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Selling With Leverage
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No business person worth their paycheck enjoys
losing a sale. And there always seems to be a justifiable reason for not
making a sale, right?
You hate to lose. Yet in sales it does happen – often. When you are unsuccessful
in landing a big order, you always think you understand why you failed to
convince the prospect to buy from you. But contrary to your initial gut feeling,
it’s not always the fault of your product, your pricing, your competitor,
your prospect, the economy, your market, your service or your company.
Sometimes, as much as it hurts to admit it, the sale is lost because of you. You
might make a good living. You might be an above average performer when compared
to you peers (or maybe not), but the most successful sales pros have figured out
how to turn really tough selling situations into wins – not losses. They know
how to turn weaknesses into strengths. They convert objections into positive
selling points. Simply put, top sales pros are experts at selling with leverage.
This is what separates them from the rest of the pack.
Think of it as the difference between two major league baseball players – one
All-Star and one average hitter. The All-Star might get on base four out of
every ten times while the average hitter gets on base three out of ten times.
There’s a slight difference there, but that incremental difference causes the
All-Star to earn a contract worth twenty times more than the average player.
Selling with leverage means that you’re getting every sale you can out of
everything you’ve got – even if the competition has a better product or price.
When you sell with leverage you don’t fall into the trap of discussing price
with your prospects too early. When you sell with leverage, you start your sales
dialogue with your brand, your product, your service, your uniqueness.
When you successfully sell with leverage, you’ll position yourself as the best –
or ideally – the only solution that meets the customer’s needs. Discussing price
is a necessary and important step, yet when you’ve successfully mapped out all
the other favorable aspects of your brand, product and service, the price factor
doesn’t hold the weight that most transaction-minded salespeople tend to
believe. Selling with leverage minimizes the impact of price and maximizes the
influence that your brand, product, service offer to the customer.
Selling With Leverage: In Action
Picture this. You’re meeting with a prospect. Early in the initial meeting your
budget-conscious prospect tells you that they would only consider your company
if you are cheaper than your competitor.
This is where selling with leverage helps you sink or swim. When I help clients
overcome this hurdle we go through the following selling with leverage steps: |
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Defer the conversation about
your specific pricing until later in the meeting. |
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Establish the comparison
between you and the other guy as apples to oranges – or Chevy to
Cadillac – or whatever cute, contrasting metaphor makes sense in your
business. |
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Help the customer realize
that the brand, product and service you offer – in combination – is
truly unique. I can show you 51 ways that you’re unique, even if you
sell a commodity. |
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Inspire the customer to
yearn for your product or service by establishing compelling benefits,
demonstrating favorable return on investment and convincing them that
you are the sole source from which they can reap all of those rewards. |
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Get the customer involved
emotionally. Inspire them to benefit from the convenience you provide.
Comfort them with a low-risk proposition. Establish pride in doing
business with you and your company. Help them see the advantages they
will gain by investing with you. |
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Finally, the last step of
selling with leverage is to discuss price and gain commitment. If you
pour a good foundation the price discussion becomes less pivotal. The
customer has already decided both logically and emotionally that they
want your product or service. When you carefully position your price as
an investment in themselves or their business, more sales will follow. |
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The old days of
feature-benefit selling are over. Today you must do everything you can
to compete and win. Savvy business pros know that there are strategic
ways to tilt the playing field in their favor. They know how to
capitalize on their strengths. They know how to exploit competitor
weaknesses.
As a sales consultant and professional speaker, Selling with Leverage
has become the most popular topic that I am hired deliver to companies
seeking every competitive advantage they can muster. My clients pay me
$6000 - $8000 to deliver my 60-minute Selling with Leverage sales
keynote presentation at annual sales meetings.
I realize that every company or businessperson that wants to implement
Selling with Leverage strategies aren’t in a position to invest
in my consulting fees. Consequently, I am pleased to let you know that I
am making the Selling with Leverage sales program feasible for
every sales-hungry, excellence-seeking business pro who wants to sell
more, earn more and profit more. I’ve set up a dedicated website that
has all the info you need to skyrocket your sales. Please visit my
official Selling with Leverage website at
www.SellingWithLeverage.com.
| Good Selling! |
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| -Al |
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