How to Think About Sales [Academy]

I find that many people, including salespeople don’t know how to think about sales and what it really means to sell something. We already know the distorted view many people have of sales in general based on their negative response when asked if they would ever be a salesperson. 

Those same people are still hanging onto an outdated view that salespeople are fast talkers who pressure prospective buyers into purchasing something they really don’t want. If you don’t believe me, attend a trade show, and check out the percent of people who walk down the middle of the isles to avoid contact with the reps in booths on either side of them. They stay far enough away and walk fast enough so they can avoid being approached by those reps. So many people are afraid of being SOLD something, That’s because they have the wrong perception of what selling is.

If you look up the definition for selling it says sales is the process of persuading a person or organization to buy something. That definition is outdated. True selling has less to do with persuading and a lot more to do with being so attractive to potential buyers they WANT to buy what the rep is offering. If you don’t understand that successful selling is about trust in the seller and not the products or services, selling seed to farmers will be hard.

So what is sales, really?

Selling is creating trust between the seller and the potential buyer. It doesn’t matter if the offer is being done in person or on-line, a level of trust has to emerge within the buyer to risk making the investment.

When you’re calling on farmers to sell them something as important as seed, the last thing you want to do is persuade them into buying it. That important decision needs to be their own, based on their TRUST and belief in the salesperson.  

Building trust starts with the potential buyer’s initial impression of the seller. A sales rep gets one opportunity to make a good first impression, but plenty of chances to screw that one up later. The first meeting between the seller and the prospect must impress the prospect. The first thing the farmer sees when a seller drives into his yard is imprinted on the prospect’s mind. Once that happens, it can takes a lot to change that impression, especially if it’s initially a bad one. But GOOD first impression can also change to a bad one very quickly if the seller is poorly dressed, disorganized or wastes the farmer’s time. 

The first impression starts with the vehicle the seller is driving. The vehicle MUST be clean, inside, and out. It’s the salesperson’s office so it MUST be organized and well kept. Next, the sales rep MUST be better dressed than the farmer, not by a little, but by a lot. The rep needs to look successful, be clean, and professional. It goes without saying that what happens next makes or breaks the relationship that needs to be developed before a sales can take place. The sales story is everything. That’s why the rep needs to know HOW the call with start, WHAT will be talked about during the call and HOW the call will end before the call is made. That means role play practice and lots of it. This is the point, however, where the bad perceptions salespeople have are created.

So many sales reps skip the practice part and stumble during the actual call when the farmer takes control of the conversation. Every student I’ve ever had would tell me how much they needed new customers, but almost none of them put in the time to prepare for the call, especially the practice part.

How do YOU think about sales?

Do you know how new prospects perceive you when they meet you for the first time? I’ll bet your vehicle is clean and you’re dressed pretty well.  Those are the easy things to do. But I’ll also bet your sales story is the weakest part of your entire sales approach. I’ll bet you’re not as confident in your sales story as you need to be and in your ability to impress farmers when you meet them for the first time. Think about that. You may want to change how you think about sales.

Happy Selling, 

Rod