The ONLY Two Reasons You LOSE a Sale!

Why do we lose sales?  When you think about it, there are really only two things you need to make a sale.  First, you need a killer product or service which fills a need for your prospects.  In other words, you need a great value proposition.  Secondly, you need the client to trust you enough to give this product or service a try.  In this article I am going to assume you have a product or service in which you believe.  So how do you build trust?  The short answer… “Stop Pitching and Start Listening!”  Here’s how:

When I walk into a business or call for the first time, I have two goals in mind.  First of all, I want the first twenty seconds to go as smoothly as possible.  The truth is, the first twenty seconds is the only part of your sales presentation that you can completely control; the prospect hasn’t said anything yet.  After that, you have to be ready for anything.  I challenge you to spend an hour with a family member, friend, or colleague practicing your first twenty to thirty seconds in front of a prospect.

Here are some things I do in my first twenty seconds:

• Stay relaxed and calm.
• Dress appropriately.
• Wait until you are within ten feet of your prospect before speaking.
• Talk slowly, and pronunciate your words.
• Make eye contact.
• Start with, “Hey how are y’all doing today?” (I am in central PA! LOL)
• Introduce yourself using full name.
• Mention the services you provide.
• Mention one other client you have nearby.
• Ask an open ended question.  These open ended questions will direct the conversation toward services you offer:  “Who are you using for merchant services?” or “What type of website do you have in place now?”

Once you get past this stage you need to be in a conversation, and your “pitch” needs to be over.  You are now on a quest to gain information.  If you met a stranger on the street who asked for your name, address, social security number, and bank account information, would you give it to them?  Of course not!  Yet, you are a stranger when you walk into a business and are asking for some or all of these things depending on what you are selling.  Information is the currency of trust.  The more information someone gives you, the more that person trusts you.

The only way you can tell how much a prospect trusts you is the amount of information the person is willing to provide.  This process is a momentum builder.  As someone shares information with you and you share information with him or her, it builds a momentum of trust that will lead to a “Yes” and a successful completion of the sales process.

Here are some questions I ask to stimulate conversation after the initial opening / question:

• So how long have you been in business at this location?
• Did you start this business yourself; how did you get into it?
• Is your business seasonal or are you pretty steady year around?
• How do you compete against your larger competitors? (Walmart / Olive Garden, etc.)

As the trust builds, I start to ask questions like this:

• Three years from now will your online presence be more or less important than it is today?
• How many times have you switchd credit card processors since you have been in business?
• Have you ever looked into a touch screen point of sale system?

As we talk generally about these solutions, I move on to specific ownership questions:

• If you chose to use our merchant services, would you want a free upgraded terminal or would you want me to reprogram your current terminal?
• If you hired me to expand your online presence, would you want to keep your current domain name or register a new one?
• Would you want to track inventory if you had a point of sale system?

At this point, you can use a variety of closing techniques to make the sale!

What are some other good questions that you ask in order to stimulate conversation and build trust?  Comment below with your best trust building ideas.

Make it a great day!

James Shepherd

Read previous post:  3 Tips for Building Trust with Your Clients

3 Tips for Building Trust with Your Clients

Read next post:  Overcoming Initial Sales Objections

Overcoming Initial Sales Objections