Hi everyone !!

Here is a great video which will give you some tips how to be more confident in field sales:

Field Sales Tips - Improve Confidence

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I have been traveling round the country with DSGI.
It was their product learning roadshow and Beyond The Box were asked to support them and deliver training on the Get Connected stand.
We introduced colleagues to the benefits of mobile broadband.
It really does make web connection accessible almost anywhere and it’s so simple to connect.
I love the mobile routers available. They mean you can place the router where the best connection is and work in comfort within a radius of its signal.
In addition to product knowledge we focused on how to create customer desires to help them find the correct solution.

Take a look at below Natasha and me in action!

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Last week we welcomed two new members to the DSGI training team.
Most of the time Amarjit and Jay will be working from the Gloucester Product Learning Centre. They will be delivering product courses on Vision, Major Domestic Appliances and Audio.

Take a look at the following pictures where they were ’snapped’ working at the recent DSGI PLC roadshows!!

Amarjit and Jay can be seen here during DSGI PLC roadshows …

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Here are some great top tips from me for you to create the best rapport on the telephone. Check out the link below to see my article on behalf of Beyond The Box posted on callcenterhelper.com.

http://www.callcentrehelper.com/top-tips-for-building-rapport-on-the-telephone-2646.htm

This topic should be of particular interest to all in the business world.  Do let me know your own thoughts on the subject,  perhaps from your own personal experiences!

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Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) was founded by Americans John Grinder and Richard Bandler back in the 1970’s. Its origination is fascinating and its uses vast.

Study of the subject will shed light on and create a greater understanding of the communication process. Considering that the key for sales is good communication it could be worth taking a look at. 

Representational Systems – probably one of the most interesting areas is the discovery that everyone has their ‘preferred language’. The selected words in sentence construction will give a good indication of someone’s preferred language.

Some of us use visual words in conversation such as: see, looks; picture this, and other colourful and bright words! A visual may say ‘Can you see what I mean?’

Those who prefer auditory words such as: listen, hear. Sounds like, would possibly rephrase the afore mentioned sentence as ‘Can you hear what I’m saying?’

Finally a kinaesthetic phrased sentence, the third option which focuses on how we feel about something might be ‘Do you get a feel for this?’

Listen and look out for the words people use in conversation. Do they focus on visual words, say more auditory words or do you get the feeling they may be kinaesthetic because many verbs are integrated into the conversation.

Once you have a handle on someone’s style or can picture what their representational system may be, respond back to them by using their preferred language of words. It may not be your preference but it is unconsciously flattering to the receiver and they will also have a better understanding of the content.

The benefit to any sales process is that rapport is built much faster a solid foundation for any sale. During your sales presentation be aware of showing pictures, drawings, processes and samples to stimulate the visuals. Allow the kinaesthetics to handle presenters, portfolios and samples, they need to get a feel for something. Auditories are motivated by sound so be aware of the words you say and if your sample or demonstration product can be switched on/activated then do it, so they can ‘hear’ the quality and pass comment on its actions.  Strategies – We adopt them for anything we do and we normally repeat them every time example do you clean your teeth differently every time or follow the same process?

Any buyer will have a strategy for how they buy. Every salesperson has a strategy for how he sells. Try breaking the habit and match your sales strategy to your prospects buying strategy. If you’re not sure how to do this, simply ask how they prefer to buy something and plan your sales pitch accordingly. Would they prefer to see a presentation, handle samples or simply have a conversation?

Do they make a decision on the day, if not how long do they want to help them think about it. Following on from this is how much information they need to move them towards making a decision. 

Chunking - some customers are fascinated by detail – small chunks of information. Others with top line information – big chunks. Identify which they are by monitoring by closely watching their reactions or by the number and type of questions they ask to gain more information.

If you are discussing something at great length and your customers eyes are glazing over or agitation is setting in and evident to you, cut out the detail and start giving top line explanations, in bullet point format if suitable. Don’t waste your time or your client’s time by discussing the detail if they don’t want it, you could alienate them. Likewise don’t deny small chunkers of their need for detail, to do so will reduce their ability to make a decision because they don’t feel they have all the facts to do so with confidence A real winner is the principle of the NLP ‘meta model’ an absolute must for anyone wanting to cut to the chase in a sale when asked questions or faced with the anticipated ‘objection’.  By using the tools of the Meta Model you will be in a position to identify any missing information your customer may delete from the question or clarify any content that is distorted or could be interpreted incorrectly. The Meta Model will help you to drill down for the information you need to be able to respond accurately and with speed to questions, objections or levels of interest. Try using the words ‘what exactly do you mean, how exactly, where exactly, when exactly, who exactly’. Such questioning techniques will help locate the missing content you need. 

Away from and towards. Your customer will either tell you what they do want – towards, or what they don’t want – away from. This is a great clue as to how they process information. If they are towards i.e. focussed on what they want, explain your benefits in the format of what they will get, example: ‘with us you will have peace of mind’.  If they are away from – geared to what they don’t want, tell them what they won’t have to do, or what they won’t have, or get by owning your product – example: ‘you won’t have to worry when you buy from us’. Chances are that your unconscious mind is directing you to operate in this way already.

How fantastic will your results be in the future now that you know you are aware of the tools at your disposal!  

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I am still amazed at the number of times I go into a store to make a purchase and end up selling it to myself. How do I do this? I end up giving the salesperson all the answers to the questions he doesn’t ask me. I do wait to be asked it’s not as if I jump in and present my needs on a plate before giving an opportunity to be asked anything. If I waited much longer in some stores I wouldn’t be able to sand the silence between us. 

This isn’t always the case I admit some salespeople are highly interactive and have mastered the art of good questioning techniques leading to great customer interaction. In these instances the shopping experience is so much more enjoyable and I leave with the product I really need rather than a poor excuse. This happened on one occasion when I was buying a laptop in PC World. The salesperson was brilliant, uncovering every need I had and recommending the right product for the job.  Sadly I can’t say I have the same experience everywhere and I amazed at the light hearted way many salespeople accept the first answer they hear when they do engage in questing in techniques to identify customer needs. So many key generic features appear on most manufacturers products. The key differentials and the ones that could identify if the product is the right solution for the customer. Sadly the questioning stage of the sale rarely drills deep enough to identify it they would be of use and it needs to. When customers arrive in store many are totally unaware what today’s products can do for them to make their life easier, save time, money improve their carbon footprint etc. Quite simply ‘we don’t; know what we don’t know’! and we need the salesperson help us identify if we can make use of them. It could mean the difference between owning the right or wrong product and difference to the retailer in trading up to more marginally attractive sales – everyone benefits!  

The NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) Metal Model offers a perfect example of how important it is to drill down to fully understand the customer needs. It uncovers the information omitted in any answer due to deletion distortion or sheer generalisation. 

Deletions – Important information is left out of the conversation 

Distortions – Information is twisted in such a way that choices are limited 

Generalization – One example is taken to represent all and this limits possibilities 

ExamplesDeletions – This camera isn’t right for me. Response – What stops it from being right for you? (we can identify what isn’t right so we don’t present it on the next model) 

Distortions – Your service is no goodResponse – What leads you to believe that? (Their belief could be based on someone’s comment, or past your history. If you know what you are dealing with you can re educate correctly)  

Generalization – I’m always on the phoneRespond with – ‘If we can define always I can help you find the best tariff for your mobile phone. How often is always? (Always can be anything to anybody if we can clarify we are in an excellent position to offer the correct product) 

Drilling down with questioning techniques will speed up the sales process and ensure that your customer leaves with the right product for them a winner if you want them to return.

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Access to retailer and manufacturer websites are creating a more knowledgeable customer. Salespeople have to be one step ahead of the knowledge that the customer has. There is nothing more frustrating for a customer who arrives in store and is faced with a salesperson who cannot enlighten them on the key features of products and manufacturers USP’s, and there is nothing more embarrassing for the retailer when the salesperson cannot speak to the customer with confidence. This is also unhelpful for a customer who hasn’t accessed the web to help them in their decision making process.  

The issue/problem becomes more compounded because some manufacturer’s websites create unanswered questions for the customer by using ‘Feature Only’ websites and unexplained ‘Marketing Jargon’. Some retailers don’t help the situation by using feature based silent salesmen with limited benefits. They offer little information to the customer and provide an uninspiring script for many salespeople. I remember being in a shop when a customer asked the salesperson ‘I’m looking for a tumble dryer, what’s the difference between these two.’? The salesperson replied by reading the listed features from each relevant silent salesperson. Apart from the fact that the customer could easily have read them for herself the vocalised differences were limited to one feature. My background in the industry meant that I knew there were more additional benefits to the higher priced model, and that the one mentioned by feature alone did little to justify the price differential. So how can the salesperson update their product knowledge?  

• Read instructions books
• Talk to manufacturer representatives
• Study the product and use it

What can manufacturers do to help?

• Enlarge on features by adding real benefits to your websites.

• List clear trade up routes in your literature and copy so that the customer can see and understand why a higher priced model is worth the extra money.

• Visit the stores to ensure your product benefits are known by the people you rely on to sell them to the consumer. Be confident that your ‘in store sales force’ is sufficiently knowledgeable and that they know how to trade up to your brands higher margin products

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Sue’s put together some tips on getting more information out of people when you’re marketing products in store.

Here’s the video:

And as ever, here are the notes in case you can’t view the video:

Hi, I’m Sue Abbiss from Beyond The Box, I’m a Field Marketing Manager. I’ve spoken about top tips for sales, and we mentioned open questions, so I’m going to talk a little bit about that.

Open questions require an answer, not just yes or no, so who, what, where, why, when.

If you were to ask a closed question for example “did you go to the pictures last night?” you would get a short yes/no answer. If you were to say “where did you go last night?”, they might give you more information.

So just remember, a good sales tip - use open questions - who, what, where, why, when - to gain information.

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Sue’s got some tips to help selling in retail stores:

Here are the notes, in case you can’t view the video:

Hi I’m Sue Abbiss from Beyond The Box, I’m the field marketing manager.

Today I’d just like to go through top tips on selling.

1. Make sure you that you approach every customer in store, say good morning, etc.
2. Build rapport, it’s important to ask friendly questions, be open with them.
3. Identify a customers’ needs by asking who, what, where, why, when.
4. You can then match those needs to a product that you think is right for them.
5. Once you’ve done that, overcome any objections and answer any questions that they have.
6. Then ask for the sale. don’t be afraid to ask for the sale.
7. Once you’ve asked for the sale, close the sale.

It’s as simple as that!

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We’ve done a couple of articles on marketing at exhibitions, and they’ve been very popular, so Christine’s made a video about marketing and getting more people to your exhibition stand.

In case you can’t see the video, the notes are here:

Hi I’m Christine from Beyond the box, and I’m going to talk to you today about how you can get people onto your exhibition stand.

Once you’ve invested the money into booking a stand at an exhibition, you really want to make sure you get a return on investment, and talking to people is the key.

Don’t stand in the actual shell scheme or inside your area; really do something to get people to come in and talk to you.

You could have something on the stand to attract customers, for example a cartoonist, a magician, or someone handing out prizes, sweets, gifts, anything to attract people.

And once people come to your stand area, go and talk to them. I’m amazed how many people book space at an exhibition, and then wait for people t come and talk to them. That’s not likely to happen.

You might have to venture off your stand, into the exhibition area and actually talk to people, and invite them to come in.

Don’t be afraid of doing it, they expect it to happen. They want you to come and approach them and talk to them.

You need to see as many people as you can, and start to sort through who are the good leads and who are the bad leads.

My top tips are :

1. First of all, make sure your stand looks inviting, friendly and open.
2. Secondly, have something that’s going to be of interest to them to perhaps get them on [your stand] if you don’t feel overly confident about making that initial approach. So the cartoonist, the magician, anything at all that could attract people to your stand.
3. Once they are in the vicinity of your stand, invite them into your stand.
4. Talk to them, show them samples, explain fully what you do.
5. And the important thing, don’t forget to get the details; make sure you record their telephone number, website so you can get further information and the nature of what they are enquiring about, so you’ve got plenty of information there to call them back.

Good luck!

And here are the other features on the topic of exhibitions that should help you prepare:

• Being Effective At An Exhibition Part 1 - How to Get People To Your Stand
• Being Effective At An Exhibition Part 2 - How to Engage
• Being Effective At An Exhibition Part 3 - How To Follow Up
• What do we need for an Exhibition Stand?

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