Advanced Selling Skills

By this point, you may have wondered if this book addresses advanced selling skills. Legitimate question. Let me answer it this way: I recently worked with a client who was rather insistent on finding an advanced selling skills seminar. During our discussion, I suggested that success in a sales call is directly linked to performing the basics well. We have all heard about professional sports teams recovering from a slump by going back to basics. The basics never fail us. Strive for brilliance at the basics.

I responded to my client by telling her there is no such thing as an advanced customer. In my years of sales experience, I have never heard of anyone referred to as such—tough maybe, but not advanced. I recognize that this is a new concept, but I feel that customers simply represent a variety of positions, some more senior than others. Regardless of their position, all customers have universal agendas, such as "why should I buy from you? ... how are you going to help my business? ... what's in it for me?" These questions are common denominators to every sales call. Advanced selling is simply a matter of understanding and applying the Sequential Model, coupled with having a positive attitude and the confidence to pursue a dialogue with fellow human beings, regardless of their position or experience. My client accepted the analogy, and I proceeded to design a sales course using basic sales techniques that met her training objectives.

Consider this: The Carnegie Foundation did a study and discovered that only 20% of a person's sales success comes from product knowledge. It's not just what you know about your product but, more importantly, it's how you present yourself. This report went on to suggest that up to 80% of success in sales (and life) is determined by a combination of self-management skills and interpersonal skills. Other organizations also support these findings. Think about it. As a consumer, when was the last time you purchased a product from someone you didn't like? Not very often. You probably took your business and your bag of money elsewhere.

In sales, the common denominator, the one universal constant, is people. People need to like you and trust you, and to feel that you respect them, before they buy from you. It makes no difference what product or service you are selling—corporations may "do the deal" but it is people who "do the relationship." People buy from people.