There has been a debate in sales
about whether sales is really a science or an art.
And what I find is that the answer
is somewhere in the middle.
It's part science and it's part art.
And finding that intersection is really, really important
because that's going to be the place
where you're able to follow a process, but at the same time,
have enough art to be able to go off script at times
and really hold everything together.
So in this video, I'm going to show you
the art of selling in 11 words.
Check it out.
(upbeat music)
Number One- Understand.
We have to understand our prospect,
and so that means going into a conversation
understanding as much as we can about them.
And then once we're in that conversation,
digging deeply enough to make sure
that we understand what's going on from their perspective.
The more our focus is on understanding them,
the better off we will be.
It's all about understanding them,
rather than focusing on ourselves,
talking about us, our company, our services, our products,
all of that, which is what most salespeople are doing.
Instead, understand.
Number Two- Personalize.
Not all prospects are the same,
and prospects are very weary of automation and bots
and feeling like they are being sold to at scale.
The power of personalization is that it shows
that we've really focused on them.
Our message is to them, and we understand who they are
and that they are a real person.
And that's going to significantly increase the likelihood
of them replying to an email
or them being willing to hop on a call with us,
whatever it is.
So the more you personalize your outreach
and your conversations and demonstrate that you know them,
the person, the more likely you are
to ultimately close sales.
Number Three- Lead.
It's so important to be a leader in selling situations.
I find that so many salespeople are reactive, right?
They get on the call with a prospect,
and then they allow the prospect
to really lead the interaction.
If you as a salesperson are doing a lot of talking
in your selling situations,
you're answering all the questions,
and the prospect is just pegging you with questions,
you have lost control.
You are not leading your selling situations.
Instead, you want to have a process
that allows you to lead that interaction,
and so that way you're the one asking the questions.
You're the one who's leading the engagement
and you know exactly where you're going.
Number Four- Insight.
We must, as salespeople, demonstrate insight.
We need to demonstrate that we know who the prospect is
we know what we're talking about,
and we bring expertise to the conversation.
That's the power of insight,
because if you don't demonstrate insight,
then your prospect is thinking, well,
"Why the hell do I want to get on the phone
"with this person?
"Why do I want to hop on a Zoom with this person
"if they don't even know anything
"that would be of use to me?"
That's where the insight comes,
particularly at the beginning of selling interactions.
Number Five- Discover.
Great salespeople are like great doctors
or like detectives.
When they get in front of someone, the goal is to understand
what's going on.
They're not going in with preconceived notions
about exactly what the problems are.
They're digging, they're trying to discover what's going on
to get to the core issue.
Number Six- Dig.
Now, I already just used this word,
but what we want to do is dig deeper and deeper and deeper
into the prospect's world.
Most salespeople, when they get some kind
of a surface level challenge from a prospect,
they immediately go into pitch mode.
They say, "Oh, well, you know,
"if you've got that challenge,
"then we can do this and that and this and that,"
and they start solving some very surface level challenge.
Well, great salespeople go deeper.
So the prospect tells you a challenge,
and you say something like,
"I really appreciate your saying that.
"Help me to understand why do you think that is,
"or why is that?"
Or, "Unpack that for me."
The deeper you get to and the more likely you are
to really demonstrate you know exactly what's going on
in their world.
Number Seven- Slow.
This is so important.
I find that even salespeople in my community, our clients,
when we listen to their calls,
we find that they're going way too fast
through the selling process.
Even if they're using a systematic approach,
very often they're just going too quickly through it.
It's like they're checking a box,
and the discovery conversation takes 15 minutes,
the presentation takes 30 minutes, right?
It just happens so fast.
Instead, slow down, in particular those discovery
or disqualification conversations at the beginning.
If the prospect is engaged in what you're talking about,
you want to slow it down, go deeper,
really understand what's going on.
That's how you create your value,
so that way, when you actually present
or demonstrate what you can do,
that part is already kind of in the back.
Slow down your selling situations.
Number Eight- Engage.
Keep your prospects engaged in the conversation.
Even when it's in presentation mode,
you want to keep your prospect
engaged with the conversation,
bringing them back in all the time.
There's never time to do a monologue in sales.
You're never talking at the prospect
for extended periods of time,
and if you are, you're in trouble.
Even when it's presentation mode,
you still want to bring them back in
with what we call feedback loops,
something like, does that make sense?
Or, can you see what I'm saying there?
Or, do you see how that would work in your world, right?
We're pulling them back into the conversation.
Number Nine- Peer.
Great salespeople see their prospects as peers.
They don't put their prospects on a pedestal
and look up to them like they're some deity,
but instead they see their prospects as peers.
Not in a disrespectful way, but just simply as equals.
Your prospects put their pants on
one leg at a time, they have bad breath,
they do all the things that every human being does.
They are just a peer.
They're another person looking to solve challenges,
so look at them as a peer,
not as some magical mystical person.
The more you can see your prospects as a peer,
the more you're going to be able
to be respected by your prospect.
Number 10- Next.
Sales is about next steps.
That's the key thing,
is that you need to hold every step together
with clear next steps.
Knowing what your next steps are is really important.
So you're talking to someone on a prospecting call.
The next step is a discovery call.
When you're on a discovery call and it goes well,
the next step is some kind of a presentation.
What are the next steps,
and how are you mapping them out
and then holding the sale together
by establishing next steps on the previous step?
You're never in follow-up mode.
You never follow up with prospects.
Instead, you just schedule next steps
throughout the process.
Number 11- Accountable.
Be accountable to your process.
Hold yourself accountable
to doing the activities that you need to do.
Hold yourself accountable to do the prospecting
that has to be done.
Hold yourself accountable to using your system.
The more you are accountable,
the more likely you are to become a true sales superstar.
Top performing salespeople
are no BS about their accountability.
They do it, they hold themselves accountable.
and they don't give themselves excuses.
Be accountable.
So there is the art of selling in 11 words.
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