Sales is competitive. As with any competition, there are winners and losers. The just concluded election, for instance, had a whopping 16,000 contestants, yet the vacancies were less than 10% of that. Selling is no different. And with competition, inevitably, conflict arises. One such is, “He stole my client” (sic). Given the labour that goes
Read More
If they don’t buy you, they won’t buy what you are selling. You are as much a product as the one you are selling. So sell yourself first. One day, I asked my plumber to refer me to an electrician and he did. Only problem is the fellow arrived smelling body odour. And when he
Many companies sabotage their sales efforts through their internal sales training programs. Most internal professional sales training programs are product-oriented, with a technocrat (say, an engineer or underwriter) called in to drive home the product knowledge. Yet, success in selling is buyer-oriented. And so, armed with product knowledge, the seller goes out to evangelize to
Ugali for breakfast will keep you pulsating late into the afternoon and looking fresh with every client visit. Here are three tips on grooming for the novice seller. To begin with though, being a beginner seller is no excuse not to look presentable. Looks matter in selling. How the seller looks could determine how the
Would you be caught at a prisons courtyard making a sale? As a man, would you pitch to a lady in the ladies washroom? If you are frowning upon the thought of either, possibly pride is impeding your selling potential. Unchecked, it can become a case of pride before your sales death How did the
It’s the time of the year again when the opportunity to address an audience could arise. It could be an end of year company party, a family gathering, or even a wedding. You could be asked to give a vote of thanks, speak on behalf of the family, or your department; or, in true peculiar
A salesperson’s performance is limited to the extent of his craving What do these three sellers have in common? The hawker who runs after you in traffic to complete the sale (or, start one because you showed interest in his wares). The seller at the stall who enthusiastically beckons you to his store with, “Karibu
As this column has averred, there is no sales, there is no service; there is only profitable service. Therefore, in keeping with this, today’s message goes to those who see themselves as only service- and not sales-oriented.The importance of the extra sale cannot be gainsaid. To grow yourself, the customer, and therefore, the business, it
“No one cares that the ‘peso was devalued’, or ‘the customer went bankrupt’, or, ‘a new competitor opened next door, or ‘the economy was lousy. You either made the sale or you didn’t. Even earthquakes don’t count.’” Dear Seller, Get cracking! The electioneering period is over. Triggered by the protracted political climate, the tension that
Yeah…Go ahead and connect with me on LinkedIn and pitch me a few seconds later, about this crazy offer on land or shoes or investment you have. When you do so, I don’t think you are being efficient. You are merely magnifying your inefficiency in prospecting. “The first rule of technology used in a business,”