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Step Ahead Of The Class: Gain The Upper-Hand In The Selling Game
By: Jim Meisenheimer
Issue: February 2010

Upper-hand selling strategies--sounds evil, doesn’t it? Well it’s not meant to be. The buying and selling process is seldom a 50/50 proposition. If there is an edge, I believe it belongs to the seller. Saying it and achieving it are two different things.

If you want a mutually successful outcome with your potential customers, try to gain the upper-hand in these four critical areas.

1. Knowledge. Find out all you can about your potential customer’s business, problems, industry, their customers and even something about their personal interests. The internet makes this quite easy. Also check online magazines for what they’re saying about your competitors and customers.

2. Selling. Invest 30 minutes each day acquiring new selling skills and ideas that can be applied to your sales career. Create a file for these and related topics: time management, attitude, goal setting, negotiation, handling objections, closing, presentation skills, probing skills, change, telephone selling, sales force automation, internet selling, networking, etc. Read and save all you can about these subjects and you’ll see dramatic changes in your personal performance.

3. Communication/Language. The words you use to ask questions, make presentations and submit proposals paint a picture about you. When you speak, what do we see? If all your words are improvised on the spur-of-the-moment, you become the great improviser. Choose your words carefully. Learn to play with words whenever you want to make a better impression. Create a list of power words and weave them into your sales presentations. Your words say more about you than the clothes you’re wearing. The clothes create an impression and your words confirm it—maybe.

Proper language is the real key to your success. You rely on language to converse with people. You use language on the telephone, to leave voice-mail messages and e-mail messages. Your letters, memos and hand-written notes consist of well-chosen or randomly chosen words.

There is nothing more powerful and eloquent than a well-chosen word. Choose yours carefully. Think before you speak.

4. Relatability. The role of today’s sales representative is changing dramatically. Lone-ranger selling is definitely out and team selling is in. Getting to know and being able to relate to large groups of internal and external customers is a prerequisite to achieving selling success. Pay attention to people. Discover what makes them similar and what makes them different. Relatability follows understanding.

There are three key steps to being able to relate to a variety of people.
1. Know yourself.
2. Know your customers.
3. Adapt to your customer’s style.

When you combine knowledge, communication skills and the ability to relate to others you step to the head of the class. Don’t be too busy to:
1. Acquire new knowledge daily.
2. Prepare and practice your language skills.
3. Attempt to relate to all people, especially those who are different from you.
4. Make personal growth and development your No. 1 priority.

Don’t play the lower-hand if you want the upper-hand.

Let’s go sell something …

Jim Meisenheimer is creator of the “No-Brainer Sales Training Program” and author of five books, including “47 Ways To Sell Smarter.”