Some of us go shuffling into a meeting dreading the moment when we have to get down to the hard facts of money. So we uh-price them.

“What’s the cost?” the customer asks.

“Well, that one is-uh-it’s about-let’s see, with tax and freight and the small installation charge we have to make-uh-its going to run you right at-well, maybe just a shade under, tuhthzzert. Um, yeah that’s about it.”

“What? I didn’t catch the price you’re quoting me.”

“Ten thousand.”

“Dollars?”

“Yes, ten thousand dollars, more or less.”

“Well, which is it, more-or less? It better be a lot less if you expect me to buy it.”

“Uh-let me double check my figures.”

While the hapless salesperson frantically adds and subtracts, the buyer sits back and calmly plans his next move to keep him off the buyer sits back and calmly plans his next move to keep him off balance and drive a better bargain. Or his next phone call-to the competition.

Never uh-price a possible client. Control the money issue by facing it squarely and boldly. The triplicate of choice for money allows you to win every money vote that can be won. Use it. This technique is a reliable workhorse-if you know your figures, adapt the phrases to your offering, and practice them carefully.

Diagnose Your Strengths and Weaknesses as a Salesperson

As a corporate sales trainer, I am often asked about the traits and characteristics salespeople should develop in order to increase sales.  Here’s a personal inventory test for you to determine how you stack up against a top champion sales closing professional. How many characteristics and traits can you say that you have? Read the rest of this article »

Stop Thinking “If Only”

What’s holding you back from the success of your dreams? Do you ever catch yourself thinking or saying the following?

“If only I could get a better break.”

“If only I had more money.”

“If only I would’ve married the right person.”

“If only I worked for the right company.”

“If only I had the right parents.”

Those statements demonstrate a lack of personal accountability. Do you pull back from taking full personal responsibility? Many of us do. We think that a parent, a teacher, a friend, a boss, a spouse, the company we worked for, or some governmental program should shoulder our burden for turning our lives into what we want them to be. This approach can’t get the job done. Read the rest of this article »

When you are working with purchasing agents or heads of households, they will often try to stall you or dismiss you by saying the purchase of your product just isn’t in their budget. For some, it can become reflexive to say that. Rather than let the impersonal budget stand between you and a potential sale, get them to admit who is in charge of the budget. Then, sell the value of your offering over the value of sticking to something that was created before they even knew your benefits were available.  Read the rest of this article »

The phrase “buyer interview” may not be one you’ve heard, but it’s one I strongly recommend you understand. Conducting an effective buyer interview is similar to what a good journalist does when interviewing someone for an article. You ask questions that get them talking about their situations, their needs, their desires, their concerns. In other words, you get them to tell you what they want to own. It will also help you realize those situations where what the buyer is telling you they want may not be what they truly need. Read the rest of this article »

A few months ago Nicki and I went looking at exercise equipment. I was experiencing sciatica in my left leg (I didn’t know it at the time, but it was caused by a synovial cyst pressing on the nerve between L4 and L5; after an MRI revealed the problem, microsurgery provided the cure), was getting physical therapy treatments at the hospital, and needed to purchase an item for my home exercises. We went to a number of places, including two sports-equipment stores, finally found what I needed at a top-of-the-line exercise-equipment store on Golf Road in Schaumburg.

Author of Selling Fearlessly

There was only one salesperson in the store—a tall, lanky young man in his mid-30s. It took only a few minutes for me to realize I was in the presence of a real pro; I thought he was a terrific salesperson for the following reasons:

1. He was incredibly knowledgeable about every product in the store; the man knew his stuff.  He answered every question like the late Ted Williams talking about the fine points of hitting a baseball; it was impressive.

2. He asked a number of excellent questions directly related to my condition; he wasn’t about to proceed without getting the information he needed to do his job properly.

3. When I asked about a $2,000 piece of equipment (a similar piece of equipment I was using during my sessions at the hospital), he smiled, extolled its virtues, and then told me a $15.00 exercise rope would do the job for me for a heck of a lot less money. He wasn’t interested in selling me something he didn’t think was in my best interest. He was far more interested in establishing a long-term relationship with us than making a specific high-dollar-amount sale. Read the rest of this article »

According to Leads360′s latest report, The Ultimate Contact Strategy – How to Best Use Phone and Email for Contact and Conversion Success, “Lead response persistence is critical to maximize conversion. Making more than one call and sending even just one email can have a positive impact on lead conversion, yet 50% of leads are never called a second time and 59% of leads never receive an email.”

When leaving a voice message for a new lead keep it simple. Leave your name and number twice – once at the beginning of the message. Again at the end. Refer to the fact that you’re calling about the information they requested. Then, state a benefit of your offering to pique their curiosity to learn more (thus increasing the chances they’ll either return your call or accept your next follow up call.) Read the rest of this article »

Most people don’t set out to waste their time. They want something for it. In fact, all but a few of us want every nickel we can get for our time when we’re selling it. This is as it should be. But most of us are less determined to wring all the other values from our time that are there for the taking. In other words, most of us don’t work as effectively as we could at the business of becoming more productive.

The way to change this is through time planning. Let me give you some reasons why this is so important. Read the rest of this article »

What do you say when you hear this one? “The home is very nice, but we  really wanted another bedroom.”

When they say this, what does it really tell you? They don’t need that extra room. They were really hoping for it, but the odds are good, since you did a good job of qualifying that both you and they know they can’t afford a home with that extra bedroom.

Your job now is one of asking questions to help them gain a more realistic view of their situation. Try these words, “John and Mary, I know when we first talked you were hoping to find a home in this neighborhood where you could possibly have an extra bedroom. Knowing inventory the way I do, I’m afraid there just isn’t one available in your price range. If you’re open to considering a different neighborhood, or school district for the children, I might be able to find a nice home with the extra bedroom. I would be happy to research that for you, but have to ask, what will you base your final decision on: having that extra bedroom or having your children attend the schools you (and they) prefer?”

In most cases, the quality of the children’s education will far outweigh having that extra room that they were “hoping” for. Of course, if you work in an area with an open enrollment, perhaps the parents would be happy to drive their children to the better schools and live a little farther away in order to have that extra room. Read the rest of this article »

How to Motivate Salespeople
Excerpt from Tom Hopkins on Management mp3 series.
Other topics on this program include:

• Solving the Management Puzzle
• Effective Recruiting Strategies
• Powerful Training Techniques
• Sales Management – The Interview
• Salespeople — Knowing and Understanding Them
• Motivation and Counseling
• Handling Terminations

Questions? Contact Customer Service: info@tomhopkins.com or 800-528–0446 (Continental U.S. & Canada)