How often do you make the difference?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gold Calling

Mitch;

This may be a good way for you to see where it is a world class sales trainer would be coming from to assist you at this stage in your career. Let me role play with you for a moment;

Let’s say you love role modeling for kids. So you decide to coach a baseball team. After the team is selected, initial practices are held, then games start and you begin to know the children because now they are competing. And competition illuminates personality traits far more than drills could ever allow you that much needed revealing window to their souls!

You begin to notice a boy you like not acting appropriately while under pressure. Specifically, when he strikes out, which isn't all that often, though more often than the best players on the team, he has a tendency to show anger or argue with the umpire. And on more than one occasion he has even thrown the bat, which is dangerous.

You are beside yourself, you don’t want to give up on him and throw him off the team. As he sulks on the bench after an episode you wonder what the problem is, better yet, what to do to help him?

Out of the midst of your uncertainty you decide to make encouraging comments. Then at a practice you get a moment alone that just sort of happens and you seize that opportunity to encourage him further and slip in a comment about how, while he ain’t the best player on the team, he is better than average for sure and if he works at it there is room for him to improve greatly. You go even further, saying you are very glad he is on the team because the best teams are made of above average talent guys like him that are willing to work extra hard, not of super stars!

Through regular effort you see an improvement. He settles down a bit, maybe getting the idea in his head that he belongs. Because he is not as frustrated or over trying to the same extent any longer, he gets a few more hits and this causes his confidence to soar. The result? You realize you have influenced that boy to have better self esteem. It was always in him but you helped to bring it out!

Now, in light of the story, is influence a negative thing?

Gold, another great post!

Your scenario is a perfect illustration of the importance of engagement. It's important to engage your team members if you're a coach, or your prospects if you're a salesperson. If prospects aren't engaged with us, we don't stand a chance. Top sales performers are excellent at engaging their prospects.

Skip

Quote:

Originally Posted by MitchM

I just don't use that kind of influence in prospecting - I don't do it.

MitchM

MitchM, do you use that kind of influence during selling? (after you have found a viable prospect?)

Skip

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gold Calling

This may be a good way for you to see where it is a world class sales trainer would be coming from to assist you at this stage in your career. Let me role play with you for a moment;

Interesting analogy using the baseball coach. With some good points. I think we all have a responsibility to encourage young people. If that's a personal story, you are to be commended.

Have you had any experiences, or can you give any specific examples of similar encounters in the selling arena?

You mentioned a world-class sales trainer. Who would that be? Did you get the story from him/her?

Some comments on MitchM's post, and ensuing responses.

I can't speak for him, but I sort of think he is using the word influence when he really means persuasion. There is more than a fine line of difference.

I would guess from his posts, that MitchM has a wonderful influence on those around him, and I would hope that he had a positive influence on his young students where he taught before he retired. That doesn't mean he is always aware of it, or focuses on it. Some things come natural.

Persuasion is something else. The message I get from reading his posts is that he doesn't focus on persuasion in his selling efforts.

MitchM has stated on this forum that he is successful in his field. I just can't muster up any reason to believe he is fibbing. And I'm not about to spend my time trying.

Now I am sure enough no world-class sales guru. Just a lil' old country peddler at heart. I can't help polishing off the old credo, "If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it."

I think the two words can rub elbows - kissin cousins or synonyms in some sense of the words - so yea, that may be something happening here, Joe.

Everyone - everything has an influence - okay, that's so obvious and general it's almost meaningless. So what are we talking about anyway?
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Skip, I don't attempt to either use persuasion or influence or convincing arguments to get someone into a wanting-what-I-offer position - I make an offer and if the person wants to know more with a strong and positive I Want That attitude I ask questions and present informtation relative to the questions. So during the selling there's influences of many kinds BUT they're not used for any kind of friendly persuasion in the conventional selling or closing systems - they're simply validation of the products and what the person wants - so that validation would have some influence obviously.
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Again, I'm an amateur student of Mr. Werth's "High Probability Selling" having read it four times and I continue to study it - but I'm not a good example of his system being used to it's fullest and I've not taken a class from him or his trainers.

BUT what I've found in that resource has helped me more than any other selling resources - leaving out conventinal methods of influence and persuasion and making convincing arguments are not things I do today - others may and they may be very successful.
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The analogy you posted is a good story GC but I fail to see how it's relevant - what am I missing here?

MitchM

Mitch - I relate to what you are saying, totally. We completely agree, In fact, I do not beleive that anyone can convince another of anything. This is the part that I am struggling to get across to you.

As you can see, if you - a professional sales person - do not comprehend what I am saying, there is quite a good argument why your prospects also will on occasion misinterpret you or your product/service. That is where asking questions comes in ... objections can be dealt with and no part of dealing with an objection or skepticism includes an attempt to convince.

We do not CONVINCE prospects.

However, I am in good company. A great philosopher, perhaps the greatest of all time, struggled intensely to share this (Socrates). Most people just did not get it. And that is okay, because "in the land of the blind the one eyed man is king!"

In order to emphasize this point, if convincing where the same thing as influencing, you would not be putting up an argument (meaning a disagreeing point of view), you would already be thanking me profusely for literally changing your life, making it possible for you to repeatedly be top salesman in your company and potentially dramatically increasing your commissions!

That last paragraph may influence you to consider that there is something here you are not quite grasping. Enough perhaps to have you look at it again. You may think to yourself "Maybe there is something I am missing? Maybe sales techniques are not meant to convince or force prospects to do what they are not interested in doing? Maybe what sales techniques do is actually help people make good decisions!"

The story about the boy in the baseball team is just an analogy. I mean there is never a time when we encourage prospects the same way, as this selling thing is not about the prospect's self esteem. It was just meant to show that influence is good (or can be).

The expression "He could sell snowballs to Eskimos" is not an accurate way of describing a sales pro. Why would we want to sell people something they don't need? The public perception of us and even the perception within our profession is total inaccurate. We actually help people with real needs to buy what we offer, that is it.

If you don't help them, the ones who need help, some will not end up with what they need. It is really that simple.

Of course, there are those prospects that never object. But in most sales calls there is at least one perceived drawback or misunderstanding. If not you are sitting with a skeptical (reticent) prospect. And skepticism, though the hardest attitude to deal with, can be handled.

Since it is now Monday morning and I want to sell rather than keep up this struggle, plus I have not the time to do this topic real justice, I am going to leave this thread alone. I have further decided not to contribute to the forum except for on those weekends when I have time and one night a week, likely Wednesday (again, unless I have social commitments). So I will have to leave this argument there.

Been a blast!

My last post was composed last night - I did not see your question Mitch. I will think about it and try to answer it on Wednesday evening. Thanks.

Of course, there are those prospects that never object. But in most sales calls there is at least one perceived drawback or misunderstanding. If not you are sitting with a skeptical (reticent) prospect. And skepticism, though the hardest attitude to deal with, can be handled.

Since it is now Monday morning and I want to sell rather than keep up this struggle, plus I have not the time to do this topic real justice, I am going to leave this thread alone. I have further decided not to contribute to the forum except for on those weekends when I have time and one night a week, likely Wednesday (again, unless I have social commitments). So I will have to leave this argument there. -- GC
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I fully understand some people in sales want to handle skepticism and influence perceived drawbacks before any kind of commitment is made - that's only common knowledge in what I've learned and studied in sales. Nothing new there. I also realize there are very successful people who work like that - that's common knowledge also.

When skepticism or perceived drawbacks come up without a commitment - it migh be like this: "I'm skeptical of your product helping me." I can easily ask: "If I can answer specific questions you have in a way that satisfies your skepticism then what will you do?" I did that this morning actually when I got a call on my mobile phone in a coffee shop.

If the answer is: "Well, we'll see. Even if I get my questions answered I'm not sure what I'll do. There are other things I'm also concerned about." I exit. The salesman who likes to run with that can have my prospect!

If the answer is: "Well, if you can answer a couple of questions to my satisfaction then I'll start on your products." I've got enough of a commitment to continue.

After that I want to spend a few minutes finding a little about this person to see if he/she is trustworthy and honest - as much as I can discern - answer questions, etc. At any point if that person fails to answer my questions, dodges answers and proves to not be paying attention in a way that I need I exit.

ANY influence will come after the fact - after the kind of commitment I just gave.

Likewise, you may also be wondering if maybe you're missing something I've said that could turn a key and open a door in your perception of sales - has anything I've said influenced you just a crack that way yet, GC?

MitchM

Joe Closer

I was fortunate enough to have such a trainer as a father.

He is almost 80 now and lived in the pre-Internet world. He never write a book because he preferred live training. So you would not have heard of him. However, I know several business owners who beleive he is the best sales trainer they have ever heard.

He even trained people at Dale Carnegie Canada!

Here is an interesting sales story for you. In his 74 year of stomping on the planet Peter Burke was representing a software company, he made a telephone call to Toyota. That phone call lead to a presentation and, eventually, to a $12.1 million dollar software sale. Today Toyota manufacturing worldwide is all run by a software program (Manufacturing Intelligence type) developed in Canada. Peter, my dad, ended up with the biggest commission check of his life and career.

We are developing a website to host his trainings.

In case you have not guessed, I too am a renowned trainer. I have spoken to more than 10,000 sales people in my career, though I always did it part time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gold Calling

In other words - in the past you lost the sale, applying what you've learned and mastered, in real numbers, how often does what you do actually end up with you dealing with this objection affectively and winning the business?

I can resolve most "common" concerns to the client's satisfaction a majority (+75%) of the time.

How often do you make the difference?

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