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The SalesGuru
The sooner we accept this reality, the more effective we will be in our businesses, careers and even relationships. We are all sales people now!
Sales can be loosely defined as an exchange of value. Gone are the days when selling was a ‘dirty’ word – one which conjured up images of coercion or manipulation.

Selling is as much a part of everyday life as is breathing.
Every time you open your mouth, or step into a room, or meet someone new for the very first time, you are ‘Selling” yourself.
You are giving someone else an opportunity to decide whether or not they will ‘buy’ you – your appearance, your ideas, your credentials, your product, your service . . .

Note that I deliberately mention products and services last – because people buy “people” first, before they accept their message, product or service offering.

Some of the best salespeople I know are toddlers. Ask the average parent.
Most of us spend our working lives toiling to give our children the lives we never had. From the moment you first laid your eyes on that bundle of joy, you promised to move heaven and earth to make them happy. And it doesn’t take long for the little ones to soon figure that out.

That is because from the time you first sing them to sleep, to the day they first learn to talk, they are studying you.
They quickly learn the staggering effect of a high-pitched cry in getting your attention – so they use that effectively for the first year or so, until you call their bluff on attention-seeking behaviour. So they study you some more, and adapt their tactics accordingly.

They soon learn that a smile, a tight hug around your neck or an “I love you daddy” is all it takes to melt your heart to give in to their demands.
Since they are not yet graduates, they rely heavily on emotional intelligence – an aptitude we were all born with, but very few of us actually develop beyond Grade 1.

Continuous study – adaptation of approach – delighting prospects and customers are all key ingredients of the Sales Approach. Now, most people do not appreciate the difference between Marketing and Selling, and hence fall into the trap of mistaking the former for the latter.

This has resulted in more funds being spent on awareness campaigns and brand-building at the expense of effective selling. Perhaps let me back up a little and explain the difference between the two:
Marketing is largely about communicating key messages to a mass audience, what is sometimes called a “one-to-many” approach. Marketing focuses on building brand reputation through key messages or stories. Marketing usually broadcasts key messages to multiple audiences with limited customisation.

Selling refers to what I prefer to call the “last mile” of the buying process. This takes place at the precipice of decision-making, where actual value is exchanged between the seller and the buyer.

Goods for cash.
A successful job interview for an employment contract.
A well delivered speech for a standing ovation. Selling is what ultimately drives the bottom line of every business.
The Sales approach realises the importance of every human interaction towards relationship building.

Relationships make the Selling process that much easier and less costly for the business. Ultimately, people buy more from those they like than those they trust.

Salespeople, who are emotionally intelligent and can understand their audiences better will outperform ‘textbook salesmen’ all the time.
That is because most of us usually make purchase decisions that are emotionally based, even though we like to think that we have arrived at a logical decision. Take the average car on Harare’s roads. You would think that given the potholes we manoeuvre on a daily basis that most people would opt to import 4×4 vehicles with robust pothole-dunking suspensions.

But the baffling choice of most motorists is luxury vehicles with frail suspensions! 0This behaviour is reflective of our emotional need for status, flaunting and keeping up appearances.
And thus the average mechanic smiles all the way to the bank.
Appeal is the power to attract, please, stimulate or interest.

Anything that has appeal speaks not just to the senses but also to the emotions of the prospect. How much does your product offering evoke excitement amongst your customers? How does your branding and advertising awaken curiosity and interest to your intended audience? Are your customers pleased that they bought from you and not your competition because of the manner in which you sold to them?

There are a number of interventions that can be introduced to your sales process to up your Sales Appeal and increase your prospect conversion rate. Some of these include:

1. Becoming a Sales Organisation, where every staff member – be it in Accounts, Human Resources, Operations, Engineering, and Production – becomes a voluntary Salesperson not just at work, but in their social circles as well. We will explore this topic in a later article.

2. Recruiting the right sales people. We’ve all had encounters with adulterous Salespeople who under the guise of working for Company A, undermine their employers by telling you how they can get you the same product for cheaper somewhere else.

This is usually the result of a bad recruitment exercise, where adjudicators failed to identify the underlying attitudes and destructive behaviours of the candidate. It is important to conduct as many background checks as possible on Salespeople, even if it means phoning the local church where they claim to serve, in order to more accurately gauge their loyalties and attitudes. Recruit individuals who are self-driven, are organised and most importantly are passionate about selling. They are the ones who will have a better chance at creating profitable relationships with your prospects and customers.

3. Invest in Salesforce Training to ensure that your Sales Team is kept abreast with changing customer buying motives.
What worked in the marketplace 10 years ago no longer applies. If your Sales people are not quick to adapt their messaging to the prevailing business context, then your Sales Appeal will take a knock.
Until the next time – Happy Selling

Thandi Miranda is a Business Development Consultant with a passion for Sales. She can be contacted on [email protected]