Stay focused—Keep external distractions to a minimum and work at paying attention to what the other person is saying.
Receive words and emotions—The words another personuses are only part of the message. Be sure to capture the whole message by also paying attention to the gestures and emotions behind the words.
Don't interrupt—Interruptions disturb the communication process.
Resist filtering—Try not to judge what the other person is saying based on who that person is or your own beliefs about the subject.
Summarize the message—After you've heard what the other person has said, provide a brief summary to be sure you heard correctly.
When it comes to making decisions, each person has his or her own style and process. However, there are three predominant styles in the business world:
Authority—In many hierarchical organizations, the decisions are made by the person with the greatest authority. Even in a cooperative team environment, there are some decisions that should be made by the team leader or deferred to a higher authority.
Expert—Using this style of decision making, the person with the greatest technical expertise around a certain subject makes the decisions related to that subject. In across-functional team, that would mean that members performing each function would make most of the decisions related to that function.
Creative—This style is best suited for those situations when an entire team is called upon to make a decision. When such a decision is needed, the team can use the Innovation Process.
Based on our analysis of the opportunity, a specific statement about the ability of the product/service to meet the buyer's needs can be made. We call this the Capability Statement. The Capability Statement transitions the sale from gaining interest to solution development and presentation. After gathering information we can confidently state that our organization is capable of providing what the buyer wants or needs. This statement can include the primary interest, cites the specific solution and appeal to the personal and business motives of the buyer(s). Done well, a capability statement may be all you need to secure the sale.
Use the buyer's name
Identify the product you recommend
Reference their primary interest
Cite criteria and considerations
Appeal to motives
Trial close
Capability Statement Example
"Terry and Les (names), based on my research and what you told me, I'm confident that our Topol system (product) is the best solution for you and your company. It will give your people instant access to the information they need to make informed decisions (primary interest) without your guidance. The system allows people to change parameters immediately (criteria) based on current data. This will help them take more ownership of the process (considerations) and become problem solvers.
"Once you are free of making these decisions, (motives) Terry will be more able to focus on building your c-learning system, and Les can devote more energy to developing up your satellite branches. You'll both be free of these headaches and able to get your business on the cutting edge. And won't it be nice to be home with your young children and not wince when the phone rings? (trial close) What do you think?"
It is likely in any selling situation that obstacles will have to be overcome before a customer will be ready to buy. Often salespeople make the mistake of "handling" objections in such a way that the customer is turned off. Resolving objections effectively is a process that involves careful, sensitive listening along with positive, factual responses to customer concerns.
We must understand that customer objections are not always rational. Often objections are totally emotional. We must respond to our customers' emotional needs, along with the obstacles preventing them from buying, if we want to build long-term relationships.
