Strategic Sales & Marketing Solutions

This is part five in a ten-part series that provides the tools you need to obtain commitment and close sales by making the most effective (and profitable) use of your time.

You’ve heard it said over and over again, listening skills are critical for the professional salesperson. The reason for this ongoing repetition of wisdom is simple. Human beings like to be heard, and they like to be “right.” Unfortunately, many also like to interrupt, and it’s an act that can kill a sale quicker than any other. This needs to be clearly understood by the salesperson committed to mastering the skill of listening, because two people cannot be heard at the same time. The role of the salesperson is to listen.

In modern times, the current headlines surrounding the state of our economy have produced a number of “armchair quarterbacks,” individuals who digest the daily news and pontificate about where things are going, when we’ll get there, and so on. That’s not a problem until one of these seers and sages becomes your prospect. When you are on a sales call, either on the phone or in person, what do you do when the conversation turns to “hot button” issues?

You have a number of decisions to make in a limited amount of time. First and foremost, you need to perform an attitude check on yourself. What is your top priority? Is it to explore the possibilities of doing business with your prospect, or are you there to have a lively roundtable debate? Assuming the first option describes your intent, let’s revisit the second paragraph of this article.

Human beings like to be heard, and they like to be “right.”

The interesting aspect of this desire is that people will talk (and assume they are being heard) as long as they believe someone is listening to them, and until someone attempts to “prove” them “wrong,” most people will assume that they are “right.”

As a professional salesperson (and as a disciple of listening skills at their finest), you are well acquainted with your role. You’ve read the books and articles on “mirroring” your prospect, on the occasional smile and nod of the head, all of the body language and facial expression keys to success. You have read a book or two on NLP and put the principles described into practice. That’s great, but you must remember one very important detail.

You’re human too.

You cannot use your “face time,” either in person or over the phone, to selectively listen and aggressively seek your “window,” your moment to jump in and resume control over the conversation. If your prospect has something to say, you must patiently and attentively listen to it, all of it, without interruption. If you find that you can’t do this, either because your prospect has the ability to talk for hours on end or you simply do not have compatible personalities, this is all part of your sales decision. If you do not wish to allow your prospect to be heard, don’t worry. The next salesperson will listen and close the sale you that don’t want. That’s one of the primary laws of the jungle…nothing goes to waste.

There is no room for “hot button issue” discussions in sales…politics, religion, the economy…don’t do it. It’s the quickest and easiest way to wave goodbye to your sales. But what do you do if you have actively listened, and your prospect is finished speaking, and it is now the appropriate moment for you to respond?

In one scenario, your prospect might have sounded off on the economy, on his or her belief that things will get much worse before they get better. Rather than “correcting” them, you could pause for a moment, smile, and say “I understand your concern.”

Those are four magic words that can spare you from a world of pain. “I understand your concern.” The reason for the power of these words is that the desire to be “heard” is really the desire to be “understood.”

When you say “I understand your concern” in response to a thought or idea that you disagree with (or perhaps agree with only in part), you’ve shattered that “Will he / she agree with me or disagree with me” moment of truth.

You haven’t compromised your principles or beliefs. You haven’t sold out. You haven’t caved in. You simply have chosen not to judge your prospect. You have allowed them to have their own opinion, to say what was on their mind, and because you chose to listen to them, they are now, in most cases, ready to listen to you.

Please take careful note of the words “in most cases” above. You will absolutely find prospects that are a “time sponge,” who take much and yield little. This is not about them. It’s about avoiding potential acts of sales self-sabotage when you are in the presence of opinionated prospects who might also be good customers.

Be patient. Try the old “1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi, 3 Mississippi” second test when you want to react or respond immediately. Remember that reality is most certainly perception, and the manner in which your prospects perceive you determines whether or not they will become your customers.