Probably, among the readers there are people who have not yet given up on their own lives, strive for success and are ready to learn new and useful things every day. It is for such individuals that this article is written.
Having studied the simple 5 sales rules and following them, almost every manager can increase the income of the company in which he works, and therefore his own level of income. The following is intended to help many people, regardless of their age and gender, form a new unexpected look at seemingly ordinary things, at themselves and their own actions, and most importantly - open up new opportunities!
The purpose of learning sales techniques
The aim of studying various sales techniques formed from the vast experience of experts is to achieve such a level of skill when sales turn not only into a way to earn money, but also into a surprisingly interesting occupation, and very often it is a lifelong business.
Rules for the sale of goods
Out of a large number of practical skills that were acquired by many experts over a long period of time with the expenditure of tremendous effort and making a lot of mistakes, 5 rules for selling goods were formed. Each manager or seller must know these rules in order to achieve high results, because it is known that properly organized sales are already 75% of success in any business.
When starting a business, almost every beginner, and often an experienced businessman, focuses on creating business plans, searching for business partners, advertising, etc. Having passed the steps that are sufficient from the point of view of a beginning entrepreneur, the owner of the company is waiting for customers, and they for some reason they don’t come, although the above steps are performed perfectly. A very common problem, is not it ?!
Do not go deeper into “debriefing” and look for the cause of failures in the depths of the processes. She is on the surface. Simply, people who decide to engage in sales must love to sell, they must be able to communicate with customers. In the end, sales should become for the manager not a hard job, but a kind of hobby. Of course, certain knowledge in this area is also needed, and most importantly, putting this knowledge into practice. Many well-known 5 sales rules, the technique of which is quite simple, are persistently not applied by sellers in practice. But, using the described basic theory in your work, you will gain the opportunity to successfully close nine out of ten transactions.
Sales stages
Consider the basic 5 rules of sales, without which the personnel will succeed in any trading company turning into a dubious or, in any case, distant prospect. In reality, these are not even rules, but the stages of any transaction. The accuracy of the manager’s fulfillment of each item from the 5 basic sales rules determines whether the transaction will be successful for the seller or will result in wasted time and effort.
So, in order to sell any product, we move on points. We follow each rule. 5 p. In sales, or rather, its achievement and completion - this is success.
Point-rule 1. We establish contact
It is proved in practice: the very first item from the list of 5 sales rules is one of the most important. The result of the sale, that is, whether it will be successful, is formed in the first minute of the manager’s communication with the client.
We form an opinion about ourselves
It is simply necessary for the manager to form a customer’s opinion of himself as a professional, able to solve the problems of a visitor to a store or office, and also as a person who will necessarily take care of the interests of the client.You need to literally radiate energy and fill the communication process with enthusiasm. The outcome of the case is largely decided depending on the level of internal confidence of the seller in the product that he offers.
The importance of little things in forming a first impression
By observing the rules of business etiquette, each manager makes the client feel comfortable and also feel their own importance.
No need to dress extravagantly, you need to look respectable. Demonstrating a defiant neckline or tattoos can easily scare away a client.
The seller’s continuous speech, when he does not give the customer a word to insert into the conversation, in most cases is a waste of time and effort. Each client knows perfectly well what he wants, and even if he is not sure, he is annoyed that he cannot share his own opinion in the process of talking with the seller. In order to defeat this habit, sellers should learn the technique of active listening. This is one of the most important points of the 5 rules of the sales manager. Below we dwell on this rule, but in general we can say that it is better for the client to speak, and the seller should listen at the initial stage.
Smile and compliments
Absolutely every person likes appropriate and subtle compliments directed at him. In addition, the location of people is very easy to call with a sincere smile. In general, these simple moments when communicating, if used correctly and unobtrusively, can create a favorable environment, and it is in such an atmosphere that the buyer most often makes a positive decision to buy a particular product.
Rule 2: Apply Active Listening Techniques
As noted above, an active listening is a very important point for each seller to study from the 5 basic rules of sales. Well-known psychologists offer several tricks that all sales managers need to learn.
Active Listening Techniques
So, specific examples of active listening techniques are presented:
- Non-verbal accompaniment. This is when the seller looks into the eyes of his interlocutor, assumes an understanding posture, nods his head, etc.
- Emotional repetition. Quite often, an expression of enthusiasm is appropriate. For example, the seller’s question completing the transaction: “Do I understand correctly?” Is most often accompanied by the buyer’s answer “Yes!”.
- Echo. It is possible and necessary to repeat verbatim the positions expressed during the conversation by the client. “If I understand you correctly ...”, “Your opinion is ...”.
- Clarification. In the process of dialogue, the seller-buyer from the first must necessarily ask clarifying questions regarding any particular points of the latter's statements.
- In summary. This method assumes that the manager in the process of communicating with the client should periodically reproduce the essence of the statements of the latter, but in a very concise form: "So, you want ...".
- The logical consequence. The manager needs to logically derive the consequence from the statements of the potential buyer: “If you summarize what you said, you can recommend ...”
Rule 3 Questions
The sales rules, the 5 stages of which we are considering, contain one not the easiest to study and understand, but a very important point - “ask questions”.
To fully understand this stage of sales, you need to study the issue deeply. You can resort to reading the works of well-known specialists in the field of management, for example, Neil Reckman, who described in detail the most used technique for correctly asking questions - SPIN. Having achieved perfection, using similar techniques, any manager can feel all the advantages of full control over the situation during a conversation with a client.
Types of Questions
There are four types of questions that need to be asked sequentially. These species are represented by:
- Situational issuesthat reveal the general situation of a potential customer.
- Problematic issues, which are designed to clarify the essence of the problem with which the buyer came.
- Extractive questions. They help determine the level of urgency of the problem for the client.
- Guiding questions. Such questions are intended to help the manager in the transition to the stage of presentation of the essence of the commercial proposal.
Rule Clause 4. Customer Objections
Each manager has repeatedly encountered customer objections. This is an integral and inevitable part of communication in the implementation of sales. It should be noted that with the proper ability to work with objections, the process of overcoming them and even sending them in favor of the seller turns into a real pleasure for him. It's hard to believe, but practice confirms the truth of the statement.
Professionalism in sales
The client’s objections should be welcomed and even rejoiced, because it is the objections that provide the seller with an additional chance to dispel the customer’s distrust regarding the product. For a successful seller who has studied 5 sales rules, it is true that the stage in question can be a real high point and determine the successful outcome of communication with the buyer. To achieve such results, you need to become a true professional in your field, which is explained by a passion for your work, as well as a genuine and sincere love for customers.
In no case do you need to start a dispute, as well as deny the objection directly. This will only exacerbate the distrust. To succeed, you must accept the point of view that the buyer has taken and demonstrates.
By accepting the point of view of the interlocutor, the seller recognizes the freedom of the first, and also gives him the right to express his own opinion. Acceptance is a kind of emotional shock absorber that can easily extinguish irritation, as well as the aggressive mood of the client. Sayings like "As I understand you, ...", or "It's great that you know about this shortcoming, and ...", etc. are excellent examples of the correct work with objections.
Rule Clause 5. Transaction Completion
Studies show that only 5-10% of sales managers have the skills to properly complete the final stage of sales.
Researchers who conducted a survey among sellers of various goods note that this state of affairs is caused, first of all, by the seller’s fear of being refused after completing the preliminary 4 stages. Experiences do not allow the manager to pack up and bring the buyer to the cashier to pay for the purchase or to extend him a signature contract. And it should be noted that such uncertainty often leads to the crossing out of all the seller’s preliminary efforts. But it’s known that only by following step by step and completely the 1-5 rule in sales, the seller can count on success.
First of all, you need to gain the ability to notice signals that indicate the willingness of the buyer to make a purchase. In this matter, an analogy of the selling process with the art of fishing is appropriate. If the biting fish is hooked too soon or too late, it will fall off the hook.
Conclusion
That's all the basic rules of sales. Of course, they are examined superficially, and each of them requires a separate study, and most importantly, practice. It is only important to remember that for success it is necessary to study the sales rules, the 5 stages of which are discussed above.
An average seller has at least ten contacts with different customers every day. If you multiply this amount by the number of days in a year, we get more than 3,500 thousand opportunities to make a sale. Not so little, is it ?! If potential customers do not come to the store or office at all, you can turn to other techniques, for example, study the 5 rules of telephone sales. In other words, do not stand still, learn new directions every day and one of them will certainly bring success!