This is how I, and the people I manage, become pacesetters and record breakers:
SELLING BASED ON PERSONALITY
The golden rule of sales is “Sell Onto Others The Way They Want To Be Sold. Selling based on personality is focused on this rule. It uses the Enneagram Personality Typing System and NLP to understand people and how they are influenced.
HOW STRONG IS THIS TYPE OF SELLING?
Most companies accept sales reps who are closing 33%? WHY? 33% is simply unacceptable to me. Why should I pay someone to work for me if he/she fails more than he/she succeeds? Think about it. In any other position, if you fail more than you succeed, you get fired. Why should it be different in sales? Good news!!! This has consistently taken me, and the people I manage way beyond 33%.
NLP (Neuro-linguistic-programming)
The psychology of interpersonal and intrapersonal communication. It describes the structure and subjective nature of personality while providing powerful tools with which to achieve rapport and effectively communicate and influence others.
ENNEAGRAM PERSONALITY TYPING SYSTEM
Today, it is all about rapport. People buy from people they like and trust. This typing system is not the old fashion Driver, Expressive Analytical… way of reading people. This is a state of the art Enneagram based system used by medical professionals to dig deep into a customers personality, and their unique way of viewing the world. With that, I am able to determine what criteria my customer uses to make buying decisions, and how to position the product or service to meet that criteria.
Note: Every industry has it’s own sales cycle and presentation. Some presentations are designed for a one-stop close, and some are designed for several. The best part of this type of selling is that it does not conflict with any presentation or sales cycle. In fact it compliments any and all.
This does not change the company presentation. It just enhances how it is delivered.
MY 5 STEP SALES PROCESS
(A lot of company presentations I have seen follow this format in some capacity. What makes mine unique is the use of “NLP” and “Enneagrams”.)
1st appointment (After the cold call/prospecting)
1-Warm Up (1st level questions)
I always spend a small amount of time when I first walk in just getting to know that person. Ask 1st level questions. My goal is to find commonality.
2-Intent Statement: Ben Duffy
Just a statement that sets the tone as to what I am there for and what I want to accomplish before the end of the meeting. Also, I do what is called a “Ben Duffy” Just a statement tied into the intent statement that lowers the customers tension/wall. This type of statement was invented by a salesman named Ben Duffy. He found he was able to have more influence over his customers when he let them know what the expectations were of the presentation, and that he wouldn’t strong-arm them into buying. By doing this, he was able to get the customer to relax and concentrate on the presentation instead of thinking about how he/she was going to get out of having to make a decision. At this point I am not worried about urgency or getting a “Yes/No answer today” agreement. I will build urgency in my discovery and tie it into the presentation.
3-Discovery (2nd and 3rd level questions)
I want to ask 2nd level questions then transition into 3rd level based on what I find out on the 2nd level. Also, I will identify their personality type so I can “sell them the way they want to be sold” These questions are obviously developed based on industry.
4-The Presentation (The body of the company’s presentation)
Along with giving the company presentation, I take what I learned in discovery about their personality type, and buying “motives/criteria” and mold those “hot buttons” into the presentation. Making them the focal points as to why they need my product or service. I do not change the presentation my company wants me to do. I enhance it with what I now know about my customer and how he/she makes decisions.
5-Close or Set Another Appointment
My intention here is to ask to get a “commitment of action” pending on that industries sales cycle. If it is designed as a one-stop close, I require an answer. (I don’t accept, “I have to think about it”) If it is a longer sales cycle, I set a second meeting with a definitive agenda/goal agreed on by both parties, and a definitive date and time. (I don’t accept “I’ll look at my calendar and call you”)
Copyright © 2008 – ALL RIGHTS RESERVED – J. Stringer
