospect's interest...by talking too much about your product or service?
- You need a dialogue, not a monologue.
- Put your "educating" responsibilities to the side.
- Start with a question.
Many companies spend thousands of dollars producing PowerPoint(TM) presentations, flip charts, and brochures in an attempt to provide sales aids for their salespeople. There is certainly nothing wrong with this type of material - but unfortunately most of it is not used productively. If you use this material during the period when you are still trying to identify the pain the person is experiencing, you run the risk of over selling your product and/or service.
The proper place for these aids is when you are delivering a presentation, and even then you should only be using those materials that help you demonstrate how your product or service can solve their specific needs and wants your prospect has mentioned to you.
Save the seminar on everything your product or services can do for later on. Right now, you're selling. That means your goal is to find out why, and under what circumstances, the prospect would buy from you.
Uncovering that information requires a dialogue, not a monologue. You must ask questions that will elicit the prospect's interests, concerns, and expectations. During your next initial interaction with a prospect, put your "educating" responsibilities to the side. Withhold your product knowledge and unique selling points. Instead, start with a question that will reveal the prospect's mindset about the acquisition of your product or service. Here is an example. Assume that you sell for a company that provides overseas shipping services:
You: I suspect you have some specific concerns about your overseas shipments. Why don't you tell me what they are and then I'll do my best to address them?
Once the prospect reveals his concerns or interests, you can ask additional questions about their significance. The more questions you ask, the more the prospect talks - and the more you will learn about potential opportunities for positioning your product or service favorably.
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