Selling is basic to business, and not only in persuading external customers to buy. In all business situations, you can use established sales techniques to gain the agreement of others, enlist support, obtain resources, and overcome any opposition.
SOFT SELLING
All good selling is soft. You seek to establish a need and promise to fulfill that need. You can use this approach at work, and adapt your ”sales pitch” to suit the situation. Techniques include exploring a situation by using questions and listening, rather than making statements. You may also wait for replies from others, even at the price of pauses, and show sympathetic understanding if you encounter any resistance. But you have to persevere until the other person accepts your view. If you want to soft sell, make your point in the form of a question, smiling and using upturned hands with open palms. Both are friendly, persuasive, and non-threatening.
HARD SELLING
The old-fashioned hard-sell method works by putting people on the spot and forcing them to make a decision. If you are trying to implement an idea at work, be positive and use hard selling when you get close to a deal. Hard sell tactics include: Making a ”final, final” offer, stressing loss of opportunity, emphasizing a competitive situation, making a hard, clear proposition, and pressing for an immediate agreement. Listen to objections by potential customers, they may give clues to help you make the sale.
SELLING BY WRITTEN WORD
Using written documents to sell whether you are trying to sell a product by mail or are selling a proposal to colleagues. These follow some apparently paradoxical rules. For instance, in direct marketing to outsiders, long letters markedly outsell short ones. However, when sending internal memos, short documents are more effective. Long or short, explain at the beginning of the document why you are writing. Gain the readers’ interest. Keep to the point, make your case convincing, and end with a concise, clear, and positive summary. Do approach any sale as a joint exercise between you and the buyer.
UTILIZING COMPUTERS
The personal computer has evolved as a powerful sales aid. For example, you can store the names and addresses of potential customers on a database, and even call up files relating to a client while you are talking to them on the phone. Having facts on screen can make you more efficient and help you close a deal. Computers are particularly useful for selling financial services when details of a buyer’s finances are input, many programs will generate personalized proposals.
SELLING IDEAS OR CONCEPTS.
”I developed this from something you said to me the other day”. ”This is what you’ve been looking for. If we don’t do it, one of our competitors will for sure”. ”We haven’t got long to consider this latest proposal-it’s basically now or never”. ”Nobody else could do this as well as we could”. Try some of these next time you want to sell as an idea.
