Selling Is Everything. G.F. Tanham

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СКАЧАТЬ them, it is fantasy. It is critical to ask questions and learn about how your buyers do business differently than their competitors and how this is manifested in their specific Decision2Buy process. I don’t have to be a guru in any specific technology, market segment, industry processes or standards to listen and learn. We were all born with the ability to listen but have tried to shut it down since we were children.

      Listening to people is the most critical of all skills and from my observation the most difficult, no matter what you sell or do. People like to talk about themselves, whether it is work related, cultural, social, economic, or purely for the pleasure of hearing themselves speak. Listening is a trained skill and a developed habit for salespeople because it is the only way to learn from their buyers. As a result, salespeople have the opportunity to develop good questioning techniques based on the buyer’s need.

      I learned long ago that if I’d take notes during a conversation, I would have the opportunity to think about what was being said. For some people taking notes in a meeting is the kiss of death, but for me it does a number of good things that assist me in being a better salesperson and consultant to my business partners. It reinforces what I heard. For me, note taking forces a focus on what’s being said because I am not relying upon memory or interpretation of what was communicated. The process allows the mind to focus on the important factors the client is presenting. It allows the listener to hear the inflection and emphasis of meaning and relevance more clearly as it is spoken.

      Note taking takes practice to learn what to note and what to just let pass, which in itself is worth the exercise. It allows the listener to hear the many meanings of the spoken word and the importance of those words. Taking notes allows time to think about the next questions (write and think, novel but a good listening technique). One goal while taking notes is to be thinking like your client. The client may be a logical thinker so the notes will be linear in nature, but if your notes are nonlinear, is it the client or was it your style of taking notes? I always take notes in the flow of the conversation, only key words to trigger conversations and feedback. In most cases the notes allow me to get the client to go into more detail, generating more information than would have been gained otherwise.

      I use this process to reinforce a point of value and generate more deep thought in areas the buyer had not thought of as an extension of the information shared. The notes tell me a lot about a buyer, for example if they’re able to communicate in a manner that’s simple and effective versus complex and disjointed. This also allows me to communicate and share information back in a “common language” manner. Further investigation into listening styles is outlined in this book when we address communication styles.

      From my notes, I also build analogies or have the client explain them in analogies or previous situations thereby reinforcing positive situations. I can endear myself to the client by understanding what was said and its relative importance to them. Like with your spouse or family members, you will find it is a key validation that they are important and valuable. We all want to be considered interesting or at the least worth listening to.

      Functionally this information will also keep the buyer focused on the goals in the sales processes. Using this information with the buyer creates an opportunity to build a sales action plan that addresses their needs.

      One critical learning experience addressed often in this book is that of listening better. It takes effort and must become a habit. I know we’ve all heard this before, but did we listen? Yes and no. I have read studies about adult communication focusing on the bi-directional content of communication. They conclude that only 7 percent of all verbal communication is heard and understood as intended. This is a manifestation of our lack of communication and listening skills. We have too much ambient noise and distractions to listen well. Clearly we’re not able to listen or communicate clearly for maximum understanding. Is it that our society does not value honest, clear and concise communication? Probably not. It is probably because we are living in a time and land of spin that allows for any number of permutations of the same information. Yet we, who live and die by making a living by listening, must quickly overcome this inadequacy. Have you ever wondered why some salespeople seem so intuitive in what they say and so at ease at what they do? It is most likely because they have mastered the skill of listening and focusing combined with a genuine interest in what’s being communicated.

      The skill of listening is to hear what’s actually being said, not what we want to hear or what we think they should be saying. Is this an epiphany? If so, good. Now start listening, learning and applying what you learn.

      Listening at its deepest level is done with your brain versus your ears because your ears are only the conduits for sound, not an analytical tool. Listening is more than what we suppose and can be understood within a more holistic approach. Listening is really being able to hear noise, understand its meaning and analyze it to make sense of the noise and what the sound is or means.

      Listening is not difficult if you are trained, but with so much ambient noise going on in our communication, it has become a challenge to focus on listening. One reason we don’t hear well is because our minds are trying to filter all the clamor and noise around us. For instance the first time you hear a piece of classical music you may be amazed at the depth and complexity of these new sounds. The mind vaguely tries to understand the music as written appreciating the sounds, cadence, rhythm, which in turn assists us in listening closer.

      Listening is a learned skill that is re-learned throughout our lives. Amazingly, we were great listeners as infants but were trained to stop listening by our upbringing and from the sheer avalanche of noise. Salespeople must learn to listen like children again. Here are some simple ideas and exercises that will help you listen to your buyer more effectively:

      1)Listen with a clear mind and make no judgments.

      2)Be prepared to listen, not to teach or otherwise have a fixed agenda.

      3)Take notes in your meetings.

      4)Ask questions that are relevant and get the client to speak about themselves and the processes they use to gain success.

      5)Listening will indicate how to relate to the buyer in their terms. Hear their voice and inflections which will indicate the process of buying they want to use.

      6)Be positive and willing to smile. A smile makes a huge difference and demonstrates your interest in what’s being said.

      7)If you don’t understand, ask for more information and listen to the answer, they will be stating it more clearly the second time. This will get you closer to the buyer and their value needs.

      8)If you listen and learn actively, the buyer will tell you what’s in it for him and his motivation for buying. You may not think you hear it but it will always be there.

      9)Clear the slate as every conversation is new and unique and not something you can search your mind to find a perfect “been there, done that” similar situation.

      My favorite exercise to work on my listening skills takes little time but works amazingly well. Go to a park or other outdoor spot so you are not close to cars or homes. Walk into this place and get comfortable. Stop and listen. Don’t move, as the full concert of sound is so subtle it takes time to adjust to hearing it. The mind immediately starts to associate distances and sources of the sounds. Once over the initial phase of hearing familiar sounds the mind will start to hear other sounds that in many cases were not even remotely heard at the beginning.

      Humans have control over listening and filter out sound almost unconscientiously. Listen to what you hear and remember that this listening filter is always on unless we consciously work at opening the filters. Listening when selling is being open to the sounds of communication and the physical language associated with it. By doing this, we can effectively СКАЧАТЬ