The 10 Laws of Sales Success

There are laws in everything around us, from science and nature to business and offices. Accordingly, there are also laws for sales which must be carefully adhered to. If the salesperson wants to succeed consistently in the world of sales, then they should follow these laws.

Laws are rules that are meant to be followed. By adhering to these standards, salespeople can look forward to positive results. These laws can ensure that you are going to win more sales consistently. At the same time, you will be seeing more sales conversions and more customers satisfied after buying from you.

According to the latest Gallup survey on truthfulness and ethical behaviour among business professionals, car salespeople and insurance salespeople were ranked last on the list. Perhaps you are not surprised to hear this. However, it is not just the car salespeople who are having some bad reputation. According to Bill Brooks of the Brooks Group, at least 85% of customers view all salespeople negatively.

However, it doesn’t have to be this way. There are ways that we can prove that these people are wrong. We need to develop the skills that are needed in making these people think differently about the selling process. The fact is, as a business owner, selling is considered as the most rewarding task that you’ll ever experience but only if you follow these 10 strategies:

Law Number 1: Just shut your mouth but always keep your ears open.

The first law is to shut your mouth and keep your ears open. This is crucial since the salesperson has to find out as much as they can about their prospective customer in order to figure out what they actually need. The salesperson will not be able to accomplish this if he will spend his time talking about his product rather than being pleasant and listen to what the prospect is really looking for.

During the first few minutes of any sales interaction, there are important things that you need to remember. Avoid talking about yourself, your products or your services. And most of all, you should not recite your sales pitch!

Well, obviously, you may introduce yourself. It’s fine to tell your prospective customer about your name and your goal for visiting or calling. But what you should avoid is rambling about your product or service.

After all, during this time, what will you talk about? In fact, you do not have any idea if the product or service that you are offering can be useful to your prospective customer.

Law Number 2: Try To Sell With Questions Rather Than Answers

The second law deals with selling with questions, not answers. This is significant since salespeople should not even try to force anyone to buy their products. Instead of doing this, they should try to investigate in order to find out what appeals to their prospect. Then, determine how their product can satisfy the prospect.

Keep in mind that there is no one out there who really cares how great you are until such time that you let them know how great you think they are. Try to forget about selling your products or services. Instead, try to focus on the reasons why your prospective customers want to buy.

In order to do this, you need to make your prospect feel interested. You have to ask them lots of questions, but make sure that you do not have any hidden agenda or ulterior motives. When I was selling CDs at a music festival, several years ago, I quickly realised that my job was not to sell CDs but to provide earphones to everyone who walked by my booth!

I immediately noticed that every time people sensed that I am trying to sell them CDs, they would do anything so that they could get away from me. So, I decided that I would introduce new music to those people who would like to put on the earphones. After listening to music, these people would either like it or they don’t. Actually, I did not do any selling and yet I made more sales than any other CD merchants at the festival.

During that time, I did not have any idea about sales, however, I believe that it is human nature to assume that sales resistance is an oxymoron. This means that the mere act of selling can already create resistance! This can lead to the next law.

Law Number 3: Act As If You Are Having Your First Date With Your Prospect

The third law is to pretend that you are going on your first date with your prospect. What makes this important is that the salesperson must show real interest in the prospect. This is just like what you will do when you are dating someone. Salespeople must ask questions in order to discover as much as they can about the prospect. In doing so, you can use this information in helping the prospect solve their problem.

Be curious! Get some information about the products and services that they have been using. Do they feel satisfied with it? Is the product that they are currently using very expensive, extremely slow, and not dependable enough? Try to investigate what they really want. Keep in mind that you are not doing a disinterested survey here, hence, you should avoid asking questions just for the purpose of asking them. Rather, you should ask them questions that can give you some information when it comes to what your customers actually need.

After learning what are the needs of your customer and you avoid convincing them to do something that they don’t want to do, you will find that you are now their most trusted advisor. As a result, they will do more business with you.

Law Number 4: When Talking To Your Prospect, Treat Them As Your Family or Friend

The fourth law talks about the right way to talk to your prospect. You should speak to them as if you were speaking to your family or friends. This type of conversation is generally recommended for salespeople since it is more genuine and sincere compared to when the salespeople were just reciting some memorised lines or something that does not sound like natural talk.

You should not include anything about sales on your conversation. Avoid using any tag lines and persuasion cliches. Avoid using exaggerated tones, altered speech patterns, and slow sounding sales inductions. All of these are not allowed in our current selling environment. You should talk regularly and appropriately at the same. Just pretend that you are talking to your friends and family.

Law Number 5: Focus More On What Your Prospect Is Not Saying

Law number five is paying close attention to the things that your prospect is not saying. In other words, you have to investigate the body language of your prospect. Try to observe and look for any indications that will either make you say that they are interested or not. This is important since if the salespeople can recognise that their prospect is not very interested and involved at the moment, then they have to change something and investigate what can make the prospect interested in what they are offering.

Does your prospect feel troubled or upset? Does it seem that they are in a hurry? If so, then you should ask them if it is the perfect time to talk. If it’s not, then maybe you can meet in another day. Most salespeople are always thinking of what they are going to say next, hence they tend to forget that they are dealing with another human being.

Law Number 6: If Someone Asked You A Question, Answer It Concisely Then Move On

The sixth law deals about what you will do if somebody asks you a question. The best thing to do is to answer it briefly and then move on. Salespeople must ensure that they have efficiently answered the questions that the prospect asks them since they tend to be important. If they are not important, then most likely they would not have asked it.

Nevertheless, the salesperson must ensure that they can provide precise and efficient answers. These questions can be used by the salesperson in countering their own questions. This can help the salesperson in knowing more about what the prospects’ needs are.

Don’t forget that this is not about you, but rather it’s about whether you are appropriate for them.

Law Number 7: You Have To Assess The Needs Of Your Prospect Before You Mention What You Need To Offer

Law number seven states that after you have properly evaluated your prospects’ needs then that’s the time that you will be mentioning what you are offering. However, this does not mean that the salesperson can’t talk about the general idea of what they are offering.

On the other hand, if the salesperson is telling their prospects exactly what they are offering before evaluating their needs, then the salesperson will not be able to satisfy the prospects’ needs. Hence, the ideal thing to do is to assess the prospects’ needs, then based on these needs, the salesperson will tell them exactly what they can offer that will particularly solve the prospects’ problems.

There was a salesperson who was so focused on his own automatic habitual mode and he never even bothered to notice that his prospective customer cannot breathe anymore. You should avoid being caught in this trap. Try to identify the person whom you are talking with in order to determine what you are going to say.

Law Number 8: Always Avoid Delivering A Three-Hour Product Seminar

The eighth law pertains to refraining yourself from presenting a three-hour product seminar. As a salesperson, you have to understand that your prospects’ time is very valuable. An extremely long demonstration can lose the prospects’ interest, hence, it will not be worthwhile. As much as possible, the salesperson should be concise and to the point. This will show that you have given some respect to the prospect.

Avoid rambling on things that have no significance on what your prospect has mentioned. Choose a few things which you think could be valuable to your prospect’s present situation, then tell them about it. If possible, the benefits should be repeated based on his own words and not yours.

Law Number 9: Try To Ask The Prospect If There Are Any Obstacles For Them When Taking The Next Relevant Step

The ninth law requires the salesperson to ask the prospect what are the barriers that are holding them in taking the subsequent logical step. This question will make the prospect think that the salesperson is interested in accommodating them and will try to look for a solution that can solve the problems of the prospect. Additionally, it will guarantee that there won’t be any issues moving forward.

After you have gone through the first eight steps, then by now you already have some ideas on what your prospect needs in relation to your product or service. Understanding this, and after establishing a shared feeling of trust and rapport, you are now equipped to connect the gap between your prospect’s requirements and the one that you are offering. Hence, you are now ready for the next law.

Law Number 10: Encourage Your Prospect To Take Some Action

Finally, the tenth law is about inviting your prospects to take some kind of action. This is essential to the sales process since this is when the deal will be finalised, or another meeting will be set up, or maybe move forward in the sales process in some way. This is the time that the prospect must make a decision, then take a step forward so there will be a solution to the problem.

In this law, there is no need for closing techniques since the ball is already on the prospect’s court. With a sales close, you can keep the ball in your court and all the attention is on you now since you are the salesperson.

However, you don’t want all the attention to be on you. You want the prospect to understand that he is not dealing with a salesperson. You are simply a human being who offers products or services. And if ever you can let your prospect realise this, then you are not far from becoming an outstanding salesperson.

If you will be able to perfect these techniques, then you will be on your way to becoming one of the most exceptional salespersons.