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Most sales trainers agree that there are a certain number of steps that need to be taken towards making a sale. Typically, these steps are something like this:
- Greet the customer, (or acknowledge, qualify, and open the sale, etc.)
- Probe to discover needs and wants, (or ask questions, sales interview, etc.)
- Recommend product, (or demonstrate, make alternative suggestion, etc.)
- Trial-close, (or first attempt to open relationship, etc.)
- Handle objections, (or overcome objections, re-state needs and wants, etc.)
- Ask for the order, (or close sale, open the relationship, etc.)
- Farewell and follow through.
In these seven steps, a variety of nuances are included, which allow for deviation so that the sale can be achieved at some point. Much too frequently, the salesperson and prospect who are, ‘fencing’ for the advantage, see the sales process as adversarial.
Often an inexperienced salesperson is so relieved at getting a positive response that the thought of making sure that the customer has everything he needs to gain full pleasure, enjoyment, benefit and satisfaction from the purchase, is easily overlooked. What a dreadful shame to all concerned!
How many times have we been left with a purchase that was exactly what we ‘thought’ we wanted but left us feeling less than satisfied with the new acquisition?
There are many products that come with accessories, and every salesperson should view this as an opportunity to attach to a sale.
The following examples help understand this point:
- A camera with a standard lens but no telephoto lens to capture wildlife in Africa
- A tennis racquet with no case to carry it in
- A tin of paint with no brush to apply it with
- A new outfit without matching accessories
- A new car with no paint/rust protection
- A holiday with no insurance
- A McDonald’s burger with no fries
According to a recent credit card survey, the average number of items on a retail sales invoice, including grocery sales was 3.3. Think about that, if the average grocery sale is, say 30-40 items, then there are a whole lot of cameras out there without film, or walkmans without batteries.
So how do we go about improving our sales satisfaction process? The first step is, understanding that it is okay to want to help the customer get the most benefit from what they buy.
For instance, in above scenario regarding the camera, if the customer had walked into a camera shop and said, “I want to buy a good camera”, the salesperson should have asked several qualifying questions to get answers such as:
- Good quality
- Easy to use
- Automatic focus
- Like it to be able to grow as my ability improves
- Must have a zoom lens
With today’s technology, nearly all cameras have zoom lenses, as a standard part of the equipment. In the above example, if the salesperson were to probe a little deeper, he might have discovered that the real and immediate need was for a camera with a much longer than average zoom lens.
After all, what the customer needed was a lens that would allow him/her to take great pictures of dangerous creatures from a safe distance where they didn’t become a lion’s lunch.
There are many other opportunities that this scenario would present as attachments to this sale, like a sturdy, waterproof carry bag, extra film, assorted accessories etc. This is what converts customers into raving fans.
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