You can know too many sales tactics – here’s why.
Sometimes, what you DON’T take into a sales call is more important than what you do take in. Sometimes the stuff that you take into a call is nothing but extraneous head-trash that gets in your way – and more importantly, gets into your customer’s way when they want to talk to you, and to buy.
What brought this to mind was a conversation I had with a young salesperson recently. This person had been through sales training that was not mine, but is of the type that focuses on heavy techniques and word games. What resulted, in her case, was probably the worst case of training malpractice I’d ever seen. She was so focused on remembering what technique to use at what time (and what the names of the techniques were) that she was unable to have a reasonable conversation with a customer. Like a bodybuilder who trains so much that he becomes musclebound and has difficulty functioning, she was so technique-bound that she couldn’t just talk with her customers. There’s a fix for this, though.
You see, I’ve always preached that sales should flow as a focused conversation. The focus comes from your questioning and comments; the conversational nature comes from never forgetting that you’re talking to another human being, and that your job is to learn more about him/her and help solve problems. If you’re remembering when to use your Double Inverse Outward Question with a Half Twist, that probably isn’t going to happen!
You see, we (salespeople) have trained our customers over the years to spot cheap tactics. Use the Take-Away, the Firing Horace, or the Sharp Angle (yep, those all exist) on someone, and they can spot it a mile away. The problem is that once you do that, you cease to be a person. Customers trust people; they don’t trust cheap tactics – or the people that use them.
The other problem with the tactics is that, like a movie script, they only work if customers know their lines as well as you know yours! For instance, let’s look at the Take-Away. This is a technique designed to ‘reverse’ the sales dynamic by forcing the customer to ‘prove that they are worthy’ of buying. It’s simple; you tell the customer that you don’t think your product is right for them, and they then want to buy so badly that they will sell you on buying. The trouble is that it doesn’t work, for several reasons.
First, the customer doesn’t know that they are supposed to be selling you, so many times they will simply say, “OK, I understand, thanks.” Then if you want the sale, you have to backtrack into selling mode – which makes a liar out of you. It’s the ultimate Catch-22. Either the customer trusts you based on what you’ve done up until that point, which means that they trust your judgment that they shouldn’t buy – which means no sale. Or, they are a bit skeptical of you, spot the cheap tactic for what it is, and it reinforces their decision not to trust you – which means no sale.
The second reason it doesn’t work is that, if you are telling someone that they shouldn’t buy something when you really believe that they should, you are a liar. There’s no way to come back from that. Once you’ve lied to your customer – and believe me, they will know it – you are forever branded as someone not to be trusted. Of course, that’s just an example of these kinds of tactics; customers spot them all.
So, let’s talk about unpacking. In the case of the salesperson I’m discussing, my advice to her was to forget about all those named tactics, forget about trying to remember what to say when, and to establish a few simple objectives for the call. Then ask questions that help you achieve those goals, and present the right products and services. Have conversations with people!
The best thing to unpack from your head is pretty much any sales tactic with a name (like the ones I’ve mentioned earlier; there are many more). Named sales tactics are more designed to sell sales training(because the trainer is ‘an authority’ if they know the tactic and you don’t) than they are designed to help you sell. Skills (questioning, presentation, prospecting, etc.) are important – tactics and techniques just get in your way.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that, if you want to learn more about this, you should attend my Sales Boot Camp on July 26. We’ll focus on helping you have those natural, focused conversations that will help YOU sell more. Click here for more information.
