Engaging Prospects: Two Vital Elements to Dropping Resistance!

Two very vital keys that will make a diffrence in how you approach customers and others in your life to create a positive interaction to get positive outcomes. When you can engage others you are more than half way to influencing them!

Keywords:

sales;selling;prospecting;cold call;engaging;rejection;phone call;getting in;

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You pick up the phone, the decision maker is on the line, countless letters and attempts have been made to get to this point, your great benefit line comes out, response; “not interested, click”.

Want to be able to “engage” customers with out creating resistance? Here are 2 vital elements everyone needs to be influential and persuasive.

Now it does not matter if we are using the phone, walking in cold or in a retail setting. We need to avoid adding any additional resistance in the other persons mind. There is this avoidance of “sales people” in 80% of our population including other sales people. This is mainly because of product pushing, “I don’t want to be sold something”.

Here is the key; do I understand what the other person really wants? Do I have an idea of how to talk in their “language”? Can I ask a question that will drop resistance and engage them in conversation?

It has been proven time and time again that shoving your product in front of someone will create resistance to you and your product. Review the first and second key from the last article (4 Keys to Selling), your customer buys the “results” of your product/service/idea because it fixes, fills or satisfies their perceived needs or wants. This means your product/service/idea is just a means to and end, not the main issue.

1. Our first action is to take the time and determine just what is it that our product/service/idea does for the other person. Determine what the real results are from using your product/service/idea. Here are some examples.

A business owner might be looking for more time, better productivity, reducing hassle in some area, freeing up capital for something else.

A young mother with 3 toddlers might be looking for best value, more time, better direction, safety, even just a listening ear.

A plant manager might be looking for ways to get better compliance, reduce down time and get his numbers up, keeping his boss off his back.

Think of your past and current customers, what is it your product/service/idea did for them? What did it reduce, take away, eliminate or create? Also keep in mind that people have a tendency to avoid loss more than obtain gain. This means if you can provide a better “today”, it generally has more power than a better “tomorrow”.

In a recent training program we worked with a real conflict situation a participant was involved with. We ended up with over 50 “what’s in it for the other party” points that could be used to engage the other party in a positive way! It took 5 minutes!


2. Second you want to “engage” your prospect or customer in a positive way. The best way is to develop questions that can “engage” rather than repel.

Before we start, we have to understand what results your product can potentially provide for your customer. Here are some examples.

Office equipment: Reduce work load, eliminate paper, eliminate errors, streamline process, reduce labor expense, free up time, create in-house opportunities, and eliminate daily frustrations.

Real Estate Agent: Eliminate wasted time, reduce the stress of selling/buying, assure legalities are covered, target the market, professional image, experienced input, negotiations services, and eliminate the hassles.

Now there are many more and I suggest you create at least 20 for your product. Here is a hint, list the facts about your product, then all the benefits related to that fact and then ask, “What are the results to my customer/other party because of these benefits”.

Let’s now apply these to questions that “engage” our customers. We want to use “open” type questions that get people talking. If we don not have them talking we have only partial engagement. Open questions use what, why, how in their structure.
“Mr. Jones, what effect would a reduced work load have on your staff?”
“If you could eliminate both paper and errors in your current procedures, what would happen for you?”
“Just suppose the frustrations you face on a daily basis were gone, how would it change things for you?”

Now put yourself in the customer’s shoes, how would you react to the previous questions versus this?
“We sell copiers and office machines of the highest quality with excellent service, when could we meet to determine your needs?”

How many words are in this question that create resistance or could be rejected by the customer? Compare that to the three questions above, which ones “engage” and which question repels.

Now if your customer is a “D-I”* type you usually can ask for appointments or get quickly to the point. If you have an “S-C”* type they may want more info which you can give in the form of a quick example of another application you have done, not a litany of your products facts and benefits.

This has proven to be a much more viable way to engage customers and people in general than talking about your “stuff”. People are concerned about their issues and problems, not your product or you. Engage them by asking about what a “result” might do to their concerns and issues. You will find them much more open and willing to talk.

One of our participants in the Internet Technologies asked only one of these type questions and 20 minutes later closed on a million dollar deal! Just one question! The customer did all the talking and sold themselves. The power of engagement!

For more on building these skills and thinking patterns, check out the Influence and Persuasion Program and Reverse Engineered Sales at our web site www.hgoergerassoc.com
* DISC Behavior Patterns, ask us about how this can help you sell, manage and engage people.

Questions or comments:
Contact Harlan at Harlan@itstartswithyou.net cell phone 701-799-1972.

Discover the most essential elements of a good brochure design

Brochures are powerful advertising tools that help in persuading consumers to purchase their requirements form a certain store. However, their power is increased only when they are created uniquely and accurately to represent you in the market. The creation of a brochure design is a collective process among the competent writers, designers and printers. It is with these people’s expertise that an effective brochure is created.

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Brochures are powerful advertising tools that help in persuading consumers to purchase their requirements form a certain store. However, their power is increased only when they are created uniquely and accurately to represent you in the market. The creation of a brochure design is a collective process among the competent writers, designers and printers. It is with these people’s expertise that an effective brochure is created.

The basic element of a good brochure design is obviously deciding on the matter to be included in the brochure! Choose meaningful and right colors and photos for the brochures. Make sure that the matter in the brochure is readable, for if not, the whole objective of the brochure is lost!

Focus on the needs of the customers of your services, and thus, your brochure. They want to know what exactly it is in them from the brochure. They need to improve their bottom line and to make their lives easier. Don’t just tell them about the benefits of your services; use the brochure to show them! Nothing proves to be more convincing than a good demonstration in the brochure! Value information, which is, useful information for the client is another essential element of a good brochure design. So add value information in the brochure and see the increase in the strength of your demonstration!

Don’t make the font of your brochure too wordy as the better brochures are always seen to have a brief headline, with a meaty body. Keep the headline simple, but striking, as this is a great element in the making of a good brochure design. Whatever the matter you place in the brochure, provide your prospects with just enough information so that they tend to crave for more information. To accomplish this, you have to lightly touch the main topics to get people excited to inquire about more information! Leave contact information in the brochure through which the customer can reach you to get to know more about your business, and thus become a part of it! If possible, add testimonials to your brochure as this increases your credibility. Use the person’s full name, company name and ask them for their permission! Adding the word ‘free’ in the brochure by saying ‘buy one, get one free’; free parking; free delivery, etc. This thus makes the reader curious to read the brochure and to try out your services!

Quality printing is yet another element of brochure design worth mentioning. Use the latest and most reliable printing equipment to help you get professional printed brochures. Using an old printer only produces unprofessional-looking prints, which prove to be of no profit to you! Use all these elements to create a good brochure design, which your client is sure to keep; thereby placing your name in front of them every day of the week! You then build a trusted relationship with your client; to establish yourself as an expert in your field, through your good brochure design!

Elements for success in team building event planning

Get a step-by-step guide to effective team building event planning. Learn the best ways to plan your event way before the actual date. Find out which areas that you should watch out for and how you can be fully prepared for a successful event.

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team building success, team building objectives, team building event planning, corporate event planning, event preparation, chillisauce, corporate events, team building events

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The responsibility of organising team building events is a huge task for anyone. Everything has to be planned and implemented with sheer precision. In addition to that, team building objectives would need to be incorporated into most activities. This is why the goal of the event must first be identified prior to the planning process.

Once that’s done, it would be best to run a research on the various team building activities that will achieve the intended objectives of the organisation. Browsing through websites such as http://www.chillisauce.co.uk/corporate-events will give you with an idea on the type of activities you can run.

Your next step is to pick a venue that has the necessary facilities to run your team building activities. It may be a good idea to go through the list of locations approved by your corporation before you start making enquiries. This way, you won’t waste any of your time considering venues that will not be accepted. You can also cross check with your colleagues for referrals, as they will possess first-hand experience on the service levels and facilities of the places that you are thinking about.

As a teambuilding event planner, one of your core responsibilities is to create a balance between meeting organisational objectives and boosting of employee morale. One of the ways to do this is to encourage interaction amongst participants, through the activities and games that will be implemented. Holistic participation would be your ultimate goal, which is why these games should be made appropriate for everyone.

Utilising activity evaluation models such as Kirkpatrick’s Learning Model will help you decide if an activity is enjoyable, educational, and applicable while improving performance. Depending on the event objective, there will be many activity options for you to choose from, such as ice-breaker exercises, leadership and management activities and observation and awareness exercises.

Finally, it’s good to make a last-minute list of the tasks that you need to sort out a few days before the event date. For instance, you may need to confirm the number of team building participants with the venue or resort and make a list of the equipment needed for the event. Ultimately, precision in all of these details would be essential for your success as an event organiser.