The 10 Skills of "Super" Salespeople

A 1999 Harvard Study of 100,000 salespeople showed that just four percent of the salespeople in the U.S. sell 94 percent of the goods and services! Today there are 17 million outside salespeople, 3 million inside salespeople, 2 million sales engineers and estimators and another 3 million managers and executives also selling, which totals roughly 25 million salespersons. Four percent of 25 million is one million. This means that in the United States there about one million "super" salespeople. Unfortunately, this also adds up to a huge corral of 24 million who aren't selling very much and are barely eking out a living. My mission in life has been to help change salespeople from average to tops in their field. Here are 10 key skills salespeople can use to increase their sales success and go from being "average" to being a "super" salesperson.

1. Recognize and utilize an important equation: sale success = sales aptitude + sales skills + practice.

It's easy to figure out whether or not people have sales aptitude or not by giving them a simple 15-minute questionnaire. Sales aptitude is something you can measure continuously, so you get a typical bell curve output. The results show that almost everybody, if properly trained, can do well in selling, but there are a few people at the bottom of the bell curve that really shouldn't be in the sales profession. The questionnaire I use is web enabled. You can connect to it by clicking www.ashertraining.com/selftest.php.

Average Salespeople:

• May not have an aptitude for sales
• Do not possess key skills
• Do not practice

Super Salespeople:

• Have a sales aptitude
• Possess key sales skills
• Practice the skills

2. Overcome the key negative psychology about sales.

Almost every average salesperson, left to their own devices, starts out by giving a new customer a sales presentation. The problem is that when customers are getting the presentation, they feel like they are being "sold to" and they become defensive. Top salespeople trump this problem by building the relationship first, making the buyer comfortable with them. Second, they ask the customer about their requirements -- the issues, the pain, the problems, the needs, and third, they come back with a solution. The whole psychology has changed because the salesperson is now helping their new friend solve a problem.

• Average salespeople: Present solutions first
• Super salespeople: Build relationship first, ask about requirements second and then present a solution

3. Understand the power of referrals.

Top salespeople are trained to always ask for referrals. The absolute best source of referrals is the salesperson's current delighted clients. The difference between average salespeople and top salespeople is that the average ones never ask for referrals. Top salespeople always do.

• Average salespeople: Never ask for referrals
• Super salespeople: Always ask for referrals

4. Take advantage of the power of "coaches."

The "coach" is your friend, your spy, your buddy, your mole, your champion at the customer's company who is feeding you all the information you're dying to know as a salesperson: the requirements, the pain, the issues, the incumbent, the competition, the money available, etc. If you have a coach, the probability of getting in to talk to the decision maker is 80 percent; without a coach it's only 20 percent.

• Average salespeople: Do not use coaches
• Super salespeople: Will not pursue an opportunity unless they have a coach

5. Utilize excellent telephone calling practices.

First, introduce yourself. Second, have a "grabber" which snares the customer's attention. The best type of grabber is mentioning the name of your coach. For example, the salesperson could say, "Dan Smith suggested I give you a call." If they know and trust Dan, then they know there's a good reason he recommended you so they'll listen to your pitch.

Third, state why you're calling them, and fourth, answer the question: what's in it for them. The fifth step is a request for the customer's time. An example might be, "Hi, this is Sally Field of Southern Security Systems. I'm calling at the suggestion of Ron Beckert. We're having a special on security systems this month. Our security systems have resulted in 33 percent less robberies by our home owners. Do you have a minute to discuss this?"

• Average salespeople: Do not use scripts when making phone calls
• Super salespeople: Use the classic five step phone call procedure emphasizing the "grabber" (e. g., coach) and the answer to the prospect's question: "What's in it for them?"

6. Conduct the classic three step sales interview process used when you sit down with the prospect for the first time.

In the first step, focus on building a relationship with the customer and selling yourself. This includes learning how to dress, seizing control of the all-important first impression and how to research prospects before going on the call. The second step is asking questions about the customer's requirements and any relevant issues. The third step is offering solutions. Unfortunately, average salespeople do the opposite, and present the product first. Again, top salespeople reverse the psychology.

• Average salespeople: Present solutions first
• Super salespeople: Build a relationship first

7. Engage in active listening techniques.

Peter Schutz, the former CEO of Porsche, says, "If you listen closely enough, your customers will explain your business to you." The CEO of Columbia Sportswear says, "We ask our customers what they want, we make it, we sell it to them." You must listen to the customer first, and active listening is the key technique.

• Average salespeople: Do 80 percent of the talking
• Super salespeople: Do 20 percent of the talking

8. Overcome customer objections and prepare for the sales call.

If you can overcome prospect's objections to your offering, you have a 64 percent chance of making the sale. On the contrary, if the customer has no objections, you have little or no chance of making the sale. The reason is that a customer's objections show they're interested, engaged and listening. Before going on any sales call, top salespeople think of all the questions and objections that could possibly come up and are ready to overcome them.

• Average salespeople: Do not think of objections in advance of talking to the prospect
• Super salespeople: Brainstorm all possible objections that the prospect could have and have thought out the answers.

9. Eliminate the four famous Dale Carnegie selling fears.

The first fear is the seller's fear that they really don't know what they're talking about and they're not competent with what they're selling. To overcome this, top salespeople always know their products and services and the competitions' products and services better than anybody else does. Therefore, they come across as the most credible salespeople.

The second fear is the fear of rejection. Studies show that the top salespeople have totally overcome this fear and average salespeople have not. After losing a sale, average salespeople stay in a funk and don't want to make the next call. Top salespeople brainstorm with others, figure out what went wrong and how to improve it. They rationalize objections. They know that sales is a numbers game and they cannot win them all. They pick themselves up off the floor and robustly go after the next sale immediately.

The third fear is the buyer's fear that they don't really understand what the salesperson is selling. To overcome this, get the customer involved as much as possible with the product or service. For example, invite them to visit your plant to see the manufacturing process in action, give them a demonstration, or let them take the car home for the weekend. Confucius said, "What I hear, I forget, what I see I remember, but only what I do, do I understand."

The fourth fear is the buyer's fear that if they buy the salesperson's product, the salesperson will mess up and embarrass them in front of their boss. Overcome this fear by using Dale Carnegie's "killer argument." Explain that many other customers have successfully used your product in the recent past. This experience reduces the risk in the buyer's mind. Say, "We've solved this exact same problem you've got at three other customers right here in San Diego." They follow it up with their proposed solution and one or more of three classic sales messages that help sell it:

1. The killer argument (We have done it before)
2. The unique selling proposition, key and ghosting discriminators (Why the prospect should buy from you and not the competition)
3. The return on investment analysis (How the product will pay for itself)

• Average salespeople: Do not know about and/or address the four selling fears
• Super salespeople: Understand all four fears thoroughly and how to overcome them

10. Utilize classic architecture structure when making a presentation.

The average salesperson starts the presentation by showing how great their product is, but the top salespeople start by explaining their understanding of the customer's problem. If the salesperson has diagnosed the customer's problem correctly, this can have a terrifically positive impact on the buyer. They know the salesperson has done the necessary research and that they really understand their problem.

• Average salespeople: Present first
• Super salespeople: Discuss the prospect's problem first, then propose a solution and back it up with sales messages.