Every few months, there is a new article released that claims salespeople are doomed, due to the idea that the internet can more effectively do what any salesperson can do.
I don’t buy that. I think the salesperson is not destined to become a relic, as long as they bring real value to the marketplace. That is the key!
Here are 10 things you need to do to ensure you never become a relic:
1. Ask your customer questions both you and your customer can’t answer.
2. Help your customer see and achieve things they didn’t think were possible.
3. Show so much value that price becomes a non-factor in the buying decision.
4. Demonstrate a level of integrity only you can bring.
5. Provide answers to the customer’s questions that go far beyond what the customer was expecting.
6. Equip the customer to move beyond features and benefits and focus on outcomes.
7. Provide the customer with a buying experience they see as equal in value to the actual purchase they’re making.
8. Help the customer see you as such a benefit that they can’t help but tell others about you.
9. Learn valuable insights from the customer that allow you to be that much more valuable to your next customer.
10. Let the customer see and feel that the passion you have in helping them far exceeds the passion you have for what you sell.
The internet can do a lot, but it can’t replace the insights you bring.
I suspect this list is different than what you were expecting. You were expecting very specific things, but that’s not the real value of what you bring.
You have the ability to share with your customer something much more powerful than the internet can. You bring your mind and your ability to help the customer see things they never realized.
Our challenge as salespeople is to not allow ourselves to feel victimized by the internet, rather it’s our goal to use the internet as a foundation from which we build the ultimate customer experience.
The ultimate customer experience begins and ends when we are engaged with our customer.
Copyright 2016, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog. Mark Hunter is the author of High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price.
2 Responses
As usual Mark great tips thanks for sharing. It’s a shame I will not be able to attend the Sales Acceleration Summit as I am now semi retired and don’t have any influence on sales now. But my motto is “once in sales always in sales” and I cannot fill out the registration form as I don’t have the right criteria.
Best regards
Barry.
Mark,
As a Digital Marketer, I totally understand the Internet will not replace the “personal relationship” that human interaction will provide.
A mentor of mine told me years ago there are FOUR steps in sales:
1. Arouse Interest. You need to get the prospect’s attention.
2. Create Desire. Find that need the prospect has and build the case that your solution will fill that need.
3. Motive Action. What do you want the prospect to do? What are the next steps?
4. Close the Sale.
All four steps are required to lead to the sale. The first three steps can be accomplished via traditional marketing tactics or digital marketing tactics, but step 4. Close the Sale, typically can only be accomplished with human interaction.
This is especially true when the solution being purchased is more complex or of higher value.
Yes, Digital Marketing (online, Internet, direct marketing, social media, etc.) is factor when it comes to Selling today, but it should be utilized as a valuable Inbound Marketing tool to help generate new leads from those prospects and buyers which have been unidentified in the past. More Prospects today are looking to solve their business problems or make purchase decisions by doing a Google Search. Businesses need to be found in that search primarily through Organic results, in order to become part of the process.