Episode 195, Mastering Your Sales.

Create Sales meetings in minutes. Lisa Thal is an Author, Speaker, and Business Coach. She has over 36 years of marketing, sales, and leadership experience. She wrote the book "Three Word Meetings."  Lisa coaches leaders how to create sales and business meetings with fun and interesting 3-word topics to create a conversation and inspire your sales team.

 

Episode 195, is about what the Masters' Golf Tournament and our business have in common.  Master your sales with these three tips.

 

One of the best weekends in Golf is the Masters! The players want to win this prestigious golf tournament, make history and wear the Green Jacket. 

 

We, too, want to win; our green is the money we make when helping our clients solve their most significant business challenges.   

 

Here are three tips to help you Master your sales.

 

Master your current clients:

We all have our key accounts that make up most of our income. We can't afford to lose these accounts or have their spending retract. For these clients, you have already built trust and your effectiveness to solve their biggest challenges.  

 

These clients are the ones with whom you have deep rapport and expect to have a long-term partnership. Master asking this question each time you meet them can ensure you continue working with them, "Has anything changed?"  

 

In today's ever-changing business world, things can change quickly. You want to make sure you have the opportunity to continue to be a resource and to help keep solving your client's issues. So make sure your recap how your currently helping them with their business. See if there are new opportunities for you to help.

 

 

Mastering Introductions: 

I have to share one statistic when it comes to referrals. Only 11% of salespeople ask for referrals/ introductions. Companies with formalized referral programs experienced 86% more revenue growth over the past two years when compared to the rest.

 

So what could be stopping us from asking? It could be the difference between one word, Referral vs. Introduction. 

 

Introductions and referrals are great ways to reach new potential clients. However, an introduction from someone who already knows the client may be more beneficial as it can create a faster bond between you and your new contact.

 

However, referrals and introductions are not the same. Introductions involve someone introducing you to a potential client or customer, often done in person or over email. Referrals involve recommending your services to someone else without actually making the introduction.

 

The word introduction takes the pressure off the person claiming whether your product or service can work for them. You are merely seeing if there is an opportunity for you to help them. You may discover during that initial meeting that you can't, but they may be able to introduce someone who can benefit from what you have to offer.

 

One tip is to develop an introduction strategy. If you break it down to looking for one introduction daily from your current clients or those connections in your vast network, you could have five new leads a week.

 

 

Mastering New clients:

Once you have leveraged your current client's needs, maximizing your introductions, you may need to discover new clients with whom you can help solve their most significant pain points and challenges. 

 

These are the leads you have zero rapport or experience working with. In this situation, like in Golf, you must be prepared before making that call.

To play in the Master's in Augusta, you must prepare for everything, including course conditions and unpredictable weather. It takes mental toughness over four days to be in the Sunday final pairings.

 

The same holds when you call on new clients for the first time. They likely will tell you they are not interested, followed by saying we are working with another vendor. Sound Familiar? 

 

The question is, how do you overcome these roadblocks? 

Preparation is Key!

 

It would help if you established the reason for your calling and the benefits of why this prospect should have a conversation with you. What research have you discovered about that prospect, or are there industry challenges the companies you call on need help with?

 

Be honest and say at the beginning of the call, if you allow me a minute to explain why I am calling, you can decide if our call should continue.

 

You need to understand why you are calling. What challenges and pain points are you solving for your best customers if you're in one vertical? Share with them that XYZ companies have shared that we have helped solve their ( insert issue). Are you experiencing the same? If they say yes, are you happy with your current strategies, or would you be open to learning more about how we solve XYZ clients' challenges?

 

If they say no, then there is an opening to ask what other new challenges or business obstacles they may be facing.  

 

By Mastering these tips, you can ensure that your first appointment with a client is as successful as possible. Preparing and focusing on solving their challenges will help create a strong foundation for building long-term relationships.

 

In the Masters, the goal is to win and wear the Green Jacket. In sales, we have to master many things, from earning that first conversation to solving our client's problems. We, too, would like to earn a little green, if you know what I mean.

 

Create engaging sales meetings in minutes! 

My easy-to-use process can quickly create impactful meetings tailored to your team's needs. 

 

Learn more at www.Threewordmeetings.com.