BASICS OF SALES

Talking to your satisfied customers is a great way to get ideas and information that can be extremely useful. To take advantage of this excellent resource to the limit make sure you call on your users with regularity or as need dictates.

Calling on users every few weeks is a good way to find out what people who are actually using your products thinks of them. You can gain a great deal of information from this practice that will be of immeasurable benefit to you.

A- First and foremost satisfied customers are a great source of testimonials for the present and future. Try to get satisfied customers to talk directly to prospects to make your job easier. This is a most valuable selling tool and a great resource to tap.

B- Calling on users gains you good will with those customers because they feel you are still cognizant of them and have their best interests at heart. Another positive point is that while you are with them you can pass on comments of other satisfied users to them and perhaps gain more good will.

C- Sometimes you can find applications customers are using for your product that even your company did not envision.

Satisfied customers are one of the best selling tools you can avail yourself of, and sometimes one of the last things salespeople think of using.
Talking to satisfied customers is a great source of testimonials to help you with new prospects; and a great way to show the satisfied customer you are aware of them, value them, and have them in mind constantly.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips.
Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see how My DVD can change your life.

The planning that must precede the phone call is as important as the call itself. You must prepare to gain the customers' attention in the shortest possible time. You must know who it is you want to contact, what you are going to say, what you want to achieve on the call and how you are going to achieve it.

Planning always prepares you for certain eventualities that may arise, so you must plan your telephone pitch as carefully as you would a face to face presentation. Remember your voice is your only representation. All you represent and wish to accomplish comes through your voice. Your words must paint a description of what you are offering.

You must get the prospects' attention as quickly as possible since time is a major factor. Try to create desire immediately and get a positive reaction quickly.

On the phone it is your voice and superior planning that you must rely on. Your personality and selling skills are relayed to the prospect through your voice. Plan what you are going to say and what you expect to achieve beforehand so you do not stumble around, waste time and give the prospect a reason to terminate the call.

Plan what you want to say before you make the call.
Know who you want to contact if possible.
Know what you want to achieve.
Know what you want to say.
Gain the prospects' attention and create desire immediately.
Let your personality and selling expertise come through your voice.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips.

Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see how My DVD can change your life.

Each step in the selling process is interconnected with each other step. One of the most important steps in the selling process is “Making Presentations”. To be a top salesperson you must make superior presentations.

To make superior presentations try doing the following:
A- The Preparation:
Start off by planning your presentation. Make a blueprint of what your presentation should look and sound like. Assemble as many factors as you can concerning the points of your presentation and from these draw up a plan to incorporate them into the finished product. This blueprint should dictate the overall look of the presentation.

B- Choosing your Wording:
You should be as well versed as possible with your product. Write down your thoughts and incorporate them with your company's product facts and and literature. Incorporate anything you feel is important. Take all the wordage you can assemble and put it into a tight and concise presentation. Feel comfortable that you have covered everything you think pertinent.

C- Work on your technique:
After you have what you feel is a good presentation, work on your technique to present it. Practice it until you can present it fluidly, and make it sound as natural as possible. Make sure you try to anticipate where objections or questions may come in, and always be prepared for any unforeseen problems that may arise. Remember you can not fore see everything, but you can plan what your reactions and your demeanor could be like.

D- The Presentation:
Remember it is your individuality that makes the presentation unique. It is the way you incorporate all the points of your selling acumen that makes your presentation unique. It is your set of skills that comes across to establish the character of your presentation and make it yours.

Your presentations should be honed to perfection before you even set foot before a customer. Your presentations will always be a works in progress subject to changes in outside influences and your own personal growth, but at any given time, they should be the best you can give, at that time.

Thank You
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips
Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see how My DVD can benefit you.

If the field you sell in has a product or service that people value and have a need for, then there will always be different approaches for customers to investigate and compare, and that comes under the guise of competition. The more demand for the product, the more you are apt to find competition.

Looking at it in this context, competition is not only good it is to be expected. It means the product is accepted and needed. All you need do to sell it is to be better than your competition. Knowing how to handle competition is an art in itself and could mean the difference between success and failure.

1-Know your product.
Know everything about your product you are able to absorb. Sometimes customers like to stall by asking insincere questions. When you know your product this is easy to recognize and overcome. Knowing your product saves time and gains customer respect. Knowing your product helps the customer and educates them. It is an invaluable asset.

2-Know your competition.
Know how it stacks up against your product and how your competitor sells it. Know how to sell your competitor's product as if it were your own. If you can outsell your product with your competitors then you better find out how to overcome that or you will not be selling your product much longer.

3-Be familiar with as much of your competitors information as you can.
Collect their brochures, pamphlets, advertising information etc. Figure out how they will use it and how it benefits them in their approach to selling.

4-Always be aware of their policy on specials.
Know if and when specials are offered. Know if they happen at the same time every year or if they vary, or if they are offered only once in awhile.

5-What is their return policy?
Find out also if they ever had any recalls and how they handled them.

Never knock your competitor or mention them by name if it can be avoided. If a customer really favors your competitor take note of it and realize you have a hard road ahead. Not an insurmountable one but a difficult one none the less. Handle customers with tact. Never knock the competition. Take them apart point by point with the benefits of the features of your product and do it diplomatically.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips

Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see how My DVd can help you to sell.

Anything can happen when you walk into a customer's office. Aside from everything else you must be aware of, and everything you want to accomplish, there are plenty of things you have no control over that you should be aware of. Being aware of those unexpected things that might happen to you while you are making a call can help you get through it successfully.

Be aware that at any given time during a call interruptions may occur. People who you were supposed to have dealt with may have had schedule changes and be unavailable to you. Certain personnel may be absent causing you to deal with a new set of circumstances and people. Being aware that all these things and more can happen, makes you forewarned.

Enter your customer's office with your mind in as flexible a state as you can attain. As things come about that are out of your control try to handle them as best you can. Just by not acting flustered may be enough to do the trick. Acting cool and professional if nothing else will add to your stature in the customer's eyes.

Always try to stay on message no matter what. The message is the primary reason you are at the customer to begin with. If nothing else staying on message completes the reason for making the call. Never loose sight of that.

One good thing to remember is to always keep some points in abeyance in case you need them. They can be anything from future developments, to notification of things that can help a particular customer in the future. Things like this can peak interest and get the customer's attention. This is particularly useful when you encounter personnel in the account which for one reason or another you never dealt with before. Just as they are a surprise to you, the new information you supply to them will add to your credibility by its usefulness. This puts you on somewhat of an equal footing and moves you toward a closer rapport.

Flexibility should always be part of a salesperson's makeup. Always carry it with you. It is one of the most important clubs in your bag.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips.

Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see my DVD on selling.

Look up the meaning of busy .”Engaged in action: not idle”. Study it. Understand it's meaning. If you think you are dealing with a prospect who fits the criterion, then make sure you do not become a sales casualty as a result of misunderstanding this meaning.

Be prepared to deal with a busy prospect before you even walk into his office or engage him on the phone. Know what you are going to say beforehand with this type of individual and even more importantly (which most salespeople do not even think of ): set your demeanor.

When your customer sets this tone, make sure you get right down to the purpose of your call. Be brief and to the point.

Greet your customer and say “Let me get right down to why I am here. Take out anything you want to show him and get right to it. Be relaxed but purposeful. Always speak in a conversational tone and be yourself, but get on with it. Let the customer decide when to slow the interview down.

Remember it is still all about the customer. When the customer comes to understand; that you understand his situation, believe me; he will extend you a lot more time.
Let your customer make the decision.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips

Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see how I can furnish you with a full sales presentation for any eventuality.

One of the quickest, easiest and most proficient ways to try and sell prospects is to find out why they buy from certain salespeople. What type of salespeople do they like to buy from? What characteristics do they admire in a salesperson that would prompt them to buy from that salesperson?

Prospects in general and people of all types will buy those things that satisfy their needs and are presented well. When those products are of equal quality and value, and there is no significant cost differentiation , then it comes down to the salesperson.

So what do buyers look for in a salesperson?
Prospects gravitate to salespeople who keep their word and do not make extravagant claims that are unprovable.

Prospects dislike doing business with salespeople who knock their competitors, but they do tolerate frank comparisons between products.

Give your customers the best proposal up front and do not hold back. If you hold back and they find out, or you come to them with a better proposal later on. You are dead.

Judge your prospect's temperament and if you feel he is busy, be brief. His time may be valuable so it goes without saying that weather, politics or daily topics are a no no unless he leads you in that vein.

Many customers dislike salespeople who are overly familiar. You are there not to be their pal but to be their business consultant. Always act in a businesslike manner it will never prove detrimental to you..

Be concise and truthful. This will keep you in good stead with any customer or prospect. In essence think about how you are going to act in front of the customer before you get there and good things will happen.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips

Please click the free preview @ www.basicsofsales.com and see my DVD on selling.

The trick with territory management is to do it as effectively as possible. One of the easiest and most convenient ways is to do it with the proper use of maps.

You can get a precise picture of your territory, help see customer locations and get aid in planning your customer routes by using maps effectively. Maps will not only save you time but assure you of complete territory coverage.

You can obtain maps of towns, cities, counties, states and sections of the country from investigating the following resources:

The State Highway Department .
Here you can get maps of cities and towns, etc.

Service stations.
Here you can obtain state maps, and often maps of larger cities.

Triple A and other agencies you may belong to.
These companies will not only furnish you with maps but also highlight routes and furnish you with a wealth of information you may find helpful along the way.

Travel Bureaus are also another good source of information.

Book stores have a plethora of maps containing all sorts of information in different formats.

Maps obtained from State Highway Departments often contain valuable information in planning your territory coverage. They usually pinpoint locations of schools, factories, hospitals, commercial buildings, radio stations, etc., just a plethora of information.

All too often gathering information means strict use of the computer. Sometimes it takes additional effort. Libraries should not be discounted since, ( let us not forget that, that is where computer's get their information from).

Basically one should start off with a plan. Stop, think, and start from a focal point and then expand outward.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips.

Please click the free preview at www.basicsofsales.com and see how you can learn the basics of sales and increase your earnings exponentially.

Creating business where none exists, that is the definition of a “Creative Salesperson”. Every salesperson possesses this quality to some extent. No one has a monopoly on creativity. Most salespeople are more creative than they think, so salespeople should not underestimate their talent.

Taking orders does not qualify as creative selling. Creative selling and selling in general is triggered by imagination. Use your creative powers along with your imagination. To use your creative powers train your imagination to apply creative thinking in each step of your work, from finding prospects to closing sales.

Borrow ideas from others. Find ideas that you can adopt from here, there, and everywhere. Gain from things you read, observe hear or see. Think about selling problems and how to solve them. Bring solutions to a conclusion and act upon those solutions.

The biggest thing you can gain from creating an idea is the confidence you gain. Try planning your interviews around ideas you create and you will feel a new power to perform.

You can not become a top salesperson just by wanting to become one. Will power alone will not do it, but will power combined with creative selling and imagination can start you on your way.

Thank you
Joe D'Ambra
www.basicsofsales.com
Sales blogs offering sales tips.

Please click the free preview www.basicsofsales.com and see how I can outline a sales presentation tailored to you.