Kevin Boyle

Most of us live our lives asking the wrong question. “What is the meaning of life?” When the real question should be, ”What would give my life meaning?”

Kevin Boyle, Author “The Secrets to Sales Mastery”

I believe each and everyone one of us is a very special and a very unique creation with our own thoughts, feelings, skills and talents.

And ultimately, the answer to life’s most perplexing questions is different for each and every one of us.

Another good example of what I mean is:

What is the key to happiness?

Well…

Let me ask you, what would make you happy?

Again the answer for every single person may be somewhat different (we all generally want “love” for example to be or feel “happy”), but we may have different definitions of what “love” means or looks like to us.

It’s only through our own life experiences that we find the real answer, that which we thought would make us happy may not, or may only be fleeting in nature.

So my challenge to you is simply this,

What would give your life more meaning?

Til next time,

All my best!

with warm regards,

Kevin

I have spoken to my friends and business associates about the following changes and to date no one has been able to tell me why this plan wouldn’t work.

So I ask you to read the following with an “open mind” and to see it for it’s utter simplicity.

I’m not saying it would be easy to implement – but I am saying the concept is relatively straight forward and that’s what makes it so attractive as a solution to our current economic problems. It’s generally accepted by most people that the surest and best way to build wealth is through real estate and more specifically home ownership.

So if we truly care about others then why not do something that makes it easier for the lower and middle class to own their own home?

Why don’t we help ourselves as a society at the same time?

Why don’t we put much needed monies back into government coffers?

I have a simple and very effective solution that will do all of the above.

I invite you to pass along this article or direct people to this site if you are in agreement with what I am about to say. The more people that know about this the better – and if we are lucky maybe the right person will read this and then act on it.

Here’s my solution.

If you want to buy a house – you purchase it directly from the government – and you pay the government a flat surcharge of 25% of the purchase price for this ability.

Therefore a $400,000 house would cost you $500,000 in total (plus any taxes).

Now why is this idea so good?

1) The consumer wins because he/she cuts their mortgage payment by about 25% ($1666.67 25 yr amortization / 5% down – equal monthly payments) vs bank ($2210.10 5 yr term / 25 yr amortization @ 5% int rate).

a) So tell me what would you do with an extra $544.00 per month or roughly $6,500 per year?

b) What would you do with the $166,000.00 you would save over the 25 years of the amortization period?

c) This would open up home ownership to a whole new level of consumer. A $300,000 condo or townhome would cost the average consumer $1200.00 per month plus strata fees (this is closely on par or just above what a lot of 2 bdrms cost to rent!).

How would that impact your life?

You would probably save it or spend some of it – the money you spent would most likely go directly back into the economy while the money you saved would go into our banking system, etc…

2) The government wins because with this winfall revenue stream they could now have billions if not trillions of extra dollars for government social programs, roads, infrastructure, medical care, schools, etc…

Rules:

* You could only use this on a primary residence

* 1 home per person

* Flipping would not be allowed

Who would lose?

As in anything, there are winners and “losers” but I would put forward that the advantages to this program far outweight the “costs”.

Banks. Yes banks would vehemetly oppose this and would spend years and millions of dollars lobbying key government officials telling them why this wouldn’t work. Don’t you just love politics?

To date I have discussed this idea with hundreds of people and the only argument I have heard against my proposal is that it is “socialist in nature” and does not represent true capitalism.

So I have a challenge to people who “think” that way.

When things go bad, why are the first people with their hands out, large corporations?

How much money did AIG get to bail themselves out? How much did the car companies get? Big banks?

Are huge bail outs in a free market economy, capitalist in nature or an example of us practicing socialism when it’s “convenient” for big business?

It’s high time we started really thinking about the systems we use and just how effective they really are.

Education:

I really do believe that our future depends on how well educated we are – and that deserving students who have the “motivation, the skills, and the “smarts” should not be held back because of lack of money to pay for a higher education.

My proposal for education is simply this.

As a student if you can achieve a grade of 75% or more in high school – we will pay for 75% of your university or college tuition.

If you achieve a grade of 85% or more – we will pay for 100% of your college or university tuition.

Where do we get the money to do this?

Reform the banks (my first point).

Supply vs Demand.

Essentially supply is production, demand fundamentally is dictated by how much disposable income we have in our pockets at any given time.

The amount of  ”disposable income” we have is directly related to what we do for a living, and how much we get paid to do that job.

To help save our economy we need educated people working; making a good wage.

I hope you write to me and discuss the merits of my thoughts and proposals or tell me why they wouldn’t work.

Do you think our banking system would collapse?

Do you think banks have proven themselves worthy of our trust with our most important asset, our money?

Do you think wall street/banks will do the right thing on it’s own without intervention?

I look forward to your comments.

Sincerely,

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

Write to me here:

kevin@salesmasterybook.com

** I am not sure about in the States, but I do know that in Canada that governement can borrow money for itself at zero percent interest.

If this is not true for the States, you have to wonder why the Federal US government allowed itself in the first place to give up control of it’s money supply and then allow the Federal Reserve to charge it interest to use your money.

Your words have power.

Never underestimate the influence your words can have on others.

Every single marketing piece you have, your flyers, your emails have the power to either compell someone to respond to you or not.

Use your words to paint pictures for your prospects and your customers. Create a picture in their mind that speaks directly to them. That satisifies their immediate needs, their wants and their desires but also words that help alleviate their fears about making a poor purchase decision. 

Use your words to invite conversation, to empower people in their choices.

Your words cannot only influence the minds of people, but they can completely change their perception about a particular thing. Words have the persuasion power to entice and motivate. They are used by sales people, and business owners alike to pass on a message, the message? Why I should do business with you. These words are known as power words and they can do wonders when used properly in your marketing campaigns.

Words can create a sense of curiosity. Your customers and prospects will get the impression that your product or service is something that’s different from others by the words you choose to use. Laundry products have always been advertised as new and improved, from years gone by. The power of both these words and the product itself reinforces each other’s strength.

Take for instance the line ‘100% money back guarantee’, these powerful words help gain the trust of your customer for them to take a risk and buy. It is absolutely a must to print these words at the closing line of your advertisements or sales pages. After your guarantee, the methods of payment and how money will be returned if the customer is not satisfied should be also stated.

Invite curiousity and communicate with people in an authentic new way. Instead of asking someone if they would like to explore something, or if they are open to something or if they would be interested in something, (this is ALL salesmen language). Try new language! After asking a series of open ended questions, try this as a response instead…

“If you are looking to ______________ then have you considered ___________” 

See where it takes you, I guarentee you will be pleasantly surprized at the results!

Curiousity can be used in other ways. Employing the word “secret” in a headline is extremely effective.  People are knowledge thirsty, they want to know what others don’t know.   

Using the word Free in the headline simply does wonders. Your readers will more readily easily absorb your message, I mean who doesn’t like, free?  Usually the word FREE is spelled as FR~E or some other variation on websites or in emails as ISP filters blocks messages having the actual word, considering it to be spam.

“You” is a very important word to be used in an advertisement.

Do not write from “your” perspective, write from your customers perspective.

Directly point out the advantages to that particular customer in his or her own mind. I cannot state this strongly enough, the prospect must feel like you are speaking directly to them about his or her own particular concerns! This is perhaps the hardest part, step into the shoes of your customer and read it from their viewpoint.

The word ‘Immediately’ denotes that your reader should take action now. It can be interpreted as ‘Don’t wait, or I’m going to miss out!’ This motivates the customer to take necessary and quick action.

The basis of any successful advertisement is in understanding your consumer’s “core” needs and then designing the advertisement accordingly. Just stating the advantages of using the product or service of the company isn’t enough. Your sentences should be designed so that your customer sees the advantages in having your product or service right now. For example, when advertising for a digital camera, just stating that the in-built memory of the camera is of 1 GB, won’t do the trick.

Instead, your sentence should be changed to ‘enough memory to store up to 350 pictures or 50 videos’. The solution to the problem of your customer is reflected in ultimately what your customer really desires, a camera which can take a lot of high quality photo’s. 

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 use your words more powerfully?Please feel free to add your comments!

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This is something that I highly reccomend both salespeople and business owners to do alike. The fact is within almost any given industry there is a “niche”, you just need to look for it, and understand what motivates your customers to buy.

For instance, I am a sales coach and trainer. I help sales people and business owners improve their sales results. But what is their real problem?

It’s getting more customers!

Right?

Well almost… you see if you dig a little bit deeper it really is more about cold calling reluctance. Every single sales person or business owner that I have ever worked with who has trouble in making their sales targets or meeting their budgets, has a problem with cold calling.

The majority of succesful sales people or business owners will tell you that generally the more successful a person is in business or in sales the more confortable they are and the better they are at with cold calling.

So I’ve discovered my “niche” but have I uncovered my customers “core” problem? Not quite yet… I know, I know I already said we were almost there… we need to dig “just” a little bit deeper. You see people who have difficulty in cold calling and prospecting, generally have some challenges in and around their own internal belief system about cold calling.

Why is that?

Well despite the naysayers, cold calling works and it builds businesses, profits and companies. You show me a struggling company or sales person and I will show you a sales person or sales force who has poor cold calling skills. Successful people exude confidence, and they don’t don’t have any problems picking up the phone and calling a prospect.

How can you apply this sales technique to your industry? No matter what you are selling I implore you to go deeper and discover what your true “niche” is and the real “core” problems of your customers. In this way you can really help your client get the break throughs that they are looking for.

Do you have an online business or are you thinking of taking your business online? Do you have the right product and/or service that targets a specific need?  What do you want to sell?  What is your passion?  What subject or topic do you have a lot of knowledge about?  Let me start by telling you that selling an informational products online is easier than selling a service.  But, selling a service online makes more money with monthly memberships. 

Before you spend all your time working on a website and writing up eBooks, you want to be sure that your customers are going to be interested in what you are selling.  Do your market research.  Start by seeing how many competitors you have.  Read through newsgroups, discussion boards, and chat rooms and learn about your target market customer base.  If you already have an email list, send them a survey to see what they are most interested in.

When researching your niche, use www.Amazon.com and find the current top sellers.  Find out what people are reading about.  You will want to research keywords with keyword tools such as www.wordtracker.com.  You need to discover which keywords are being searched for frequently. 

Doing a little poking around your competitors web sites and subscribing to their newsletters isn’t a bad idea.  This is one way to come up with ideas on what would make your company different or better.  Take a look at their traffic rankings (http://www.alexa.com/) and their related links.  By analyzing this information, you can see how many visitors they have each day and how profitable their company is.

When you discover your true “niche” and the “core” problems you address, “the real reasons why your customers buy from you”. You will notice your sales and marketing efforts dramatically improve. Why? Because you will be speaking in your customers language, and isn’t that the only language that really matters?

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? Please feel free to add your comments!

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The Choice Close

Feature Advantage Benefit Selling

Have you ever pondered the meaning of life?

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A very good friend of mine once asked me, “Kevin, in your opinion what is it that we are really selling”?

A tough question to answer…. So many ”experts” say so many different things.

If you visit a lot of different sites today on selling most of them if not all of them – promote “benefit selling.”  If you have read my book or attended any of my sales seminars you would know that I do not use FAB (feature, advantage, benefit selling) techniques as the primary means to sell. To me FAB is only there to ensure that I have “the expertise” in what I am selling, I consider it “the foundation” work.

What I do I believe works is having a very strong Client Centered Value Proposition and asking good solid questions to learn about my prospects business and current challenges.

I honestly do believe using FAB to sell can actually hurt your chances of making a sale more than help it.

Please bear with me, while I explain. 

Take a person who wants to buy a car. The salesman taught to use feature, advantage, benefit selling. Might say, have we got a beautiful car for you today, and it’s on special! Just look at this beautiful car, top comes down so you can enjoy a nice country ride with the wind blowing through your hair, soft leather interior for you to just relax into, especially after a hard days of work, it’s a beautiful candy apple red and it has a CD player so you can listen to your favorite music! The customer says great, I would love to have a convertible, with a leather interior, but I want it in black and I want it with satellite radio.

See the problem with feature, advantage, benefit selling is that people can always object to features and advantages. You run the risk of causing a “disconnect” between you and your customer, of being thought of as not being truly present or listening.

Of conducting the meeting according to your own needs, rather than focusing on the only persons needs that really matter – your prospects or customers.

So what about benefits, they’re good aren’t they?

Well yes, they are…

Have you ever had someone tell you how great something is, how great the features are, all the advantages to owning, the benefits they’ll enjoy for years to come?

Have you ever found yourself drifting, your thoughts wandering aimlessly, as a salesperson starts telling you about features and benefits that you don’t even care about? You’re just nodding your head, trying to be polite hoping the salesperson will get to their point or just stop talking?

There is a BIG difference between selling something based on benefits and selling something based on “desired results”.

In regards to selling, the definition of benefit selling is: “In what way is it useful for me?”

While when you are selling “desired results” the definition is: “How is this going to change my life and impact my business?”

A very big difference.

You see the only way for you to know what your customer or prospects “desired results” are, is that you as a salesperson must:

1. Ask good questions
2. Be present
3. And LISTEN

Then you can sell. You take all of the information that your prospect has just given you, and then you “tailor” your presentation to give your prospect their “desired results”.

The “desired results” then becomes an EXPECTATION on the part of your prospect due to your promise. A promise between you and your customer. A promise on which your relationship to do business rests.

Now you have accountability.

Your reputation is on the line.

This is what “Sales Mastery” is really about, being able to look someone directly in the eye and with 100% confidence know that you can deliver your customers “desired results”.

That comes from years of honing my craft, years of working with sales people, sales managers and business owners who want their “desired results” whatever that might be.

I have 100% confidence that when I coach someone one on one, I can help anyone increase their sales.

That is a powerful place to come from.

This is why testimonials are so important. Testimonials prove that you can deliver on “desired results”. It proves that you deliver what you promise, that you are accountable and that you follow through.

I can back up what I say I can do for you, and to prove it you can speak to these people.

And as a customer, that pretty well sums it all up about what I want. Sell people “desired results” and take yourself one step closer to sales mastery.

ps – Did you enjoy this post? Please feel free to add your comments!

Kevin Boyle, Sales Trainer and Coach and Author “The Secrets to Sales Master”

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What does it take to succeed as a salesperson?
 
Persistence

A good attitude

The will to prevail

Courage

Vision!

I read somewhere that, Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because he “had no good ideas”. Colonel Sanders was told by many that “you are too old to start a new business”. Sam Walton was told by the executives of the Ben Franklin chain “your ideas for a discount store are not workable.” F. W. Woolworth was told by his supervisors that “you don’t have enough sense to wait on customers”. Beethoven was told by one of his instructors that “you are hopeless as a composer”. what have you been told that you can’t do?

Quite simply, we all learn through failure. The only true failure is to stop trying.

We all admire the person who has made it, the top performers, however often we don’t see the struggle that it took them to get there; winners continuously invest in training, hard work, their focused and determined. Never be discouraged when things don’t work out – keep at it! It comes down to applying effective behaviors that you can learn from others who are doing it. Will you put in the effort? It’s up to you. 

True motivation comes from AMBITION

Top sales people are ambitious, they take personal responsibility and make things happen.

Are you proud to be a sales person? Do you LOVE your work? Do you like your job?

The person who builds a better mousetrap – or a better anything – will starve to death if he waits for anyone to beat a pathway to his door. Regardless of how good, or how needed, the product or service might be, it has to be sold.

People stared at the first fax machine wondering who to transmit to. Edison had to install his electric light free of charge in an office building before anyone would even look at it. Morse had to plead before Congress before they would even look at his telegraph.

Do you remember the first computers? Do you remember your first time on the internet? Often we don’t always understand what the benefit of something is unless someone, sells it to us. Someone told you about the internet, they created a curiosity within you.

Everything, needs a salesperson. Our society thrives on the selling of products and services.

We need salespeople, trailblazers, pioneers, – people who can persuade us as the inventor can invent. Sales people took these inventions, sold the public on what these products could do and taught customers how to use them.

Are you proud to be a salesperson? I know I am!

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

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My first time!

My first time

My first sales job was in a small independant T.V. Stereo store in Calgary, Canada called Far East Electronics. I had never sold before – as a teenager I used to work in grocery stores as a bag boy. So for me sales was a very daunting prospect – walking up to complete strangers was not a concept I was entirely comfortable with.

In fact I remember my first sale quite vividly.

Working in a small stereo store there was a certain amount of playful banter and teasing between the guys on the sales floor. Which in some ways made the prospect of me approaching someone for the first time and being “shot down” all the worse!

As fate would have it, my first approach was in fact my first sale…

And that’s when I learned my first lesson in sales – “the customer buys into the sales person first”.

I remember the gentleman quite clearly, he walked into the store and immediately proceeded over to our VCR display area. The “guys” being the helpful types that they were basically pushed and prodded me until I went over to approach him. I glanced back nerviously as if to ask for that one last once of courage.

I was in luck! My first customer was a large friendly sort, the type of person who would wrap their arm around you at a party and take you around to introduce you to everyone. I felt immediately at ease.

He said to me, you haven’t been at this too long have you?

I told him that actually he was my first customer.

He said, what’s your name son? I told him Kevin.

He beamed a huge wide grin at me, introduced himself and shook my hand, “Bob McPherson. Well Kevin, you are going to sell me a VCR today!”

I smiled right back and I said, “Thank you Bob!” I searched my mind from my earlier training sessions, reaching for the right words…. “So tell me what are you comfortable with spending?”

He said, “Why don’t you show me what you have, what they do and we will figure it out as we go along…”

I proceeded to show him a few models, explained the benefits, asked which ones he preferred and actually ended up selling him one of the more expensive modals at the time.

I’ll never forget that first sale. How much Bob had impacted me, my attitude towards selling and my attitude for the next customer who entered the store.

So, my question for you today is… What is your first sale story?

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? I’d love it if you could take 2 minutes out of your day and write a comment, and tell us “your story”.

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In my home town (well it’s actually a city, Vancouver) we have some pretty amazing events at The Vancouver Board of Trade for like minded individuals in sales or business to network. Every month the VBoT has either a networking event, a function or a trade show.

I have met some very interesting, insightful business savvy people at these events. Many have become life long business associates, most have become clients and a few have become mentors.

But it always amuses me to meet the “bigger better deal” person.

You know the guy or that girl who is always looking for someone more interesting than you. They’ve got one foot in, one foot out. Sort of talking to you, asking you all the right questions, but not really all there…

Well here’s some tips to make sure you never become that person!

First of all, adopt a mindset, a mindset that the person you are talking to is the most fascinating person in the world! I know you think I’m joking, I’m not. Try it! You will be absolutely amazed at how much better people respond to you, when you make that attitude adjustment and change your way of thinking.

Clear your mind of clutter, focus and be PRESENT with the person you are speaking to. Do not be that “bigger better deal” person. It’s annoying and you know what, people can sense it, they can read your body language.

Be genuinely interested in what that person has to say. Think of good questions to ask, learn about their business and LISTEN.

By listening, you give them a gift, the gift of aknowledgement. Acknowledgement that what they have to say has value. By acknowledging them you give them another gift, acceptance. Which leads to a feeling of community and greater trust… you see by being an active listener you lay down the foundation for a great relationship! After a person has a chance to express themselves and they feel you have been truly present with them, they generally will become much more amenable to what you have to say. Because of this, what you say after being fully present and listening will have more impact — giving you greater influence.

Lastly, Be nonjudgmental. We all have differing opinions. You can be respectful of another person’s point of view without giving up your own position.

Now let’s take a brief moment to look at it from a sales perspective. Customers buy when they feel understood, and the only way they can feel understood is if you’ve taken the time to really listen to them. Yes it’s important that your customer understand how you are going to “solve their problems”, but more importantly in the customers’ mind, they need to be convinced that you understand their wants, their needs, their desired results and that you have the capability and the expertise to get the job done.

So the next time you are speaking to a customer or you are meeting a business associate at a networking function, keep an open mind, be non-judgemental, be present, listen carefully, and ask good solid questions!

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 be a better Active Listener? Please feel free to add your comments!

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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!