Where, and as importantly, when does the connection with a prospective client begin? Hmmmm… QUESTION: Why do you we continually experience poorly trained, disinterested, and unprepared people selling everything from mobile phones to automobiles to finance and insurance products? ANSWER: Simply put…Because we allow it, and in many instances, facilitate it through well-intended, but misguided actions by us and/or our managers! Imagine this… A prospective client walks into your business eager to find a product that you offer to help them satisfy a need, want, or desire. They are greeted by member of your sales team, dressed professionally, excited to assist the prospect, and greeting them with a professional, sustainable greeting. The dialogue goes something like this… SALES PROFESSIONAL: “Hi, welcome to ABC Company! My name is Sandy Cerami, and you are?” PROSPECT: “Hi Sandy, I’m Mary…” SALES PROFESSIONAL: “My pleasure Mary! And how do I spell your last name? (Prospect provides spelling) Here’s my business card, so that I don’t forget to give it to you. Can I quick grab one of your cards?” This simple example of a smart connection begins with the Meet & Greet step in the process! This greeting allows for the dialogue to not simply occur, but it will breathe life into the connection opportunity! Now we that we have begun to get to know one another by exchanging names and cards, we can build a relationship by getting to the nature of Mary’s visit. This exchange lasts all of maybe a minute or less, but there is a lot happening here. We are initiating the “discovery phase” by accessing the personal nuance of a meaningful client relationship through everyday congeniality combined with some fact-finding. The result is the humanization and de-commoditization of the seller. This is an all too rare experience unfortunately! Normally, when a prospect enters a retail business, they are ignored, stalked or treated with little or no professionalism. What is happening in the mind of the customer with every second that ticks away…the staff, and moreover, the company’s credibility erodes exponentially with every tick of the clock! Let’s focus on why this really occurs from the staff member’s perspective. 1. GOOD PERSON, BAD HIRE! - Have they been properly screened? - Did we select them for the right reasons? - Are they committed to their own success? 2. PREPARE & TRAIN (BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER!) - Have we invested in a professional level of training and preparation for them prior to them “going live”? - Do we continue to invest in advanced and refresher training on “SELLING SKILLS”? - Do we stress selling or relationship cultivation or both?? 3. ENGAGE VS ENRAGE OR ASSUAGE? - Do we track and monitor performance in order to beat our team with a stick? Or… - Do we try to find the right incentive to dangle on it by getting to the heart of what’s important and motivates our potential Sales Professionals? The old adage that we get what we ask for is never truer than when we look past the importance of really connecting with and investing in our sales people every day. That means starting from the start when we are recruiting and hiring, and then following through with a professional, structured training program that is continually employed, perpetually evolving, and always at the heart of great performance! THE IMPACT POINT (T.I.P.): The highest producing Sales Professionals in any company will always start a relationship by engaging a prospect with a smart questioning process designed to: - PRODUCE DIALOGUE - GAIN INSIGHT - DEMONSTRATE GENUINE INTEREST IN THEIR PROSPECT - LEAD TOWARDS THEIR CLIENT’S DESIRED RESULT BY EMPLOYING OUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE