5 common sales mistakes. We all try to do the right things when interacting with customers and prospects. Of course. We also tend to develop habits too in how we approach our customer relationships. Hopefully, most of these will be things that get us closer to the sale. Things that make prospective customers warm to us. After all, people buy from people. So it’s all about the personal relationship you build with your customer base.
Do you run a sales team?
Alternatively, you may be the person who runs a sales team. The sales manager or director. If you’re the owner of a small to medium sized business, you will also have an interest in how your sales team interact with your customers. I have seen the following 5 ‘crimes’ committed in sales teams. Ensure these things don’t happen in your business.
1. Offering too many options. This seems counter-intuitive and yet it’s common sense. I’ve been on the receiving end of this type of approach where the salesperson (in the building society) offered me too many options and went into too much depth about what they could offer. In a little windowless room after 40 minutes, I lost interest and that advisor never did get my mortgage business. But I’m not feeling too smug, because I’ve also blown sales opportunities in the past by offering too many options. Ask plenty of questions to start to narrow down the best options. Lots of choices and making them do lots of thinking is not clever. What is clever is YOU doing the thinking and working it out for them. By all means, lead them into solutions or products which you think will work for them. But listen carefully and ask lots of relevant questions so that you lead them along the correct path.
2. Failing to recommend a better solution. It may seem obvious to always do everything to push the products and services you have to offer. And yes in the short-term this makes sense. However to build long-term trust and therefore long-term sales with a customer sometimes requires high levels of integrity. Can you imagine recommending that a customer stick as they are – until perhaps your newer, better model comes out? Or heaven forbid even a competitor’s product if you believe it better suits your customer’s needs? All of these options should be in your mind when building a long-term trading relationship. Once you have their trust by proving that you have their best interests at heart, selling to them will become much easier.
3. Treating your commitments lightly. Business relationships are based around trust, and so your behaviour must reflect this. Ensure you don’t cancel meetings with clients “because something else came up.” Always being prepared for meetings is important too. And if you say you’ll get back to them by Wednesday, then get back to them by Wednesday. You word is your bond etc. Customers often have to get used to sales people saying something just to get the sale, only to lose interest once the order has been won.
4. Blaming the company or other departments for mistakes. Remember everyone is your business is on the same team. The customer doesn’t differentiate and nor do they want to differentiate between you and any of your colleagues. As far as they are concerned you are the company. Sometimes when you’re up against it, it may be tempting to blame someone else. However, when the salesperson blames the company or a colleague, the customer’s trust in the company and therefore by extension in the salesperson lessens. It may be the easy option but it’s not the best option. Trust takes a long time to build, but can be destroyed in an instant.
5. High pressure tactics. The good news is that B2B sales people don’t use high pressure sales tactics as often as sales people selling to consumers. Utilities, home improvements, solar and insurance companies have all been accused of high pressure tactics. And many legal cases are testament to this. Avoid giving them the impression that it is only your agenda you’re interested in. By questioning, listening, showing interest and building up an awareness of what they need and would like, it will help your cause. Taking this approach builds integrity and ensures you offer them the best solution for THEM. This is what will make them come back and buy again from you.
For this consultative approach to selling and other pearls of wisdom and experience book onto one of our 2 day telephone sales masterclasses. These can be run in-house at your offices. We also run open courses from time to time too. Home page for details. To Market runs these courses across the Midlands and Eastern Counties, covering; Birmingham, Leicester, Coventry, Derby, Nottingham, Northampton, Wellingborough, Corby, Kettering, Peterborough, Cambridge, Newmarket, Bury St. Edmunds as well as wider parts of Leicestershire and Northamptonshire.