Selling is an art form that takes pristine sales techniques to deliver. It is the power of persuasion, drawing people in, and holding their attention long enough for them to see just how they need what you have to offer. If only it was easier said than done. Check out this portion of an interview between Dale Beaumont and Audrey Rodda and learn some fantastic sales techniques that can work in any situation.
After starting Phonelink Communications in her lounge room, Audrey has grown the business into a leading source of total communications services. Audrey is also very knowledgeable when it comes to referrals and has just started to franchise her business.
How does one achieve great sales from any situation?
Whether you’ve just met someone in the elevator or you’re giving a brief introduction in front of 100 people, you must know your products and their benefits comprehensively. You have 30 seconds to grab people’s attention. You want to plant a seed of curiosity and the urge for more information – ideally you want them to come to you.
To do this you must first determine the demographic of your target and identify their specific job or industry (if you are presenting at an event, you should do your research beforehand and determine who you will be presenting to). Using this information, you should craft a carefully considered introduction about the fundamentals of your company and then draw a relationship between the two or three products you chose to promote.
For example, at a recent luncheon I observed that about 50 per cent of the attendees were small business owners, 40 per cent were in management roles, and the final ten per cent was made up of other interested parties. Based on this demographic make-up of the room I carefully selected a combination of products and delivered this message:
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‘Hello, I’m Audrey Rodda from Phonelink Communications. Aside from providing corporate rates and saving thousands of dollars each year on all your fixed and mobile calls to SME and SOHO businesses, we also provide CRM solutions which will increase your productivity and more importantly, your revenue. The CRM is simple and effective and very well priced. We can actually link it into your BlackBerry which means before you walk into your next client meeting, you can view every interaction between your company and their company, from the last day to the last couple of years – including orders, complaints and so on. It also means you can place orders while sitting in their office, saving time and improving your business efficiency. If this interests you please come and talk to me.’
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If we look closely at this example, it is evident that three important things occurred.
- First, the introduction mentioned the company’s basic function, which is to save our clients money on their phone bills.
- Second, I incorporated the sale of one product with another by listing its benefits and how it would impact their role (remember that a sales message should be 30 percent products and 70 percent benefits).
- And finally, I issued a friendly invitation for all listeners to approach the speaker. I had several people approach me after this to source either one or both of these products.
Find more of this interview and sales techniques check out Dale Beaumont’s “Secrets of Entrepreneurs Under 40 Exposed!“.
