You are listening to the art of sales.
Everyone sells every day, and this is your source for conversational, real-world sales
and prospecting methods that you are comfortable using and that get results.
You'll help people buy instead of pushing them into being sold.
Here's your host, Art Subject.
On a commercial for an online brokerage company, one guy was talking with another and he asked
him, does your financial advisor give you objective advice?
The other guy said, yeah, their objective always is to sell me something.
Of course, that was meant to be a humorous slam on full-service brokers whose intent
is to sell stocks instead of giving objective advice.
However, it got me thinking about how lots of sales reps do not have a clear objective
when they pick up the phone or go into a meeting.
For example, when in training I ask sales reps for objectives before their calls, I hear
such things as, I want to see who they're buying from now, or I'd like to qualify and
send out some information, or I want to see if they have any needs for what we sell.
Now granted, all of those should be accomplished, but none are the end result you're ideally
looking for on a sales call.
You wouldn't get in your car and say, I'm going to start my car, and then just go out
on the road somewhere.
No, you get in your car because you have a very specific destination in mind.
And when you have a destination, then you figure out what route you need to take in order to
get there.
And then you follow that route and usually you arrive.
Yet, many salespeople get on the phone with no clear specific destination in mind.
And they end up cruising, wandering around aimlessly and not surprisingly ending a way
word journey without a good result.
Maybe you've had that feeling after a call or a meeting where you just stand there, sit
there shaking your head thinking, wow, what just happened on that call?
I was all over the place.
So this episode's takeaway and action item is boring.
Simple, but yet required for success, and it's this, have a primary objective before
every call or meeting.
I define your primary objective as what you want them to do as a result of that call.
Again, emphasis on the do.
It's got to be action oriented.
The ultimate primary objective is what?
Well, it's to get them to buy, right?
Or perhaps your objective is to get agreement that this person will take your proposal to
their board meeting and recommend its approval.
Maybe you want to qualify, generate interest and then get the prospect to agree to do a
side by side comparison between his existing product and yours.
Now, if you didn't get all those, rewind and listen to them again, they all involve your
prospect or customer doing something.
Oh, and another tip here, when you're setting your objectives, think big.
One thing is for sure.
If you aim low, you'll rarely hit above your target.
When you aim high, you'll sometimes reach it and on average, we'll achieve greater results
than if you started low.
So here's your homework.
For every call you place or meeting you have from here on out, simply ask yourself, what
do I want this person to do as a result of this interaction?
That's your primary objective.
And when you have your in target in mind, it's always much easier to plot your map and ultimately
arrive at that in destination.
All right.
Hey, you know what time it is.
♪ We're headed to the B.I.N. ♪ ♪ Everywhere you'll never feel what this is ♪
♪ The art of the sales ♪
♪ The quote of the day ♪
That's right.
It's time for the quote of the day.
Today's quote is from Dr. Steven Covey and directly relates, of course, to everything
that I just talked about.
And this is from his seven habits of highly effective people.
Very simple.
Begin with the end in mind.
Begin with the end in mind.
Hey, if you're getting value from this show, will you do some colleagues or friends a favor
and let them know how you're getting value and why you think they might as well?
Send them to our show site.
Theartofsales.com, theartofsales.com.
Also, if you haven't already, we always appreciate five star ratings and reviews over at Apple
Podcast because that helps more people find us as well.
So you'll be doing the entire sales profession a favor.
Thank you so much for investing your valuable sales time with me today.
Until next time, go out and make it your best sales day ever.
I'm Art Subcheck.
♪ ♪