sales approach

8/4/2019 Sales Approach

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Personal Selling: A Relationship Approach

The Approach



Things to Learn

• The best ways for gaining entry to the prospect’s

office

• Effective techniques for telephoning the prospect

and selling the interview

• Proper sales etiquette



Things to Learn

• How to make a good first impression with theclient

• Ways for getting the prospect’s attention at the

beginning of the interview



What Is the Approach?

• First time the salesperson and the prospect comeinto actual contact with one another

• Most important 30 seconds in the selling process

• Must establish rapport and attract the prospect’s

attention



Gaining Entry

• The Letter (or Email)- Least valuable means of gaining entry

• The Cold-Call

- Impact of a personal visit vs. the cost of extra time expended- “Buffers”

• The Telephone- Make appointments with new prospects

- Take care of routine contacts that do not require a personal visit



The Telephone Track

• Precall Planning and Organization- Prospect’s full name

- Call at the right time

- Work with the screener

- Don’t leave your number

- Sell to the gatekeeper



The Telephone Track

• Precall Planning and Organization (continued)

Suggestions for Telephone Delivery

- Oral skills and listening habits must be good

- Keep lips half an inch from the mouthpiece, open your mouth

wider, enunciate more, use simple language, and avoidtechnical terms and slang

- 140 words per minute is about the right pace for the phone

- Vary your tone

- Watch your voice factors, pitch, tone, volume, and rhythm for

hidden messages- Use positive language

- Communicate friendliness



The Telephone Track

• Identification- Use the prospect’s name

- Your name (salesperson)

- Your company name



The Telephone Track

• The Lead-in Statement

Should immediately follow the introduction

- A third-party reference

- Literature sent to the prospect by the salesperson or the

company—could be resent ad material- A statement of a known problem in the prospect’s industry or

profession

- Pertinent points made by a recognized figure in the prospect’s

industry at a recent conference or in an article

- The inactive account approach



The Telephone Track

• An Interest-capturing Statement Give the prospect a reason to continue the conversation

- Major benefit and feature

- Ask a question

• Stating Purpose of Call and Asking for AnAppointment

- Provide just enough information to create a desire to learn more

- Give more than one choice of appointment times

- Avoid the use of “weasel” words (maybe, if, could, possibly,

perhaps, and like)



The Telephone Track

• Handling Objections- Objections are good reasons to make an appointment

- Be respectful; not all prospects become customers on yourtimeline

- Don’t burn your bridges - Keep lines of communication open



The Telephone Track

• Voice Mail

Avoid leaving a message, if possible

If you do leave a message:

- Speak slowly, but enthusiastically

- State your name, company, and phone number at the start andat the end

- State your desire to “help”; state a benefit and/or a referral

- Provide a choice of times



The Telephone Track

• Think About Selectivity (Knowing When to “Back

Off”) - Ideally, you should spend your time only with prospects who

want what you’re selling and who will make a commitment to

buy



Establishing a Rapport

• Appearance- Know the prospect’s (and his or her company’s) style

- Joe Weldon, marketing manager of cellular equipment atGeodesic in Navi Mumbai

- Grimy business card- Cluttered car




• Shaking Hands Shaking hands properly:

- Extend your hand and grip the other person’s hand so that thewebs of your thumbs meet

- Shake just a couple of times. The motion is from the elbow, notthe shoulder

- End the handshake cleanly, before the introduction is over

- If you want to count, a good handshake is held for three or fourseconds at most

Don’t use the bone-crusher, the pump-handle, the limp-digits,

the wet-rag, or the no-release clamp




• Posture

Erect stance, head straight, shoulders pulled back projects:

- Confidence, competence, dignity, and enthusiasm

Slumped body, rounded back, bowed head, slack shoulders

projects:- Negative messages




• Eye Contact

Correct, early eye contact projects honesty, sincerity, andattentiveness

- Too long

- Too short




• Etiquette- Drive a nice, but not flashy, car

- Do not demand to see the buyer

- If you smoke, avoid smoking until the interview is concluded

- Remember the buyer’s name

- Don’t treat someone’s office as your home turf

- Put cell phones, pagers, and BlackBerrys on hold

- Thank the prospects for taking time to see you

- Avoid distracting and annoying mannerisms

- Be friendly, not chummy

- Be honest

- Don’t waste others’ time



Gaining Attention

• Bad Attention

Weasel-worded introductions

Show stoppers

Telling (Declaration)

• Good Attention

The Introduction Approach

- Simplest but weakest

The Referral

- Testimonial letter

- Tape-recorded message

- Competitor’s name



Gaining Attention

• Good Attention (continued)

Offering a Benefit

- Most widely used

- Good if benefit is of real interest

- Best if addressed to buyer’s dominant buying motive

The Curiosity Approach

- The number 12,639



Gaining Attention


The Compliment Approach

- Sincere

- Specific

- Things of real interest to the prospect

Plaques or other mementos of achievement on theprospect’s wall

The appearance of the prospect’s business, interior or

exterior

An especially pleasant receptionistThe prospect’s recent promotion

The prospect’s family or personal achievement

Recent business successes by the prospect’s company

Pictures of the prospect



Gaining Attention


The Product Approach

- Charles Ward, Brown & Bigelow (a picture is worth a 1,000words)

Getting Agreement on a Problem or Situation- A question that confirms the existence of a need that the

product or service can resolve

- The Survey Method



Gaining Attention


Qualifying the Buyer

- Be careful; you don’t want to antagonize the buyer

The Survey Method

- IBM, Unisys, and National Cash Register

- Two sales: selling the prospect on the idea of a survey and thesale itself

- Large accounts with complex operations



The Next Step

• Once the approach is completed, salespeopleshould spend time with prospects, discoveringtheir needs and problems.

sales approach

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