Close More Sales By Shutting Up And Listening

What really annoys me is when I get a call or I’m interested in something and the sales person is doing a great job but continues to try and sell me. You have to have some sort of awareness about what is going on if you want to be successful in sales, no matter what kind of sales you’re doing.

Not too long ago I was looking into a merchant processing account for vape related stuff, it’s a bit more difficult because of rules, regulations and what the processing industry determines is a high risk account. Risk can happen due to your credit score, cash flow, the amount you’re wanting to process and sometimes just the industry you’re in.

I was talking to a guy that was great on the phone, I was ready to buy (or commit) until he continued trying to sell me without realizing that I was already sold. He lost the sale because he wasn’t aware of what was going on.

There is no, “ultimate sales trick” or technique that is better than everything else… techniques without awareness are absolutely useless.

Understanding Some Basics when It Comes To Selling

Listening is probably the most important thing you can do. Listening isn’t just hearing someone or knowing what they’re saying, listening is being aware of what is being said, and understanding it.

Whether you’re in person or over the phone, there are cues you should be picking up on. The type of language they use, the tonality in their voice, body language, pauses in their words, these are all things you should be aware of when they happen, because they indicate which direction the conversation is going and you can steer it in the direction you want it to go.

Listening, and paying attention should be obvious to your lead or prospect because you will be responding to them, addressing the things you noticed are important to them, even if they didn’t say it word for word.

If you aren’t aware, and you aren’t fully listening then you’re not going to be addressing your prospect or lead’s REAL, true concerns. You will continue overselling some crap with features that don’t matter to them because you’re too focused on the sale instead of focusing on them, and their verbal or silent cues.

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How To Show You’re Listening

I’ve always dealt with people over the phone but I’ve also done a fair share of selling face to face. While I don’t consider myself some “sales guru” or some amazing cold calling strategist, I have learned a few things and it’s not based on theory, it’s based on experience.

Body Language – while it isn’t necessarily a big concern for dealing with people over the phone you should still practice good body language. Even if they can’t see you, you should be nodding your head, fully consumed in the conversation.

Ask Questions – A great way to show you’re listening is to ask questions based on what the lead has said. It’s straight forward but a lot of people want to continue on with their scripted responses or move onto a different point instead of showing the prospect that you’ve been paying attention.

A great way to increase rapport and sales conversions is to repeat what they say. “Just for clarification John, you had a website before but the problem was you had to pay a lot of money for changes, is that correct?” Small reiterations help a lot. Maybe it’s a subconscious thing where if you’re saying the same thing they are, even if it’s to ask if you’re understanding them correctly, builds rapport and allows you to control the situation.

NEVER Interrupt Your Prospect – This is so very important and instantly breaks rapport if you interrupt. Even the hottest of leads can turn cold by making this mistake. Interrupting makes you look weak, overly eager, exerting your knowledge and dominance in an unwanted way.

Remember me talking about the guy that was overselling and blew the sale with me? He interrupted a lot too, I still vividly remember me having a question about the fee structure for unqualified transactions, and he cut me off to tell me that my concern isn’t really something to worry about, without ever explaining why.

At the end of the conversation I explained to him why I wasn’t going to buy from him, and how he should have shut up and listened.

Take Notes – Whether over the phone or in person, always take notes. Chances are somewhere in the conversation they’re going to give you information on how they want to be sold, or closed. Always use the information they give you in order to get further into the sales process.

Practice Makes Perfect

Do you want some extra practice? Keep these things in mind when you’re with your friends, family, husband or wife. Shut up and listen to them. Use these points in your every day life and you’ll notice a big difference in the nurturing of your relationships.

Maybe ditch the notepad… but the rest should still be applied!