Providing what is Valuable to the Customer and Gaining Commitment to Action with Duane Weaver

OUTLINE Providing Value –Productive questioning –Assessing productivity –Don’ts –Focus forward –Consultative questioning Gaining Commitment –Closing the Sale – the ultimate?

Providing what is valuable to the customer “You can direct a customer’s attention by the way you ask them a particular question…only by establishing what that value is will you be able to see whether you can in fact provide that value which in turn will make it easier for the customer to buy from you.” Martin & Colleran, 2003, SOLD! How to make it easy for people to buy from you, p. 26.

Productive Questions Moves customer towards being ready to buy: –Focus on pains –Focus on needs –Focus on best solutions Moves ability to sell forward: –Identifies key pains –Identifies key stakeholders –Addresses related benefits for only what is needed

Assessing Productivity of Questions Please get into groups of four and discuss a familiar sales situation that one of you has recently been in (come up with one type of question for each quadrant of the following grid that may have been asked or could have been asked): 1.Friendly 2.Unproductive 3.Directive 4.Productive Builds Relationship Directs Business Outcome DIRECTIVE UNPRODUCTIVEFRIENDLY PRODUCTIVE Martin & Colleran, 2003, SOLD! How to make it easy for people to buy from you, p. 32.

Some Questioning Don’ts Make the customer: –defend themselves –focus on what would stop them from buying –focus on competitor’s product –Anything that causes the customer to stop moving forward (red light, foot on brake, lack of hill)

FOCUS ON FORWARD MOTION Direct the discussion and focus your attention and the customer’s attention on: –the potential to do business

Productive Questioning whilst building relationships Consultative Questioning Cycle: 1.Give a piece of info 2.Ask a question 3.Demonstrate understanding 4.Listen Ask a question Listen Demonstrate understanding Give a piece of info Martin & Colleran, 2003, SOLD! How to make it easy for people to buy from you, p. 64.

GAINING COMMITMENT to action CLOSING A SALE APPEARS PARAMOUNT: –#1 request for assistance by sales managers, sales directors, and sales teams –Most often talked about and demanded by sales management Is it? –“We think that too much attention is placed on a topic that in essence is simple and straightforward. Think about it. If you haven’t got the customer in a state where they are ready to buy your product, it’s a symptom of what happened before, not what technique you use next to attempt to close the sale. You can ask as many closing questions as you like. It ain’t gonna make a ha’ penny worth of difference.” Martin & Colleran, 2003, SOLD! How to make it easy for people to buy from you, p. 64.

Closing – commitment to action Gaining satisfied customers that make long-term commitments to use your products, services, or ideas, as well as your store and service over and over again –Satisfaction –Long term relationship –Repeat business and/or referrals Focus on ways to help a customer make a longer term commitment (be a brand)

Commitment to Action Involves: –Ownership (customer owns commitment) –Action (commitments requiring an action by the customer are more likely to be acted upon) –Public (a genuine commitment is one made in public, the more people that know about something the more likely it will progress) The most likely commitment to a purchase is one that provides to the customer what you have established as valuable to them. Martin & Colleran, 2003, SOLD! How to make it easy for people to buy from you, p. 75.

Identifying Commitment Listen to the following ten examples of customer commitment and… –Identify if whether you feel it is a useful customer commitment by writing down: YES MAYBE NO 1.Write 2.Asks info 3.Customer commits to keep in mind 4.Phones colleague 5.Further appointment 6.Takes card and agrees to call within 1 week 7.Take customer out by request 8.Pass card to their manager with intro 9.Follow-up re: what is agreed 10.Follow-up re: what is agreed

Upcoming Project Start reading “Value Added Selling” Chapters 1,2,4 and the downloadable old Chp. 4 “IDENTIFY YOUR VALUE ADDED”. Next seminar we will begin to build figures 4.1 and 4.2 for your teams Teams of 10 Project will involve selling Two members from team will serve as observers on other teams Each team member will provide: 1.a brief one page report on the personal experience 2.as well as the “sales manager’s report” and 3.a peer review* report. These will added into your grade for the project (all three are due March 1 st right after reading week). Observers will assess team success Each team will provide a peer assessment for their team (see above*) Proceeds will go to a registered charity or scholarship fund chosen by the class ANY QUESTIONS?

THANK YOU Your teams should now be formed. Please make sure your list has been submitted to me before you leave today…(10) per team as well as… Who the SALES MANAGER is? HAVE A GREAT DAY!