After graduating and getting my Bachelors of Science of Nursing degree, I read an interesting article that explained why everyone should experience a sales job for at least a year. It was kind of inspiring actually, because I have always wanted to be in sales. And guess what, I didn't become an RN right after school, I jumped into a sales job working at an internet E-commerce company called Blinds.com. Blinds.com sold anything from faux wood blinds to draperies and outdoor exterior shades. You could say I was a design consultant or an interior designer online, but I just thought of me as a salesman.
I worked at Blinds.com for a year and what I learned from the company was the ART of Making a Sale. I also learned how to attract people naturally with just a conversation. But, this blog is about how I understood the art of sales, not about how I applied that art to the art of Nursing, which I will post in another blog if this one takes off!
How to attract people and make a sale
People have been asking about this for centuries and there is no real answer how to make a sale or how to get people to like you. However, there are concepts that can push you in the right direction. Trends are very important, following current trends that are happening now can help you relate with your clients. There are 6 major factors for making a good sale, efficiently. Making a good efficient sale is by engaging in one's emotions. When you engage in a person's emotion, you have an opportunity to build 'Like' and 'Trust'. More on that later.
8 phases of Attraction
- Engage
- Open ended questions
- Gather information and Rapport
- Control/Probe
- Narrow down the results with hope
- Execute
Engage##
When talking to a potential client, always greet with a warm welcome and tell them how excited you are to work with them today. This allows the client to let their guard down a tad bit, and eases them into the conversation. Try not to be come off too perky and don't be a Debby downer just because you are having a bad day, they can smell that and will push you away. Instead, try something like, "Hey my name is Shawn and who do I have the honor in meeting/speaking to today?" They usually just respond with their name, let's just say his name is Tommy. This then leads you to Phase 2.
Open Ended Questions
We want to ask open ended questions initially after Engaging. The reason we want the client to spill their beans and tell us everything about why they are here today, and how they feel about the situation. For example, you can say something like, "Tell me about your project, what's going on today Tommy." This phase allows the client to unravel any information he/she thinks is important for us to know. Usually, the client starts talking about how they need this because this happened and they explain how they feel about the situation. This is where rapport comes into play.
Gather information and Rapport
When giving rapport, we want to listen extensively. This phase is very important, we want to take notes mentally or physically if possible, and take down key factors on why this client is here, and why they are feeling this way.
For example, if a client needed blinds, it would sound something like this "Well Shawn, my wife and I just moved into a new home in Houston, Texas and we need to get some new blinds for our room because the summer sun is hitting right on our face in the morning. I don't mind it, although, my wife works the graveyard shift, and I really need for her to get some good sleep during the day. We were thinking about getting some aluminum blinds or some cellular shades for a bow window. The website online is very overwhelming, what do you think?"
While listening to what Tommy said, I have noted down the following things to use as ammo.
- New home in a Hot City
- Happy Wife - Happy Life
- Sleep (Need to darken)
- Bow Window
- Has an Idea what they are leaning towards
Usually, there is a lot more information the client says, but to save you some time, lets focus on these 5 things. As I note these key points down, I am relating to the customer making remarks such as. "I can only imagine how frustrating it can be to have light come into your room, especially when you both have different schedules." Also, "It must feel like 100 degrees right now with no window treatment!" This way, I know that I am following correctly with the client and they see that I understand their situation. You might think I am being fake or coming off too strong, but the truth is, I am usually a genuine person, people are frustrated about things and we should care a little to help them find a solution. It's the humane thing to do. So, make a connection with your client and find empathy and show sincere sympathy.
Control and Probe
This is by far my favorite part of being a good salesman. After gathering information of what the client has said, we need to control the conversation by probing with a series of questions. What I mean by that is, the client will continue to ramble on about what they are trying to get accomplish, but at the end of the day, they really don't know what they want, they just assume. That's why you are there to guide them to unravel what they NEED. After the client has spilled their beans on how they feel about their situation, that leaves the table open for you to talk.
You respond with something like, "I see where you are coming from Tommy and it sounds nerve wrecking. However, I think we can find a solid solution for this problem, so I am going to ask you a series of questions so we can be on the same page, fair enough?" What I just did there was engaged in what the client was feeling and I practically told him, everything is going to be okay, we are going to get to the bottom of this. This allows the client to put his or her guard down even more. I told him I would help him by asking questions and ended it with a simple, "fair enough?" Typically people respond faster and agree when you tell them you are going to do something and give them a quick approval question right after such as "fair enough?". After Tommy responds with a "fair enough" or "ok, go ahead", this gives you the opportunity to probe the situation with closed ended questions.
Examples
Q- Are you looking to darken your room Tommy?
A- Yes, I want to block as much light as possible.
Q- Do you want something that you can tilt open, or prefer it to just go up and down?
A- Preferably something that just goes up and down, I guess.
Q- How tall and how wide are you window openings?
A- 3 windows 5 feet tall 26 inches wide.
Q- Are you trying to match the decor or your room?
A- Yes, we are leaning towards a light taupe color.
Q- Can you reach the top of your windows?
A- No, definitely can not.
Q- Do you want to mount them in a frame or outside of it?
A- Inside.
Notice I asked very specific questions so I can narrow down my search for the perfect shades for Tommy. Tommy doesn't need aluminum blinds, they are the worst! I would never recommend them, even tho I have them in my room and I am just too lazy to change it them.
Narrow down the results with hope
We are close to the grand finale, this is the moment of truth. We are about to find out if Tommy is with us or not and is he ready to pull the trigger. This is why we are here and where the bread and butter is made. After asking the series of questions, we respond with, "Great Tommy! If I can find you a way to darken your room so your wife can sleep better during the day, help you reduce the heat that is coming into your room significantly, not to mention also reduce your electricity bill monthly for your new home and help you control your taupe colored cellular shades move up and down effortlessly, is that something you were interested in, today?"
You see what I did there? I took ALL the information he gave me, found relevance to his story, and offered everything he was literally asking for. I told him I have exactly what you were looking for. Not to mention, I never pushed him into buying out latest fancy product, I just told him I have options, would you like to hear what it is? I also ended it with the word "today" at the end, so it hints him to believe he is making a purchase today. If he says yes, your chances of him making a purchase is VERY high. Let's assume he say's Yes.
Execute
I then respond with something like. "Great, I have cellular shades that have a effortless pull string, or even motorized so you don't have to get up when you are in bed. You think that is something you might be interested in?" He replies yes, approves the color, wants the motor option upgrade and i read back to him all 3 orders in complete detail and then I say, where would you like me to mail these shades? The key to a good sale is, NEVER talk about money during the process, wait to the very end when it is time to checkout. This is what I like to call, impulse buy, they know they need it, you found it and now you are here about to cross the bridge, and the pressure is on SON! After getting the address, you say. Your total is blah blah blah.. would you like to pay with credit card or pay pal? Boom. After the purchase, I thank him and tell him I am emailing him a receipt, and I mention I am going to email him all of my information, so, when he is ready to treat all the other windows in his new home, call me. This story is like a broken record, it works EVERY time and I have had hundreds of these situations.
Conclusion
If you are fresh out of college and looking for a job, I encourage you to look for a job in sales for at least a year. You can apply the Art of Sales in any career, it will be very handy. If this blog takes off, I will explain how I applied my sales tactics as an RN. If you want more information on how to control a conversation or be a better sales man, comment! Have a productive day!