Kevin Boyle

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Today we are continuing our series on the 5 elements that will help you sell yourself more effectively.

The 3rd element in selling yourself more effectively is confidence….

Once of the biggest problems I find with most people who are struggling in sales is they “do what is easy and what is comfortable to do – instead of what leads them to success in their business. Which is cold calling and prospecting – don’t let anyone kid you – building a business and increasing sales is work. And it does require you to step outside of your comfort zone and do things you might not necessarily want to do.

Here’s my advice to you.

Never stop knocking on doors, there are some people who say that sales is not a numbers game – I say bullocks – Sales is a numbers game – you never know what lies beyond the next door, what new opportunity awaits you, that one person who may change your life forever!

When I was a realtor, I put EVERYTHING on the line. Upon my graduation I had no money, in fact I had to borrow $2,000 from a friend to pay that last little bit of money to get my real estate license. So here I was, I just got my license, I owed a friend $2,000 and I had no money. In fact my rent was due in three weeks and I didn’t know if I was going to have the money. I remember driving around with half a tank of gas and $20 in my pocket.

And I’ll admit it, I was full of fear. I felt all alone and I was deeply afraid that I would fail.

I could have gone and got another sales job, at a mall selling cel phones. I could have gone to a Best Buy or some other retailer and got a job as a salesman. It’s what I do, and it’s what I am very good at.

But I didn’t.

I went out and door knocked every single day for 6 to 8 hours. I was SCARED SILLY. Every time I knocked on a door I waited partly in anticipation and partly in apprehension wondering who would answer, would they like me? would they slam the door on me? would they tell me to buzz off?

The truth is some people did tell me to buzz off, but much to my surprise most didn’t, in fact I would say about 90% of the people who met me at the door were quite civil and some were downright friendly and actually invited me inside for a coffee.

And I was still apprehensive about knocking on doors! That’s how powerful your mind is, your ego (that try’s to protect you from your dragons) – your Fear. Your mind (ego) wants to protect you from your NEGATIVE thoughts, it wants to keep you in your comfort zone.

YOU MUST ACT!

Even when everything in your body, your mind, and your very core says not to.

Why?

2 weeks after I started knocking on doors a lady answered the door. I introduced myself and she said, “Oh we are thinking about selling in the next couple of weeks. Why don’t you talk to my husband?” I rang him that night, got an appointment the next night and sold the house the next day.

And yes, my rent got paid that month!

A week after that I got another listing!

Now guess where I got my confidence to do it again the next month and the next month (and for the next 3 years) after that?

From success comes confidence.

But here’s the kicker… You can’t succeed if you don’t act!!

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 overcome fear so you can propel yourself forward and get those uncomfortable things done during the day? Please feel free to add your comments!

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The 5 Universal Truths about Selling!

I believe that selling like all “skill sets” can be learned. Like any other skill set you must begin with the fundamental building blocks and build from there. As you progress the different nuances and intangibles that go into being really good at something get more and more complex. That’s why sales is so easy to get into but for many very difficult to master.

Are there certain people who are naturally better at selling than others? Yes, talent is always something that must be accounted for when looking at why one person may perform a certain skill set or task better than someone else.

Knowing that sales is the lifeblood of our business and what we do, where should we start if we are looking to improve our sales ability?

The first principle in attaining sales mastery is to “Always sell yourself first.” I am strongly of the opinion that the customer really does buy into the salesperson first, and this has been proved to me time and time again in my career. The first sale becomes a part of who you are. It manifests itself in your relationships with others, and at it’s zenith it locks out your competition completely. “Never stop making the first sale” is one of the keys to your success in your life and in sales. At the end of this article there will be link where you will be able to learn the 5 elements of selling yourself more effectively.

The second principle in attaining sales mastery is that sales is a contact sport. You must reach out and touch your potential new customers. If you are not making a sales presentation to a client, you should be prospecting for new clients. Those are the only two things you should be doing during the day–presenting and prospecting. Everything else is a distant priority. Sales indeed is the lifeblood of your business and for most of us – it means hard work and persistence!

The third principle in attaining sales mastery is that most of your future clients are using someone else right now. Whether you are a coach or someone that sells photo copiers or cars. Know this universal rule of sales; Your best clients are already using a supplier in your industry right now. If you sell cars – you generally don’t want to market to people who don’t have a license. The sobering news for most people in business or who are new to sales is those people who do have a license most likely already own a car.

If you are a coach, the same principle applies your best clients are known purchasers of your product or service already – the best place to find them? People known to attend self help seminars and courses. Go to where your best customers are, and market to them in their environment!  

The fourth principle in attaining sales mastery is that you must appeal to your customer’s emotions. You must compel people to do business with them based on how they “feel” about purchasing your product or service. How many times have you purchased something based on a certain expectation of what you “thought” that product or service would or could do for you? It’s our expectation of what something will do for us that compels us to make the decision to buy a product or service, and it’s the salesperson who sets that level of expectation.

The final and perhaps most important principle in attaining sales mastery is that the objections that give you the greatest difficulty are generally your own.

 My first sales job was in a retail store selling TVs and stereos. I remember quite vividly this one portable stereo introduced by a major electronics manufacturer that I thought was butt ugly! I “hated” it and didn’t want to sell it. After the first day I noticed there were six boxes missing from the pile where the stereo was stored. Hmmm, I wondered, who was selling that piece of junk? Well, the answer was that another salesperson thought the stereo was “radical” in design and that it sounded “awesome.” That day I learned a very valuable lesson about selling.

Sales Mastery is based on how you feel–about yourself, your product, your company, and your job. You must sell you on you and your belief in your product.

If you have trouble seeing the value in your product or service, your customer will have trouble seeing it as well. In fact, it will manifest itself in your presentation as an objection, and most likely you will not make the sale because of your lack of belief in the product, not your prospect’s. You must be honest with yourself when you are struggling with sales.

Truth be told there are many “secrets” to sales mastery still waiting to be discovered. And that’s what makes the journey so wonderful and awe-inspiring, as students we can always learn a new technique, a new skill set or gain a new perspective.

Experience really is its own best reward. I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I do!

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 use the choice close? Please feel free to add your comments!

Other Blog Articles on Sales Mastery Techniques and Principles;

Sales Mastery Principle Number One

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The customer always buys into the salesperson first!

People like to do business with people that they know that they like and that they trust. This is the cornerstone of relationship sales and marketing.

Today: The Second Element in Selling Yourself Effectively:

Building Rapport.

Personally I have been tons of different sales and communication seminars, they talk about different personality styles, 4 different colors with sub colors, I’ve even seen some speakers use playing cards to explain differences in buyers personality styles –  honestly for me it’s way too confusing, I like things simple, effective and usable day and day out.…  

I have found one easy to remember, easy to use, very effective way of building rapport that works with most everyone:

Show genuine interest in others.

When you are genuinely interested in someone, you will naturally make eye contact; you will mirror them, without thought. You will smile because your present and enjoying the conversation, you will listen intently, and because you are interested, you will ask questions, you will straighten up and have better posture and you will lean towards the person. Last of all and most importantly, you will remember their name because you find them interesting!

In fact I’m going to ask you to go one step further. I am going to ask you to actually plant a seed in your mind before you even speak to your next prospect or walk into their office. I am going to ask you to actually like the person before you even meet them! That’s right, before meeting your prospects, convince yourself that you will be absolutely fascinated by them. During the sales presentation continually remind yourself of how much you like that person and how interesting he/she is.

Why is this technique so effective?

It changes the way the way you approach the sales presentation, it changes the person you will project to your prospect. Try it. You will be amazed at how positively other people respond to you, when you actually decide to “like them” first.

After I get my initial greeting out of the way, My opening question is always something along the lines of….

So, tell me John, how long have you been the VP at The Foster Group?

He’s going to respond and tell you, 10, 15 years…

I’m going to reply with an open ended rapport building question…

Really! How did you get involved with the printing business? (Or, How did you get started in the printing business?)

His response might be… I worked on the school paper.

To which I would reply… I did some photography for my school paper. Where did you go to school?

As you can see I am listening carefully, I’m fully present and I am building on the responses given to me by my prospect.

I do know of some sales reps and trainers who do not recommend building rapport at all. They just like to get right to the point of why they are there.

Their wrong and I’m going to tell you why.

One of the biggest issues that I come across when working with sales people and business owners is, besides trying to sell something, what reason do I use to make follow up calls?

When you take the time to build rapport and find out your prospects interests, their causes, their hobbies, their marital status, how many children they have, what ages they are, what organizations or associations they belong too –

You always have a reason for a follow up call!

For example, if Bob tells you he’s a big sports nut and his favorite team makes it into the first round and then they turtle –

You have a reason for a follow up call!

If Bob tells you he’s involved with a big charity, perhaps in a couple of months their sponsoring a 5k run –

You have a reason for a follow up call!

Never underestimate the power of building relationships with people, and you can’t do that if you don’t care enough about who people are and what they care about!

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 build rapport? Please feel free to add your comments!

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Thank you!

The customer always buys into the salesperson first!

People like to do business with people that they know that they like and that they trust. This is the cornerstone of relationship sales and marketing.

This is your leg up over large companies, you can personalize all of your relationships, if you are struggling for business this is generally the one area you are not connecting with within yourself. One of the lessons that I have learned as a entrepreneur is that in asserting my independence to the universe, I have to be careful not to assert my aloneness to the universe.

And this one was one of the hardest lessons for me to learn – I need connection with people – being an entrepreneur, business person or a sales person can get lonely. You need support. You need an objective eye who can give you feedback or point out what you are missing. Get a buddy – meet for lunch once a week – I have a coach, because I don’t see having a coach as an expense – I see it as an investment in my business, in me and the kind of future I want to create for myself.

Knowing that people like to do business with people that they know that they like and that they trust, the question we need to ask ourselves is: How do I sell myself more effectively?

There are actually five elements to selling yourself more effectively.

Today we are going to look at the first element; your sales attitude. My basic premise about my business is that I’m here to help others. That attitude is with me no matter where I go, whether I am at a networking function or I am on a sales call or I’m working from home.

Now what I find is most people understand this on an intellectual level, but they don’t understand on a belief level. And let me explain what I mean. I find a lot of people when they go to networking functions they complain about the types of people that they need there, that they don’t get any business when they go to networking functions.

And this is exactly what I mean about their attitude wrong, dead wrong and it’s why they are struggling with networking as a means of building their business.

If you look at the overall sales mastery principle that people buy into the salesperson first, and that you see that your attitude is a big component of that then you need to change your belief set.

When you go to a networking function its called “givers gain” for a reason.

When you go to a networking function your sole purpose is to help others. To give without expectation of what you are to receive.

Your reason for going to a networking function is not to get business, it’s to build relationships – and the way you build relationships at a networking function is that you give first.

Don’t you hate when a person you have never met walks up to you at a networking function and hands you a business card?

Why not be the person who walks up to another person and says, “Hi my name is Kevin, what would make a great business referral for you?”

You are going to find that other people are going to react to you in a totally different way, people will perk up when you approach them, you will become the honey that attracts the bees.

Here’s the missing piece of the puzzle to make network marketing work for you and your business…

When you are sitting down with a client, tell them, “I really care about my clients, and I love helping people, especially when it comes to you having success in your business, tell me what are some of the challenges you’re having right now. I might actually be able to connect you to someone who could really help you.

Now tell me have you not just change the whole dynamic of how you do business and how you have become a magnet, have you not become a resource for people? Have you not become a resource for every single person that you meet at a networking event, for every single person who is your client or business associate?

Become the honey that attracts the bees!

 Kevin, I would like to learn more about how I can get my foot in the door and attract more bees!

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 build your business through networking?

Please feel free to add your comments!

If you enjoyed reading this article please let other people know about it by Digging It, Adding it to Delicious, Sharing on Facebook, Stumbling it or Tagging it on Technorati!

Thank you!