Consultative Selling
by Tom Hopkins
Many years ago, I chose to dedicate my life to improving the overall image of the salesperson in the eyes of the consumer. When I entered sales, back in the early '60s, it was one of the least respected jobs a person could have. Salespeople were thought of as pushy, rude, poor dressers, and low income producers. Surely, no one could support a family in such an unreliable field, much less succeed in life as a salesperson.
Fortunately, the industry as a whole has made some major leaps forward in the level of professionalism provided to clients. Many people, like myself, have dedicated their lives to studying the top sales professionals in all industries and sharing their best attributes and techniques with others.
One of the major changes of the past few years in selling has come about because the buying public has demanded it. Today's consumers are much more educated and sophisticated about making purchases than the consumers of the '50s and '60s. They expect the salesperson to not only sell them a product, but to hold a wealth of knowledge about their field, the competition, financing and service. With all the major technological advancements being made almost monthly, it's been a great challenge for some salespeople to stay up-to-date on current product information. However, many consumers make an in-depth study of product information before they will even talk with a salesperson. And believe me, nothing is tougher than giving a presentation to a prospective client who has really done their homework.
Thus, the
emergence of 'consultative' selling. Consultative selling has been
referred to as the new wave of selling for the future. It relies more
heavily on building relationships with the clients than just
providing a product or service. It requires you to move into the
future fully prepared to meet the needs of your clients as an advisor
and a problem solver. Let me explain the difference between
traditional selling and consultative selling. Traditional selling is
viewed as being product-oriented, while consultative selling is
relationship-oriented. Traditional selling supposedly offers a single
product to fulfill a single need, while consultative selling works
more effectively with selling solutions or systems. Traditional
selling is said to work best for short term or one-call sales. The
consultative salesperson handles larger, long-term sales which may
require many calls.
Consultative selling requires the use of what I call 'positive people skills'. The skills that are essential to working positively with people, are basic to building any relationship. Think now about some of your best friends- the people you go out of your way to spend time with. How did those relationships begin? What attitude do you express toward those people? You most likely met these people because of something you have in common. In long term relationships, you continue to share common interest and possibly other friends.
In consultative selling, you never think of selling a product to a business. You think of selling solutions or benefits to the person representing that business. It's a two-way educational process. The salesperson becomes educated on the needs of the business, the personality of the purchaser, and the mood of the sale. The purchaser becomes educated on product, financing, delivery, training, service, and general competence of the supplier.
No matter what style of selling we use, we must remain professional at all times. After all, we don't just represent our product or service. We, who have chosen sales as a lifelong career, represent ourselves as individuals and the industry as a whole. That's a lot of weight to carry into an appointment.
This material has been reprinted with permission of Tom Hopkins International, Inc. For more information on these and other sales training materials write: Tom Hopkins International; PO Box 1969, Scottsdale, AZ 85252.
