Building Desire

Prospects only buy what they want, and it’s the salesperson’s job to raise their desire throughout the sales process.

Your Voice

A huge amount of communication is non-verbal, but when you’re selling over the telephone you lose all the benefits of body language and must rely on your voice to make up for it.

Don’t fall into the trap of being over-enthusiastic in the hope that this will rub off on your prospect. Too much enthusiasm puts pressure on your prospect - he’ll be wondering what you’re trying to sell him as soon as you open your mouth.

As a guide to getting the right amount of friendliness, smiling as you talk to your prospect and sitting up straight is enough to warm your voice and help you speak clearly.

There are also three Ps to remember – Pace, Pitch and Pause. Speak slowly enough for your client to understand you, in a tone that that is professional but warm, and pause now and again to add impact to important points and let your prospect have a say!

Active listening can also help the conversation tick along; simple words or sounds of acknowledgement as your prospect speaks make the call more comfortable than complete silence.

Positive Language & Picture Power

We all have 2 sides to our brains that work in very different ways. The left half deals with logic – words, numbers, logic, sequences and lists.

The right half is where the creative magic happens – pictures, rhythm, colour, imagination…

It would be great to email your prospect a few solid, well presented reasons for buying and have that be enough to get them to send back the insertion order. Though if this was the case we’d all be replaced by computers (who don’t ask for bonuses or commission either!).

The reason computers aren’t replacing salespeople is our ability to engage the whole brain and build a logical argument that your prospect wants. Here’s a few ways to get creative:

Colour and pictures
Why do you think TV is more popular than radio? A picture tells a thousand words, are you using picture power to create desire?

Metaphors, analogies and stories
So you’re read by 80,000 people… great… But how about imagining Wembley Stadium packed with 80,000 buyers paying to hear about your products and services!?

Encourage your prospect to share their emotions
Go on, ask them how they feel! Not about politics, or the ravages of time… but about working with you for one. Ask them what their gut feel is about your product and you’ll normally get an honest answer – and develop the conversation from pure logic to emotion and reason combined.

Sell the sizzle not the sausage
A written testimonial is one thing, but why not film it? Always be on the lookout for a more expressive and compelling way of getting your message across.

Make it Personal
I’m sure you could go on or hours about all the reasons that your product is the best on the market, but never base your earnings on guesswork. Find out what your client wants to achieve through clear probing and prioritisation during the qualification stages, and match the most relevant benefits to their specific situation.

KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid
We all have information coming out of our ears, differentiate yourself with clarity and don’t add to the noise.