“Billy, pay attention!”
That was your first listening lesson – probably delivered when you were too young to pay attention.
Fast-forward 20-some years or more, and you’re still not listening.
Your customers are telling you they are somewhere between “interested” and “ready” in your sales conversations, and you’re pressing to overcome some bogus objections because your focus is on making the sales rather than helping the customers buy.
Previously, I wrote about four buying signals. Here is Part II. The parts have one thing in common: You must be listening in order to get the signals, and you must be ready to respond once you hear them.
Here are more of the buying signals:
5. Asking positive questions about you or your business. You may not take them as positive, but they are. “How long have you been with the company?” is asking about you as a salesperson. “Will you be here to serve me after the sale?” Or “How long has your company been in business?” They want to know about security, safety and lower risk.
6. Wanting something repeated. “What was it that you said before about financing?” Or “Tell me about that again.” If prospects want to know about it again, that means there is an interest – a buying interest. If you tell them about it again, ask them if they want to place the order now or if they want to hear more stuff again.
7. Statements about problems with previous vendors. This is huge. When prospects ask, “How long does it take to respond to a service call?” that indicates they have a service problem. Perfect time for you to ask, “Has service been a problem? Tell me about it. What type of service do you need? What kind of response do you need?” That can lead to, “So what you’re saying is, if our service is there for you when you need it, we might be the best choice for you?” What you are doing here is asking for the sale, and not giving them any reason or opportunity for the prospect to say no. This type of question is a huge buying signal – you just need to be aware of it, and be prepared to answer it before you walk in the door.
8. Questions about features or options. Listen for: “What will it do? What will you do? Is this standard or optional? Is this my best option? Does this model come with that? Is this standard? Do I have to pay extra for this?” These questions mean the customer is trying to picture ownership with your stuff attached to it. Your job is to recognize the signal, and to be reassuring and prepared to confirm the prospect’s choice.
9. Questions about productivity. Productivity is a little bit more subtle. Using a copy machine as an example, they may ask, “How many copies a day can it make? How often will it break down? Will it be easy for my employees to use? What is your service response time?” Price plus productivity equals cost. Productivity is a key ingredient in your differentiation. And your job as a salesperson is to get them from price to cost. Sometimes it may be a price issue, when it is really a cost issue. Your job is to get them to cost. Hint: You never want to be the lowest price.
10. Questions about quality, guarantee or warranty. “How long is this under warranty? How long will this last?” What the customer is saying to you: I want to own this, but I want more reassurance.
11. Questions about qualifications. Questions about qualifications take three paths. One is your qualifications. The second is your company’s qualifications. The third is your product’s qualifications. Consider these questions for yourself: Can all your people answer all customers’ questions on the phone? Can I call you directly if I had a problem? Do you have a special help desk? All of these things relate to some form of ownership in the prospects’ mind.
12. Specific positive questions about the company. “What other products do you carry? How long have you been making this one? What happened to the last model? Do you have a new model coming out shortly?” Major clue: Answer all questions briefly and immediately. Don’t whip out the catalog or a bunch of slides. Instead say, “Mr. Jones, let me take you on a brief virtual tour of our factory or warehouse. Let me show you some of our other products and how they can help you.”
13. Specific products or service questions. “How does the manual feed operate? Do you select the trainer or do I?” Make certain your customer feels totally at ease about all elements of purchase and operation, including the equipment and the operation of your business. Put them at ease, but also ask for the sale.
Jeffrey Gitomer, author of “The Little Red Book of Selling” and 11 other titles, is president of Charlotte, N.C.-based Buy Gitomer. He gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings and conducts Internet training programs on sales and customer service at Gitomer.com. He can be reached at salesman@gitomer.com.
