Face to face selling is a game of communications. You have a product or service and you have to convince your buyer to purchase it. It should be a simple game… tell them the features and give them a good price and you have a sale.
But it’s not that easy. People like to buy from people and as important as your product is you have a much better chance of making the sale if your prospective customer likes you. Here are some simple but important tips for making the sale.
Tips To Increase Your Sales
1. Look your prospective customer in the eye. An easy way to accomplish this can be found in Nicholas Boothman’s book, “How to connect in Business in 90 seconds or Less.” Mr. Boothman has a really effective tip…
When meeting someone for the first time, just make a mental note of what their eye color is. This will automatically force you to look the person in the eye.
It is amazing how well this works. With a little practice you’ll find yourself doing this automatically.
2. Smile. I used to think this was easy. I would find myself smiling on the inside but not portraying a smile on the outside. Mr. Boothman also offers a unique process for creating a great smile.
Not everyone has the perfect smile. Here is a tip that fashion models use. Look into the mirror and say “Great” over and over, each time using a different crazy tone of voice until you crack up. Say it loud, whisper it, say it with a laid back voice, say it with a sexy voice. It not only makes you smile, it also makes you feel good.
Every time you meet someone smile. If you have trouble smiling say, “great” to yourself as you approach: you’ll be smiling.
This simple technique works because the word is positive and it’s “ay” sounding middle syllable causes you to bare your top teeth.
3. Offer a firm handshake. In business and in sales a good handshake is vital for both men and women.
Etiquette International offers some simple tips for the perfect handshake.
- is firm, but not bone-crushing
- lasts about 3 seconds
- may be “pumped” once or twice from the elbow
- is released after the shake, even if the introduction continues
- includes good eye contact with the other person
When shaking hands always introduce yourself by name and call the person by name (if you know it) . A persons name is like gold.
4. Ask open ended questions. Questions are a great way to find out more about your customers. You can ask them about their business, interests, hobbies, etc. Make sure the questions are about them and not yourself and that they are open ended. If you ask yes or no questions you’ll get yes or no answers. Jeffrey Gitomer has some great examples of sales questions in his book, “The Sales Bible.”
5. Develop keywords. When you find out things about your customer, write them down in the form of keywords. If your customer likes the Dodgers and has baseball pennants on the walls, your keywords would be “baseball” and “dodgers”. Notice things like the type of car they drive, their favorite color, and unique fashion or clothes. The simpler the keywords, the easier they will be to remember.
Prospect Cards
Here are some quick and simple prospect cards that you can print on business card stock that will help you track contact information, keywords, and product suggestions for your customers. These little gems are a great way to store the most important information on your customers and prospects. They fit easily in your pocket or purse and can be quickly referenced before making a sales call. They will help you remember names, keywords, and recommended products to help you to increase your sales.
The front side of the prospect card has places for standard customer information such as name, address, phone, e-mail etc. It also has a line for keywords. This is a great place to put two or three words that signify your customer’s interests. This memory jogger will help you to strike up a conversation quickly and easily.
The back side of the card has places for additional contact information, product interest, product recommendations, and sales history. This will help you identify other people in the organization that may make buying decisions and list their product interests. There is also a place for recommended products that will fit your clients needs. The last line is for sales history, where you can make notes on past invoices and product sales.
This little card can really help jog your memory in the middle of a sales call. You’ll have contact names, product numbers, and recommended products in the palm of your hand. this is also a great place to write down additional customer information as it becomes available. Write it down and you won’t forget it.
Instructions for use:
- Download the Sales Card Template files.
- Unzip the files.
- Open the front sales card file in MS Word.
- Modify as necessary or leave blank for manual entry.
- Open the back sales card file in MS Word.
- Modify as necessary or leave blank for manual entry.
- Print the cards front to back on Avery Business Card Stock.
- Break the cards apart and organize by name or area.
- Use a mini-clip to organize the cards.
- Take with you in your pocket or purse.
You can also create your own Sellateer pocket sales device. Add your own business cards and mix and match other productivity cards to create a sales short stack. Choose from these other card assortments to find cards that work for you.
Organizer
Goal Toolkit
Flowchart
Outliner
Motivators
Good luck and sell, sell, sell!
