Sunday, October 19, 2008

Finding Out Who Your Customer Is

One of the first things you do when you meet with a prospective customer is to determine whether they would be a good fit with your product offering - also known as "qualifying them".

Excellent relationships are based on being mutually beneficial (each party wins) and your time, money, and sweat are too precious to be wasting your resources on people who have no interest in your offer, or wanting to rip you off.

To help you focus on your clients needs remember this creative acronym - NEADS

N: What does your prospect have now?
E: What does your prospect enjoy most about what she has now?
A: What is your prospect willing to change or alter what they have now?
D: Who is the final decision maker?
S: How can you find the best solution for her needs

Sometimes the best solution is recommending a prospect to your competition. I am reminded of the a lady going to an shoe store and asking for a particular shoe in a size 7. "I'm sorry", says the sales clerk, "we don't sell that shoe in a size 7, how bout we try fitting you in a 8 or 9". Instead of sending this lady to her competition, the clerk is more anxious about making a sale than finding her right size - with size being critical for long term comfort/happiness.

This is because your authenticity (and brand) are more important than a quick sale. Poor qualified customers can have long lasting repercussions ("can you believe I fell for that sales pitch?") and will often find ways to criticize you, whether you like it or not. People know it's against business nature to turn down a sale, instead of focusing on their best interests. So why not surprise them?

Customers are more likely to not only remember such a remarkable feat ("go see our competition down the road"), they're also more likely to tell their friends about your business - who may end up being your real target audience.

Choosing "who" vs. "how many" is an excellent way to build a loyal customer following, strong brand, while practising ethical marketing.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

6 Steps to Handling Objections

One of the most important steps in the selling cycle (which goes hand in hand with marketing), is listening and responding to your prospect's/customer's concerns.


Its important to remember that objections are not impasses, but rather an opportunity to reassure your client and demonstrate why your idea is best suited to them. Often times, criticism is a signal your client/prospect has been paying attention to your marketing/sales pitch and is interested in learning more.

Here are some key steps to overcoming objections:


1. Hear your customer/prospect out.

Don't be quick to address every phrase your prospect utters. Give her time: encourage them to tell you the whole story behind her concern. If you don't get the whole story, you won't know what to do or say to change their mind.

2. Feed the objection back

By rephrasing your customer's concern, you are in effect asking for more information. You want to be sure that they have aired all of their concerns, so no other objections come up after this one (this is often one of the most overlooked problems when people deal with assumptive closes!)

3. Question the objection.

Subtlety and tact come into play here. Be sure to find out what feeling is behind each objection and reassure our prospect that you product/service is right for them.

4. Answer the objection

When you're sure you have the whole story behind her concern, you can answer that objection with confidence (leadership matters!)

5. Confirm the answer.

"Does that answer your question Jenn?" Not completing this step will often make your customer raise that objection again.

6. Change gears with "By the way..."

These three words are some of the most useful words for persuading, or showing a person your side of the story. Use these words to change gears - to move on to the next topic. Blathering on, will not help you stay focused on solving you target audiences needs or make your presentation purposeful.