Let’s face it. Prospects aren’t honest with salespeople. They’ll do and say anything to get you off the phone because they don’t want to be convinced to buy something they aren’t yet ready to invest in. The only way you can turn that on its head is if you find out what they are interested in and sell them the solution to that. Just one thing standing in your way – finding out what your prospect is actually thinking.
So, how can you become a super-selling mind reader? Simple. Check out the 3 things your prospect isn’t telling you and how to find them out anyway.
1 – They have a problem your product can solve
Of course they aren’t going to tell you this. If they do, they may as well hand you over the money right now. Your prospect doesn’t trust you yet, certainly not enough to tell you that they’re having problems.
So how can you know? Well, if you’ve tracked them coming onto your website and caught them looking at certain solution pages, likelihood is that’s the solution they are looking for. Keep an eye on them as they move around your website and it will soon become blindingly clear what they are interested in. Focus your sales pitch in that area and you might start to see your prospect become more interested in your conversation, funnily enough.
2 – They are ready to buy now
Unless it’s an inbound lead, chances are they aren’t going to tell you that they are ready to do business with you today even if they are. They want to consider their options, suss you out and see if you’re the genuine real deal. It’s your job to convince them.
Of course, if you don’t know that and they’re umming and ahhing, you might think they aren’t interested at all. Combat this by keeping tabs on them. Score them according to what they are looking at on your website and base your judgements on how much interest they are showing when they aren’t on the phone. It’s a better way to judge a deal, at least in the discovery stages.
3 – They are more interested in your competitor
Frankly, prospects don’t like to admit this because it’s like giving a dog a bone. Once you know they are interested, just not in you, salespeople tend to get their backs up. They rattle off every reason they are better and get defensive. Fast.
The only way to combat this is the way you address the situation. Ask them calmly what other options they are considering and why. It will give you a better idea of what they are after and enable you to tailor your sales pitch even more specifically to them. Don’t get competitive. You’re not in competition with your prospect, just their attention.
Tailor your pitch the right way, ask the right questions and you can convince them. That’s your job in sales after all. It’s time to start becoming an overperforming sales team.