Kevin Boyle

FEAR – It keeps us from moving forward… stopping us dead in our tracks. So the question becomes how to overcome fear and stop it from getting us what we really want in our lives?

Take the following statement, and make a big sign – post it where you can see it.

Your power and your ability to create what you want in your life…
ENDS where your fear begins.

Keep in mind, I am a sales trainer who must teach in front of LARGE groups of people. I have had to overcome two of the biggest fears that stop a lot of people from attaining the success that they want out of their life.

My two biggest fears were, public speaking and cold calling. In fact I still get a little bit nervous when I speak in front of large groups. When I first started training I couldn’t speak in front of 20 people, never mind 200! My breathing would get shallow, I would run out of breath.

Cold Calling… my fear was so great that I hated cold calling, I mean I hated it. I used to find any reason to not cold call… I always had something much more pressing to do. So, this article has special meaning for me. I would like to share with you one very effective visualization technique for overcoming fear.

So let’s look at it from the view point of a very common scenario.

Nancy has a fear of public speaking. Standing backstage, she knows that logically, there is nothing to be afraid of. She has rehearsed this speech a thousand times. Still she’s nervous. She thinks to herself, “There’s so many people out there, what if someone doesn’t like me!”

The host introduces Nancy with a wonderful bio and calls Nancy to the stage. She walks to the podium during the applause and when she gets there… her mind goes blank. Her mouth dries up and she begins to tremble and sweat. She’s almost sure that the first three rows can hear her heart pounding.

As she begins her speech, she looks around at the crowd and notices a frowning man, then a woman who seems distracted, and then two people in a conversation who are not even listening to her at all! Nancy thinks ,”Oh, I knew they wouldn’t like me”, and becomes even more nervous…

Stop right there! This is how fear paralyses you! Nancy anticipated her audiences reactions and then soon found evidence to support her belief.

This is true whether you are cold calling, asking for your money back on a bad purchase or public speaking.

Anticipation lives in our imagination. It’s not real. You can choose what to imagine. If you want to overcome fear, begin to imagine the absolute worse thing that could happen if your fear became real.

Before hitting the stage, Nancy imagines the whole crowd going nuts and jumping up and down, thumping their chests like apes. As soon as they see Nancy they go crazy and attack her on the stage. Their throwing banana’s at her and she is covered in food! One of the apes grabs her and puts her into a head lock and starts giving her a “noogie”. And as if things couldn’t get any worse… the stage lighting falls down and the lights go out.

Does this all sound rather silly?

Yes I know it does, but I can GUARENTEE you one thing – your fear will be gone.

By visualizing the absolute worst thing that can happen by confronting your fear – it will melt away. Because you will soon realize just how rediculous it is!

Next time you have a fear over something, try this simple, easy to use technique. You will be amazed at how effective this little exercise is in helping you control your fear.

Kevin I need your help in living the life of my dreams!

As a life long student of human behavior I learned a long time ago that we as salespeople need to “lay” the foundation for the sale to occur. If we do a good job of laying down that foundation, (by successfully using these five sales closing techniques) then all we really need to do is then just “ask for the sale”!

So where do we start?

1. Narrow people’s options to two choices.

Your job as a salesperson is to qualify your prospect so you have a clear sense of what it is your client wants or needs. After qualifying your prospect, start to narrow down the options to the two best choices. This gives your prospect a sense of empowerment, “I have the power to choose what’s best for me.” When people have too many options, it confuses them and then they worry about making the wrong decision; they are less likely to pick any of the choices you have presented to them, and it is easier for them to put off making a decision–I mean, there’s no rush, right? Wrong–that’s a good way to walk out without closing the deal.

No matter what you have seen or read on other sites – your best shot for “closing” someone is on your first or second visit. If you can’t close someone after your first or second visit Your chances of getting the sale decrease dramatically!

 
2. Give your prospect a reason to buy today.
 
In my mind, one of the biggest mistakes that most smaller organizations and companies are making is not giving their customers a reason to buy right now, thus missing out on a very powerful motivational tool. To get your prospects saying yes to the deal, run a special, a promo, or an offer with a specific date as a deadline. It is simply human nature to put off making a decision today that can be made tomorrow.

In fact, I’ll even go one step further: A company or sales manager who does not give its salespeople this powerful motivational tool is crippling its sales force. I have worked with many successful sales organizations, and the key difference I have found between them and the not-so-successful, struggling sales organizations is: successful ones are always running specials with deadlines.

As salespeople, we need to move fence sitters, and the most effective way to move people who are unwilling or can’t make a decision is to use the “take-away” close. Quite simply, the prospect needs to know: “If I don’t act now, I will miss out.”

3. Summarize and trial close.

Your prospect needs reassurance that you fully understand the nature of his/her problem and that you can provide a cost-effective solution. When I summarize, I parrot back to my client-to-be exactly what he/she has told me that he/she wants. One of two things will happen here: 1) We will have more consensus and understanding and it will open the door for me to ask outright for the sale; or 2) I will get an objection.

 
4. Use the “ART” approach for handling objections.
 
If your prospect has concerns, he or she needs to know that you have the knowledge and the expertise to successfully resolve any situation that may come up. The extremely effective tool that I utilize for this is called ART. Acknowledge: I’ve been there; Relate: I (and/or others) have felt the same as you, told in a mini story; Target: I’ve found this works better than that. Then you ask a question. For example:

ACKNOWLEDGE: “Bob, I can certainly understand how you feel about getting your money’s worth.

RELATE w/ mini story: Like you, I’ve attended seminars in the past and walked away quite disappointed, so I know what’s it’s like to spend money and not feel like you’re getting what you paid for. Why don’t you speak to these people (show them a list of names, their companies, their title and phone number). People who I have coached, who came to me with questions about how to build their business, and increase their sales and now their seeing real results because of my help.

TARGET: If you spoke to a few of these people would it take care of any of your concerns and allow you to make the decision to go ahead with your sales training or tell me Bob, is it something else?”

 
5. Use the “What” Question.

Sometimes people just aren’t comfortable being honest with you. They hide their objections behind vague responses or general statements. In my opinion, there’s nothing to lose and everything to gain by just saying, “Bob, I get the sense that there is still something bothering you. So let me ask you:

“What is it? Is it the price?” (It’s important when asking this, that you have listened carefully to the client and his/her concerns.)

“What is really concerning you?”

“Bob, I understand that you need a win on this, but I can’t give it away–so tell me, what would be a win for you?”
 
“What’s it going to take to put this thing together?”

At this point if you are not moving forward with your prospect, is there really a good reason not to put all your cards on the table?
As you can see the 5 steps to a successful close is really about laying the ground work for a successful sale to occur. I know how I help people. I know how I have had impact on my clients and their business. I have their phone numbers and contact information with me at all times, and I have their permission to use their names as referrals.

This knowledge gives me the confidence to sit down in front of anyone and tell them with complete confidence that I can help them improve thier sales and build their business.

This in turn gives them the confidence to use me.

Kevin Boyle
Author / Public Speaker / Sales Trainer and Coach
“The Secrets to Sales Mastery”

ps – Did you enjoy this post? Do you have any tricks or tips on how to close using any of the techniques I explained in the five sales closing techniques? Please feel free to add your comments!

Other Blog Articles on Sales Techniques;

The Choice Close (like a kid in a candy store!)

Cold Calling, does it work? You bet it does!

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Thank you! 

Reposition your Competition

 
When I first looked at the “Unique Selling Proposition” marketing theories, I thought, “Wow! This is great stuff!” Having a USP is a very powerful and effective branding tool. But as I started to do more and more research, I found it was only a small part of the answer. You see, for this strategy to work, you need “First Position.” I’ll give you an example of First Position.

 
Domino’s Pizza offers pizza delivery within thirty minutes or it’s free. This is great if you are Domino’s, but what about the other one thousand businesses selling pizza? Offer two for one? Now what can the next offer that is better? As you can see, this strategy works if you can think of your Unique Selling Proposition–USP–first and take First Position. Unfortunately for most of us life doesn’t always work that way.

 
Another glaring problem I found when I tried to implement this in my business model was that quite honestly, “I’m not trying to sell pizza’s” I sell complex business solutions that won’t get sold through catchy slogans or clever marketing and most likely you do too. What you and I sell requires salesmanship and/or a consultive approach that gets us into the nitty gritty of what ails the company or the individual who has hired us.

 
I’d much prefer to “Reposition my Competition”. Repositioning your Competition is your USP at its ideal. This new and innovative sales and marketing strategy I developed is all encompassing. It is a salesman’s tool and a marketing tool all in one. It separates you from the herd and makes you the provider of choice in your industry.

 
It can be used by anyone; salespeople, business owners, fortune 500 companies and entrepreneurs – no matter what you sell or what you market – online/retail/wholesale it doesn’t matter – and once you understand and implement it into your business – you will never look at selling or marketing your product or service the same way again.

 
So you need to ask yourself, In what ways can I “Reposition my Competition?”
 
I would like to this opportunity to share with you 3 of the 7 powerful sales and marketing strategies I have developed for my clients.

 
Industry Stereotypes

 
Imagine if you were a bank and you could advertise, “Tired of Waiting? Got things to do? Never line up again!” Would you not completely “Reposition your Competition”? If you want to dominate your industry you need to consider how you can exploit the stereotypes, biases, and beliefs prevalent in your industry.
This is not a tool that only companies can use, but savvy salespeople can adopt as well. Are you a small company, an entrepreneur or a home based business? You can use your competitor’s large size against them. When I sit down with clients and explain my services – I emphasize the fact that I am small and how this is to their benefit.

 
“Bob, actually we don’t have a 1-800 number with 5 different options when you first dial in on purpose. I don’t know about you, but one of my biggest pet peeves is when I have a pressing problem or a question about something, I absolutely hate it when I have to wait in voice mail hell for 10 minutes and then I can’t speak to the guy who sold me the thing in the first place!”

 
Sit down and brainstorm every single stereotype, bias, pet peeve and belief about your product, service or industry and use it to your advantage!

 
Openly discuss with your clients and prospects what they should look for in a supplier, what they should look out for and most importantly what are some of the biggest frustrations customers have when doing business in your industry.

 
It’s vitally important to your success as a salesperson or business owner that you learn how to “separate yourself from the herd”. Know your industry and its pet peeves and “Reposition Your Competition”!

Innovation and Creativity

 
There simply is no room for complacency.

 
“We have built it, and they shall come,” may very well be true in the movies and fairy tales, but in today’s fast paced business world you need innovative business and marketing practices and processes. We need to continually create, anticipate and capitalize on emerging trends and technologies, but at what cost? Is all growth or change good, or just good for us?
 
When designing my sales training programs I used a set of core values as my compass. As Mahatma Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see in the world.”  If we truly want to make this a better world, innovation should not be just tied to achieve growth objectives but also be tied to a company’s expressed set of “core values”. And the core values you use as your compass should be centered on your desired customer’s experience.

 
In essence, moving away from a “customer satisfaction” model to a complete “customer dedication” model and delivering real value to your clients that ultimately delivers the desired results your customers are looking for.

 
The next question we have to then ask ourselves is how do we communicate value to our customers and prospects? We need to make our selling compelling. How are you piquing your prospects’ curiosity and making them interested in what you have to say? Ask yourself, “In what ways do my sales, marketing, and promotional efforts make me stand out from the crowd?

 
It is extremely critical for business owners and salespeople alike to ask this one crucial question: How do I differentiate myself from the sea of my competitors?” Consider how you might effectively make your selling more compelling on your business card, Web site, flyers, or presentation.

 
Expertise

 
People will generally seek out and would rather do business with people they perceive to be experts in their product or industry.
 
Do your business associates see you as an expert? Does the marketplace see you as an expert? All too often when I work with salespeople to improve their sales, they see themselves as merely salespeople. If you don’t see yourself as an expert in what you sell, why would people seek you out for your advice and partnership? Remember, you must always position yourself on top of the heap, not the bottom.

 
Become a trusted friend, a resource for your customers. Help them by pointing out what to look out for and, conversely, what to look for when buying your product or service. Problems arise constantly, and you don’t need to create them. You need to be able to identify them and solve them. Be the one customers turn to in order to solve their problems. You need to be the resource.

 
Establishing expertise in your industry effectively locks out your competition. Even if you do think of yourself as “just a salesperson,” there is no reason why you can’t be an expert in what you do! This is the best way to consistently reposition your competition and put yourself on top rather than on the bottom.

Would you like to learn practical sales skills and strategies on how to get your foot in the door, book more sales appointments and dramatically improve your sales results?

Then go here…

Kevin Boyle
Author / Public Speaker / Sales Trainer and Coach
“The Secrets to Sales Mastery”

ps – Did you enjoy this post? Do you have any tricks or tips on how you can “Reposition your Competition”? Please feel free to add your comments!

More great articles are coming your way!

I thought it would be a great idea from time to time to post my responses to subscriber questions in my blog for everyone’s benefit!

“Kevin, I have been trying to make some progress with a large Fortune 500 company. I know we have the solution for them, but I have to get everyone on board, specifically their management team and their IT department. Any tips?”

Hi John,

Well you have yourself a huge task in front of you. There is no easy answer to your dilemma but I can give you some good solid advise as to what to do.

Instead of writing a sales proposal – write a white paper. A white paper is a very deep comprehensive review of emerging technologies, trends, and where the market is heading and how your solution fits in.

1) Meet someone from the IT department and figure out what it is that they are trying to accomplish and the best way you can help them reach their goals with your solutions.

2) Try to arrange a meeting where you can present your “white paper” (your findings)
to the department heads of IT and management.

Focus on the naysayers – get the naysayers on board – or else they will kill your proposal.

3) Realize the differences between management and people in IT departments. Management generally thinks short term profitability and shareholder returns while IT thinks in terms of long term systems and processes.

You need a white knight in the IT department or the management team that will help you sell your “idea’s” and/or “proposal” to the other department.

Good luck John!

Kevin Boyle.
John’s reply :

I absolutely agree that was some good solid advice. I am impressed with your observations. I particularly like the white paper idea, selling the naysayers, and getting their input on what they want to accomplish. Do you have any questions you ask a potential customer that gets them to lower their guard and open up about their situation?
Dear John,
 
A good starter question to ask would be; “Mr. Prospect, what would be your greatest concern about…” From there I would explore the “implications” of his answer(s) on his company’s operations, profitability, internal processes, etc… by a process I call “layering questions” (found on page 75 in my book).

Also, take a few minutes to read my blog on “Repositioning your Competition” It is a technique I use all of the time to great effect.
 
Essentially you are “educating” your clients on “what to look for” and “what to look out for” when they
are trying to make a business decision about which way they need/want to go.
 
You will also find this concept explained in my book.
 
Also read my chapters on the – 1st key to asking for and making the sale and the 4 E’s of Competition (page 84).
John’s reply :

“You have sold me. I will be ordering your book today! Its great to know there is someone out there you can seek great salesmanship advice from. Thanks, Kevin. I will keep you in the loop regarding your book.”

Would you like to learn practical sales skills and strategies on how to get your foot in the door, book more sales appointments and dramatically improve your sales results?

Then go here…

Kevin Boyle
Author / Public Speaker / Sales Trainer and Coach
“The Secrets to Sales Mastery”

ps – Did you enjoy this post? Do you have any tricks or tips for handling two different departments? Please feel free to add your comments!

More great articles are coming your way!