Good morning everyone,
I hope my blogs I have been posting are helping you gain more sales success, staying financially secure, and gaining influence with those around you.
Today’s topic is about knowing if you hit the mark. You have learned to ask great questions to pull out the customer’s needs. You have used the needs bullseye and the question creation process to create these great questions. The question today though is how do you know if those questions pulled out the largest needs of your customer? How do you know you are on the right track with you customer?
Why not ask them? Ask them if you fully understand their needs? It’s okay to ask and double check. Don’t you want someone to know all of your needs when you are buying something? Don’t you want them to help you answer those needs? So does your customer.
Most people are too afraid to show vulnerability because they feel like they should know everything about their customer and they don’t want to seem like they do not have all of the answers. Unfortunately, some sales people believe that no matter what the person needs, their product answers it. I have not seen anything to date that meets all of my needs from a product or service standpoint. Most people believe that everyone should like things they like, and understand fully what I understand. Unfortunately, that is not how the world operates. My wife rarely understands things the way I understand them. I am also learning that I cannot assume that I understand what she is thinking. When I do this, I end up making a fool of myself. It takes constant questioning and verifying that we are in alignment.
It’s also okay to be vulnerable with the customer by asking if you are understanding them completely. Vulnerability is a key component to building trust with people so verify that you understand the customer’s needs will go a long way with the customer. Once the customer knows that you are really making an effort to understand them, the customer will share more details with you. When I started in sales the language used was peeling the onion. I’m not sure if you have ever peeled an onion, but there are many layers to an onion. The more flavorful part of the onion is on the inner most layers. Just like fruit that has a skin to it. You must break through the skin to get to the juicy parts. So must you get to the juicy needs of your customer. They will have greater impact if your product or service can answer them.
Unfortunately, most people try so hard not to be vulnerable with those around them. It is okay to not have all the answers and show that you are human and real with the customer. I am not saying that you need to give them all of the things that keep you up at night verbally vomiting all over them your anxieties. Save that for your therapy sessions. What I am saying is that as long as you are open to the customer about being an advocate the customer will gain trust with you. Trust is a huge component in influence and by gaining that trust by being vulnerable, the customer will also be more willing to share extra needs they have that they feel important if they believe you are truly there to help them.
Take notes and ask for verification that you understand the customer completely. Allow them to speak and correct any needs you might have recorded incorrectly. Allow the customer to correct you and help you get to the more flavorful needs. This will help you win the sale and gain your influence with the customer later in the sales process.
I am looking forward to hearing from you how this blog has helped you gain more sales. Feel free to drop me a note on how you are doing with the sales process.
Sincerely,
Kevin Sidebottom