Buyers have been burned by dishonest salespeople, so they approach all purchases with the learned ... [+]
There’s an old joke that says there are three times you can lie and still go to heaven: one, when you are an actor in a play; two, when you are telling a joke; and three, when you are talking to a salesperson.
The punchline that it is okay to lie to a salesperson is because buyers have been burned by dishonest salespeople, so they approach all purchases with the learned prejudice of distrust. Defenses are up, and buyers withhold honest sharing about the problem they want to solve.
Potential high-paying clients might say things like “Show me what you have,” and, “What can you do for me?” or “Why should I buy from you?” These questions pressure salespeople to prove themselves, but don’t give buyers what they really need to make a good decision.
“Sellers are feeling the pressure, too, not just from buyers,” says author and sales expert Deb Brown Mayer. “Salespeople need to hit sales goals, pay expenses, care for their family, or even keep the business in business. These real needs can cause sellers to apply pressure to buyers to decide quickly or to settle for a less-than-optimal solution.”
Here is a question to ponder: Do you sell, or do you enroll? If you want to attract more high-paying clients, a great deal is riding on your answer.
Prospective clients do not want to feel they are being sold—especially if you offer a high-end service. If you can learn how to enroll clients, you will be able to get more clients without them feeling you are selling them at all.
Brown Maher, the author of Sell Like Jesus, is a sales-relationship expert featured on numerous radio and podcast shows. She says all that pressure on both sides can be neutralized by taking three actions during the conversations:
Set the stage for mutual benefit. Start the enrollment process by stating that what’s about to take place is a conversation designed “to help us both discover together whether it makes sense to do business or not, and if not, that’s okay,” says Brown Maher.
Ask questions vs. making assumptions. “You know what they say about assumptions,” says Brown Maher. “Instead of assuming, take on the mindset that ‘I don’t know anything until the buyer tells me in their own words.’ Instead of assuming, ask. Get curious to understand the deeper driving factors behind the purchase. Listen to the responses intently because they contain clues for what you should ask next.”
Recognize the buyer’s right to say no. “The high-pressure tactic of ‘collecting yeses’ is so easy to spot buyers get immediately turned off when it’s done to them,” says Brown Maher. “Instead, acknowledge the buyer’s right to decide for themselves instead of manipulating them into saying yes. When you see a good fit between the buyer’s needs and your offerings, ask the buyer, ‘Where do we go from here?’ allowing them to move toward the purchase commitment on their own.”
Bottom line: Learn how to remove the pressure and you will close more deals. And that’s no joke.
