How to Sell More (Of Anything)
By leadership author and keynote speaker Ross Shafer
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Today I want to talk to you about how to sell more…of anything.
As you can guess, I have been a part of a lot of sales meetings and the number one question I get is this, “How can we boost our sales?” I have a very simple answer. If you want to sell more, you have to tell a better story. It doesn’t matter if you’re selling automobiles, financial services, or B2B software programs, the top salespeople always have the best value proposition. Their product and service story is always personal and it’s always emotional. When you have an emotional story, your clients and customers will care more about you and your products. They see themselves living a better life because of what you’re selling. You know it’s true because it’s worked on you. You’re probably a lot like me. I LOVE to buy things but I can’t stand being SOLD. I want to go away from a purchase thinking I just made a good decision…and I want to kinda think it was MY idea. I despise that old, tired sales pitch, “Hey buddy, what will it take for you to buy from me today?” I always say, “What will it take? Anybody but you.”
The “what will it take” pitch assumes that the only reason I will buy today is if you make the price low enough. Anytime you think a purchase hinges on a lower price, you will lose. If it’s about price you’re telling me that your product or your service is now a commodity that I can buy from anyone; in which case you deserve to lose the sale. At no time should we be in the commodity business. You can sell similar products – but YOU and YOUR STORY should be the convincing difference. Know how to explain WHY you’re different. “My support team makes the difference.” “Our reliability and attention to detail make the difference” and so on. Tell the client, “Call me 24/7/365 and I’ll solve any problem.” When you have a more competitive story to tell, you should charge more money because you have the better value proposition. When Alan Mulally took over Ford Motor Company, Ford had been going out of business for decades. Mulally decided to stop competing on low price. Instead, he substantially raised the prices of the Taurus and Fusion by adding better upholstery, better sound systems, more luxury options, and longer warranties. He convinced America that Ford was a bonafide competitor of BMW and Mercedes. Did it affect sales? Yes! Americans took billions of dollars to Ford dealerships and were thrilled to buy a better value – and a better story.
So if you want to increase your sales, ask yourself, “Am I relying on price to sell my products and services or can I create an emotional story about why people need what I’m selling. If you can tell a better story, you deserve to charge more money.
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