The ability to sell is a skill that can be learned.
Even if you consider an “Oh I can’t sell,” the key is to get your message across by being yourself.
Over the last few articles we have talked about the structure of a sale, and by learning this simple system made up of emotions, benefits, promise, proof and offers you can feel more confident and better prepared to go and sell what you love.
If you just learn that you are pretty much there.
God-given Gift
The fact is that selling is not a God-given gift or a natural trait held by a chosen few.
And it’s not a secret hidden from view, in the corridors of the sales secret vault.
The ability to sell your product can be learned.
In this next series of “You Can Sell Anything,” we are going to introduce you to two new ways to sell and increase your results along the way.
The Secret of Selling Like You Talk
By now if you have read my previous article you should know your client or prospect.
In most cases, you do know how to talk to them. What language to use, what emphasis to put on certain benefits of your product, and by now what promises to make.
The secret to selling them these aspects of your product require you to have a conversation, in other words, sell like you talk.
I am no do it yourselfer!
An example I often use is a hardware store.
Most people that know me, know that fixing things and building things is not my strong point.
However, if I do need advice on doing something around the house, I go to the local hardware store.
I usually go and ask for advice.
99% of the time that advice is given from the salesperson (I am not sure if they even see themselves as salespeople) who is relaxed and easy to understand.
The style is conversational, they ask a few questions, listen, and then direct me or advise me.
Why can’t we do that with our clients?
I bet you that the clients that keep buying off you have a great conversation with you, weekly or every other day.
As you talk you also want to sell your prospect with passion.
The Secret of Selling with Passion
If there is no passion there is no momentum, speed. That’s the second tip.
When you sell with passion, you come across as a believer in your product or service.
Your presentation and voice are stronger, more persuasive.
Even more importantly your energy around your product comes through, passion is the glue that sticks the sales together.
But, there is often a BUT…
You actually have to feel the passion for your product, and the secret to that is to study your product.
What are its strengths? Product knowledge rules when it comes to passion.
If you are selling a product that does amazing things get excited about it, tell lots of people why you love it.
My favourite thing to do is show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
My favourite thing to do is show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
Last week we talked about the promise, and painting a picture of a product we were selling.
Now I want to discuss proof.
You have to show them PROOF.
You have to prove to your client that what you have just said is true and you have to prove it to their satisfaction.
How do you do that?
Well in a funny kind of way you go back to the features, you know the blah, blah, blah bit.
Let me tell you about this electric bike, it uses rechargeable batteries that can travel up to 25 to 45 km/h, low cost, energy–efficient, and emission-free.
You do it in the way of a summary.
The promise you made
The benefit you promised
The Proof
It might go like this:
“Here are some facts about the bike that support the promise we talked about” or “Let me tell you about this electric bike, it uses rechargeable batteries that can travel up to 25 to 45 km/h, low cost, energy–efficient, and emission-free.“
Build in facts about the bike.
Or introduce a third party.
A satisfied customer – A testimonial from a happy customer that bought that exact bike.
Or Creditability- Health benefits, or facts from a local sports medicine person.
The key with proof is to build as much creditability that all the bases are covered.
Real people are the best.
Whatever proof you can put forward helps the sale move forward.
So what is next?
It’s pinpointing why this product is unique. It’s time to tell your client why this is the bike for them.
If you know some of the features of the bike are unique and they may not get these with other bikes, then this is when you position the uniqueness.
It’s called a unique sell proposition or commonly known as a USP and sits inside my Pitch perfect Programme.
My favourite thing to do is to show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
In our last blog, we talked about the need to stop selling your stuff logically.
Too many salespeople get caught up in the features of a product vs the benefits.
The Promise.
Showing a client exactly what the benefits of the product are (in this case an electric bike), is going to help him achieve what he wants.
Mr. Client,
I’ve got some great news for you.
You can ride this bike and you will never feel tired.
You are going to love riding this bike it will feel like being a kid again.
You won’t have to worry about it breaking down.
It’s easy to go up those hills that you never thought you could do again; your experience will never be the same once you hop on this bike and go for your first ride.
You will be fitter, feel better and have lots of energy. It’s an amazing bike.
This might seem a little over the top, but the message in your promise is to identify a fear or a desire and then tell them what it’s going to do for them – it’s about creating attention.
In this sales statement you have created desire and his or her life may never be the same. I know friends that have experienced this state of mind since owning an electric bike.
BUT right there is where the biggest mistake is made, the salesperson has created the desire and then BANG out comes the close.
It’s often too early and does not follow the structure, the process. If you mention the price too soon you may lose the sale, not all the time, but often.
There are always exceptions.
If the sale is being done off-site in advertising and promotion, then there is as a real risk of losing the sale.
So, what do you do?
Create a picture.
You can do this in a couple of ways.
As the desire is met, you might get him or her seeing the real picture. You might ask them to think of a place they would really like to ride in the city they live. Get them to imagine doing that, paint a picture.
What you are doing for your client is showing what the bike will do for him/her and then getting them to see themselves reaping the benefits of your promise.
The next step is proof.
Like in any copywriting lesson I have learnt proof plays a big part in the sale.
It’s something often missing from the salespeople I come across, and sales are lost as a result. They simply do not have proof in any form.
I can explain how to do that in the next blog next week.
See you then,
Mike
PLUS, whenever you are ready…here are four ways I can help you grow YOUR business.
My favourite thing to do is show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
It was important to set the scene that it’s both, desire and discovery, that is important in the first part of any sale.
We talked about selling a bike and the importance of not selling a bike, but one that people might have more of an interest in.
We do that by talking about the desire, the result they want by buying that specific bike.
It’s true that figuring out the feelings and desires of any product is hard.
In this blog, we want to give you some tips so you can maybe, just maybe, learn to stop selling the features of a product and instead, sell the benefits.
Okay, now let’s get back to your person who wants to buy an electric bike.
Every retailer will tell you, that phrases like “Can I help you?” does anyone’s head in.
It’s a closed question.
Same with a salesperson out in the field. If they are not armed with a mindset to be curious or have a list of questions to ask to get the sales moving, they will fail.
The reason I say that is the structure of a sale follows a certain process.
In this case, is our prospect after a bike? Or are they after a specific bike?
Our job is to find that out.
It’s called discovery.
When I train and hire salespeople, I give them this advice.
“I give you permission to ask a client as many questions that you want to ask, to see if they are a fit for your product.”
This, however, is often not the case.
What many salespeople try and do is to convince a client how wonderful their product is.
“Let me tell you about this electric bike, it uses rechargeable batteries that can travel up to 25 to 45 km/h, low cost, energy efficient, and emission-free.“
(blah, blah, blah)…
Wrong.
What is going on here? The salesperson is telling the customer that the electric bike is so great.
And it probably is.
The salesperson is trying to argue the client into a sale with too many facts and figures.
He’s appealing to his client’s sense of reason.
We talked about this in the secrets to selling anything. Sell to the heart first, then the head.
So, what’s the secret here? Here’s how you do it. Ready?
Listen closely…
You tell your client what the bike is going to do for him or her.
Make them a promise.
The Promise.
In our next blog we are going to go more in-depth on the promise.
See you soon, promise. Mike (Promise) Brunel.
PLUS, whenever you are ready…here are four ways I can help you grow YOUR business.
My favourite thing to do is show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
The funny thing about sales is it looks so simple when you watch the salespeople who are successful.
I remember when I first started out selling, I used to watch the veterans, the guys and girls that had been in the business for ages, they looked so relaxed and confident. I dreamed of being like them.
Why can’t I do that? I used to ask, it looks so easy.
The truth was when I started it was not easy, but I learnt over time that there really is a secret way of selling.
A lot of it is in my book but there is a secret structure that holds every sale together.
If you think about it, there are secrets everywhere, the person that can turn a piece of furniture over time into a beautiful product has a secret.
We see those how-to videos where a master craftsman will take an old clock and with patience and experience turn it back to its original look as if it’s brand new. They have a secret.
The masters know little secrets that they have learnt over time, that make the clockwork, the furniture, look amazing. Masters at work.
In sales it’s the same, it isn’t just the product, it’s the hidden structure.
It’s the way you lead your client through the product benefits and get him or her excited about your product or service.
What I want to teach here is a secret to a sale. I have adapted this structure from some of my copywriting experience and lessons I have learnt in my marketing days.
These principles apply to selling a product face-to-face or online.
Now, let’s build a sales principle or two.
Remember back in the other articles we wrote about the secret to selling, and finding out who your customer is?
I want to use some of those tips to sell a real-life product.
Let say you are selling bicycles.
Specifically, electric bikes.
First of all, you have to know exactly who you are selling to.
You are not selling to all people that ride a bike.
You are selling to people who want to ride an electric bike.
Does that mean you just yell at the top of your voice “Who wants to buy an electric bike?”
Of course not.
You have to hook the prospect with an idea to bring them to you, a magic button to activate a feeling.
You then create images in his or her mind about the desire they are after.
Here is another secret, too many salespeople get caught up in the bike and its features.
What you actually want to do is sell the benefits of the bike.
The emotional desire for your prospect to actually see themselves riding that bike, freedom of the road, easy to navigate the tough hills and relax on the flat, wind in their hair.
Going places they would love to have gone in the neighborhood, that having an electric bike will give them.
How do you create that desire?
It’s harder to sell – we will explore that in the next article coming up next week.
Until then, Happy biking.
PLUS, whenever you are ready…here are four ways I can help you grow YOUR business.
My favourite thing to do is show you what’s working right now. It’s not as good as being a client, but it’s close.
2. Take advantage of a FREE 45-minute consultation
Need some sales support? Make an appointment, and let me take you through the past, present, and future template.
3. Work with me one-on-one
If you are wanting to take your product or service from face-to-face to virtual selling, then I have a product that may be able to help you. You can get started for as little as $250 a month. If you’re interested then email mike@mikebrunel.com and put ‘Virtual Selling’ in the subject line…tell me a little about your business and I’ll get you all the details.
4. Finally, grab my new digital book on ‘How to get a predictable sales system into your business without coming across as salesy’
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
