Many entrepreneurs who hate selling have a misconception that they will hire people to do sales for the company. But here’s reality check – if you are thinking so, then you are wrong. Yes, being an entrepreneur you can’t afford to escape from situations. Since sales pump the success in business, so it is impossible to be a good entrepreneur without knowing the tricks of being a great salesperson. You don’t have actually to love it, but you have to master the art of selling.
Entrepreneurship could be a difficult journey; it also requires one to play many roles. So, shying away from selling might not just work. If done properly it might take your company places by boosting your business. But if something goes wrong, then it can feel like throwing money on the road.
Small business owners have to be whatever their business requires at a given time. It can also be difficult to understand the integrities of the sales and marketing. If you are not a natural salesperson, it can get more difficult but worry not because there is a lot of self-help material available that will help you in honing your sales skills.
Here is a list of few tips that will not only help you in understanding what sales are and how you can polish your skills, but it will also help you in creating a strategy for the business.
Sales?
It is imperative to understand what sales are? Sale is a continuous process that all of us directly or indirectly indulge in. Understanding sales will let you explore the ways to come terms with the process.
Here’s what you can do as a beginner:
Networking: Socializing and networking over lunches and coffees are one of the best ways to start. You can start with one-on-one meeting and move over to one-on-two to multiple persons.
Hiring Resources: Hiring a business development person will help in starting the conversation. Once the talks begin, other people can also join in the conversation and things can be taken forward. The business development guy can help you in reaching out the clients, breaking the ice for you. So, that you can take over and close the deal.
Hate sales?
There are just a few people who have the ability to sell anything or everything. Such people enjoy a very successful career. But not everyone is born with such skills. There are people who acquire these skills and others who lag behind.
If you are like those people who have a ‘cold calling’ phobia, find presentations boring and conference room meetings a waste of time. For you, the idea of sales is something that you would avoid at all costs.
Here are certain factors that make one hate sales –
Negative perceptions: Many of us think of manipulative, annoying and sleazy salesman as soon as we hear the word sales. Or we remember all the negative experiences we have had with telemarketers. Because we don’t want to be seen as any of these things, so we usually avoid sales.
Lack of confidence: One of the major reasons of avoiding sales is the lack of confidence. Many of us who dislike sales have somewhere lack of confidence. Some people don’t feel confident enough to convince someone to buy their product. This is something that one can work upon.
Scared of a cold call: The third reason of hating sales is the fear of rejection. Many people don’t like to be denied or rejected and because rejection is something that one has to faces at every stage of sales, so people choose to forgo the pain that comes with it.
Usually, factors mentioned above are the cause of hatred for sales in us. The good thing is that one can work upon them to excel in sales.
How to overcome the fear of sales?
Hare are few tips that will help you in overcoming the fear of sales without compromising with your career or business.
Reframing the mindset: Reframing your mindset will help you in overcoming the fear of sales. Don’t be stuck in old times by referring to the old concepts of sales. Update yourself by browsing through the latest in the business world. It will help you in grasping the latest techniques used in sales.
Choose individual over product: Sales people usually focus on the product that they are selling. Unfortunately, this is the wrong way of selling the product. Being a salesperson, you must focus on the consumer, the individual who will be using the product or the services. Focussing on the needs of a consumer will enable you in providing the solution and analyze if your product/services fit the bill.
Once you are sure that your product/services will be helpful to the consumer, then you can offer them and close the deal.
Understanding your USP: Stop giving excuses for the unpreparedness for sales meetings. While focusing on the individual you’re selling your product to, you must also know what you are selling and the value it brings to the consumer. If you have a better understanding of your product, it will boost your confidence like anything.
The more you know about your product, the more confident you will be.
The indirect way: Having a straightforward call to action talks with the customer doesn’t yield any results. Consumers prefer to connect with the kind of experiences they have had and can be engaged by storytelling. Relaying stories to your potential customers can do wonders.
Don’t jump the gun: Salespersons most of the times stress on closing the deal as soon as they can. Interestingly, that’s not the right move. One must focus on building a relationship with a prospect. Once you reach the point of closing the deal, you won’t feel pressurized.
You must take the time to invest in building a relationship with your clients. It will help in getting leads and deals in the long run.
What makes you different
Selling benefit and not the comparison is the key to success. The way you market yourself makes a lot of difference.
Being cost effective
Offering high-quality product/services
Selling is more about the benefit and the values a consumer is getting out of the product/services. A comparison with rivals will only highlight the features that you are offering, but actually, you are selling the benefits.
Charity begins from home
If you are just a beginner then starting off with your immediate network is the best approach. It makes you feel more comfortable as your circle will be more understanding and forgiving. It will help you in presenting your product/services in the best possible way.
Being a good listener is the best quality a salesperson can have. Listen more than you talk and ask a lot of good, sensible questions.
Let the world know before your product is ready
If you are waiting for your product to be perfect before starting any awareness campaign or marketing, then you don’t know what you are in for.
It means that you will start your business with zero demand in the market and would have to build a brand awareness campaign for the customers. You might also have to make changes in your ‘perfect’ product/service, once you launch it in the market. This will add to your cost and waste a lot of efforts and time as well.
It is better to be proactive and start campaigning for your product/services much before the launch and even at the time when the product is not even ready. Uptra – It will help you in knowing the demand for your product/services in the market. As a result, you can plan the production and launch accordingly.
Out of the box thinking
As mentioned earlier, referring to old marketing techniques could be suicidal for your business. In today’s times, one can’t ignore social media and its reach. One can use video marketing, social media, community influencers, digital marketing tools to spread awareness about the product/ services.
Use of different media
As mentioned earlier, using multiple ways and channels to market or advertise a product/service work best. It’s not just one thing; it’s a combination of different medias and mediums. But before blatantly launching your product/services you must study your target audience, their preferred medium, media, likes, dislikes, etc. It will help you in strategising the entire media plan.
Creating brand recall is important, and it is done using different mediums. Your potential consumer might not require the product now, but whenever they do, it will be your name that will come to their mind first.
Every time is the PR time
Only advertising your product is not important, you also need to build a trusted relationship with your consumer. You also need to position yourself as a responsible brand in the market. That means you need brand loyal and advocates who influence your consumers. Getting your product covered in the press will make people talk about it.