Posts Tagged ‘sales’
This Isn’t Just “Off The Cuff”
Do you admire people who can do things “off the cuff?” When someone makes something look easy, many of us assume the person is just naturally talented. We don’t often get a peek behind the curtain to know how much time and effort someone has put into honing their particular skill. I had the very…
Read MoreHow To Be Confident In Your Sales Offer
How confident are you in your product/service offerings? Do you ever wonder if you should add, change or delete anything from your offerings? When’s the last time you took a hard look at what you’re offering clients? How about having someone else review your offerings, have you done that lately? Sales confidence is hard to…
Read MoreShould You Offer To Pay For Referrals?
Have you ever wondered if you should and how much you might pay someone who gives you a referral? Do you already have some type of referral program in place in your business? If so, how’s it working for you? This is a question that has come up multiple times from clients recently. Let’s face…
Read MoreHow To Prioritize & What To Focus On
When it comes to sales-related activities do you ever struggle with how to prioritize? How about what to focus on, ever feel overwhelmed and confused because there’s just so much to do? These are two of the topics that are frequently asked about and discussed with my clients. Frankly, who doesn’t want or need more…
Read MoreTrading Services: How To Respond When Asked To
Do you ever struggle with how to respond when asked about trading services? Is trading services a normal business practice for you? Many people absolutely refuse to trade services. They even feel offended when people ask. Whereas others find it to be beneficial for their business and are happy to do it. Regardless of your…
Read MoreStop Wasting Giveaways On The “Well-Connected”
When’s the last time you gave away product/services to a “well-connected” person in hopes they’d refer people to you? How did it work out? Have they sent a ton of business your way? Read on about why “well connected” giveaways might not be best for your business. Chances are, the well-connected person hasn’t even sent…
Read MoreCondescending Clients: How To Handle Them
Do you ever wish you had a strategy on how to handle condescending clients? Every once in a while when selling, you’re bound to come across condescending clients who don’t treat you with much respect. When you run your own business you may decide to fire these types of clients. However, there are times when…
Read MoreToo Much Information: What You Think Is Important Is Costing You Business
In the selling process, it’s easy to get caught up in what we think our client needs to know. Unfortunately, what you think is important may, in fact, be costing you business. Too much information can be overwhelming and can lead to a lost sale. It’s actually more important to allow your client to ask…
Read MorePlaying The Long Game In Sales
When’s the last time you wanted something bad enough you were willing to put in the time and effort to make it happen? Maybe it took weeks, months or even years. Was it worth it when you finally reached your goal? Was it worth playing the long game? The selling process can sometimes require you…
Read MoreCelebrate Your Wins: Are You?
It is so important to celebrate your wins. So, are you celebrating your wins? When’s the last time you really slowed down enough to take it all that you’ve accomplished? As a busy professional, we sometimes forget to acknowledge our successes. This week, consider answering the question posed in the video. You might be surprised…
Read MoreThere’s No Shame In This Game
Shame – it’s one of those emotions that can paralyze people into inaction. When’s the last time you felt shame in your business? Was it when you were asking for the sale? Maybe it was when someone was telling you how much they need your product/service but couldn’t afford your “high” prices. Shame is one…
Read MoreWho Can You Rely On Most In Business?
Where do you get sound business advice? Does this person (people) have your best intentions in mind? When you think about who you rely on most, do a few people come to mind? And is one of these people, you? I had the great pleasure of sitting on a panel recently where I was asked what’s one…
Read MoreWhen Resolving Client Issues, Don’t Say This
Resolving Client Issues: When you pay money for a product/service and something goes wrong, what do you most want to happen next? Do you want a resolution from the company/individual? Do you want swift action taken? Maybe you want an apology. Or do you prefer to “hope” the right thing is done by you? Most…
Read MoreInnovation Is Key: Don’t Be Fooled Into Believing Otherwise
Who in your life acts as if they are frozen in a certain time period? For instance, they’re still wearing the same clothes, have the same haircut, or the same way of thinking/acting as they did 20 or even 30 years ago. It’s as if they are stuck in the past. Innovation isn’t a blip on the radar…
Read MoreThe Neglected Gift In Sales & How To Overcome It
Which do you prefer, receiving a thoughtful gift or giving a gift that someone will cherish for years to come? Maybe in the last few months, you’ve done a favor for someone that to you seemed insignificant. Yet, to the person on the receiving end, it felt like an enormous gift that made a huge difference…
Read MoreUnconsciously Incompetent: Identifying An Ideal Client
Have you ever had a day when you felt like banging your head on your desk if another client asked you this dreaded question, “Why do you need to know that?” How many times have you needed information from your client to deliver on their expectations and they acted put out by your request? Does…
Read MoreHow To Find Your Sweet Spot When Selling
Have you ever noticed when you’re learning to do something new, you have to concentrate hard with little to no distractions in order to do it right? And then as time goes by and you practice a few times, it requires less concentration. Eventually, you can do it without having to really think about it.…
Read MoreAre You Doing What It Takes to Win Sales?
When it comes to growing your business and specifically sales, how’s it going? Are you on track and meeting your weekly and monthly goals? For those who are rocking their sales, Congrats! You deserve recognition for your hard work and effort. For those who aren’t yet where they want to be, let’s get serious. Time…
Read MoreHanding Out Business Cards Doesn’t Generate Business
Have you noticed lately people handing you multiple business cards? Maybe its just me but this is happening more and more. These people say things like, “Here take a few business cards and hand them out to anyone else you know that might want to work with me.” Oh boy, who told people this is…
Read More6 Steps To Better Client Interactions
As we begin 2016, many of us will spend time reflecting on what worked in 2015, what we want more of in 2016 and setting new goals to achieve. As you spend time reflecting and planning, consider taking some time to put yourself in the shoes of your clients. After all, clients are the one…
Read MoreThe Silent Credibility Killer
It’s been said time and time again, people buy from people they know, like and trust. In order to build trust with clients, you need to be credible. Do you give your hard earned money to someone you don’t believe in, don’t trust, or question if they know what they’re talking about? When you ask…
Read MoreThe Heart Of Your Business
Much like the heart’s job is to pump the life blood throughout your body, sales is what pumps revenue into every area of your business. If some part of you is saying to yourself right now, “I don’t sell anything in my business. I’m a counselor, a coach, a florist, a designer, an accountant, etc.”…
Read MoreIs It Safe- Creating A Safe Environment For Your Clients
An important selling technique is knowing how to create a safe environment for your clients. Safety can come in many forms and serve multiple purposes in the selling process. Safety in the context I’m talking about is knowing how create a safe environment to put your clients at ease so they’re more open to hearing your…
Read MoreWhy Not Me?
What thoughts come to mind when someone says, “Why me?” or “Why do these terrible things happen to me?” Do you agree with the person, maybe feel sorry for them? Is life being unfair and picking on them in some way? We all know life’s unfair. None of us are exempt from curveballs being thrown…
Read MoreThe Invitation That Makes You Money
Would you be surprised to learn a simple invitation may be all you need to skyrocket your sales? When you see the word invitation, you might be thinking of a beautiful envelope with a stylized print requesting your attendance for some extravagant function that shows up in your mailbox or email. That’s not actually what…
Read MoreHow To Build Your List Of Stories With These 5 Tips
How many times have you heard or read somewhere how important storytelling is to influence clients? “The human species thinks in metaphors and learns through stories.” ~ Mary Catherine Bateson Do you consider yourself a good storyteller? Do you run into clients months or even years later and they retell the stories they learned from…
Read MoreAsked And Answered!?
Have you ever been in a conversation with someone where you thought to yourself, “Do I even need to be here for this, I’m not even a part of the conversation?” We call it “Asked and Answered.” In the last couple weeks, I’ve had 3 separate “Asked and Answered” experiences where I found this thought…
Read MoreWhat’s The Value Of Doing Favors For Clients
How many times this month have you found yourself doing favors for a client? Doing favors could be making an exception to your normal policies/procedures, offering a discount, tailoring a program, or doing something extra for the client. Did you specifically let your client know they received a favor? Notice, the question is “Did you…
Read MoreClient Preference: Take What’s Offered
Have you ever had an interaction with someone where you felt compelled to share the story with others afterward? Last week, I was contacted by a salesperson, and the communication between us was so interesting that I’m sharing it in hopes you find some useful tips to apply to your client interactions. It’s such a…
Read More“Just Kidding”: Is It A Rapport Breaker?
When someone makes a negative comment to you and then follows up with, “Just Kidding,” do you believe them? Do you ever wonder if some part of what they said when they said “just kidding,” they actually meant? I was in the audience at an event recently, and the speaker singled out a person in…
Read MoreWhat Goes Around… Comes Around
How long has it been since you either said or heard said: “What goes around… comes around?” Consider this phrase “what goes around…comes around,” and how you might use it to impact your business/sales in a positive way. For instance, let’s take referrals. Have you ever given a referral to someone only to have them…
Read MoreMy Name’s Not “Dear”: In Business Nicknames Aren’t Cute
Nicknames aren’t cute in the business world and won’t build your rapport. Rapport is like a bank account. You’re either making a deposit, or you are making a withdrawal in each client interaction. Do all that you can to build up your rapport “bank” balance to keep the relationship strong and moving forward. We all know…
Read MoreI’m New: New & You
Learning to do something new can be uncomfortable. It requires change. Most of us internally groan a little when we have to “change” something. My long time teacher and NLP trainer use to quote, Mark Twain when talking about change, “The only person that likes change is a wet baby.”When we’re in front of a…
Read MoreWhy So Contrary? Communication Tips For Polarity Response
Why so contrary? Many of us have someone in our life that regardless of what we say, they offer an opposing view. What do I mean by contrary? I say/He says: Black/White Yes/No True/False Spicy/Mild Sunshine/Rain and the list goes on and on… Anyone in particular come to mind for you: your loving partner, your child,…
Read More“What Do You Do?”: How To Be Interesting & Relevant
When meeting someone for the first time, do you ever struggle with what to say when you get asked the question, “What do you do?” For those that sometimes stumble answering this question- “what do you do?”, I have a simple strategy for you. I learned this about ten years ago, and it has helped…
Read More“Does That Make Sense?”- A Nicer Way To Ask
How often do people ask you this question, “Does that make sense?” How often do you ask people, “Does that make sense?” I admit this comes out of my mouth way more often than I would like. You might be wondering why I would suggest another way to phrase this question. Here’s why you want to avoid saying “does…
Read MoreWhat’s The Be Specific Meaning In Sales Conversations
We’ve all heard the phrase “Be specific” and know what that means in the day to day. So what’s the “Be specific” meaning in a sales conversation? Have you ever noticed that most people talk in general terms? The drawback is when we do this, we make it very hard for the other person to…
Read MoreGet Paid Without Asking For Money
Has this ever happened to you? You’re working with a client, and as you wrap up your time together, you realize it’s time to get paid. You start feeling anxious about asking for money. Then, you worry you’ll come across desperate or that your client will feel like they didn’t get their monies worth, so…
Read MoreStay On Track: Do You Know Where You’re Going?
When driving somewhere new, how are you at finding your final destination? Do you stay on track? Maybe you have a strong sense of direction and stay on track. If so, I admire that quality in you. I describe myself as being “geographically challenged.” That means I get lost super easy. Back before we had…
Read MoreRapport Building With Clients: Get In-Sync
A simple way to build rapport with prospective clients and deepen your rapport with existing clients is to learn how to get in sync. When it takes less energy (when you are in-sync), your client’s ability to pay attention, converse and ask questions increases. Rapport building with clients is a big part of sales and…
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