The Three L’s of Effective Sales Communication
Mar 8th, 2009 by admin
I came across an interesting quote online today which pertains to all entrepreneurs wearing the hat of a salesperson, and also those who have hired dedicated salespeople.
“Samson killed a thousand men with the jaw bone of an ass. That many sales are killed every day with the same weapon.” Anonymous
Now I’m not going into the particulars of who Samson was because it is irrelevant from the perspective of this post and because there are two topics I won’t openly debate: politics and religion. We all have faith in something and should respect the opinions and views of others – enough said.
Back to the quote: “That many sales are killed every day with the same weapon… the jaw bone.” It comes down to effective communication. What are you saying or what are your salespeople conveying that is turning prospects into passers-by? Every missed opportunity adds up to dollars lost – so you better find out and start making some changes if necessary.
Enter what I like to call the three L’s of effective sales communication:
Learn – Lessen – Listen
Learn
The first rule of thumb is to speak intelligently. In order to do this, you must understand the product inside and out. Make sure your salespeople are properly trained and have the knowledge required to answer even the most obscure question. When they don’t have the answer to a question, train them to say, “That’s a great question. Right now I don’t have the answer, but I’ll do a bit of research and get back to you as soon as possible.” Don’t lie or grasp at straws – be honest. Selling is a continuous process of learning. So embrace this verb instead of rebelling against it. Vow to learn something new about your product or industry every single day.
Lessen
On the flip side of communicating, is being verbose - saying too much. Usually the less you say, the better. From the Web site of Evan Carmichael, “Wisdom has never been associated with excessive talking and babble. Wisdom comes from learning and listening. Wisdom is seldom loud but rather quiet.” Say less, look smarter. Look smarter, sell more! Bottom line: in sales, less is more!
Listen
Listening is considered by some to be the most important aspect of the sales process. The most effective salespeople communicate by asking sufficient questions and learning more about their potential customers. You can never understand what a prospect wants or needs if you don’t listen to what they have to say.
Excellent point!
I have sometimes encountered salespeople who didn’t know their product well and they tried to compensate by talking too much, without letting me say a word. If they had read your article, Crystal, they might have made a better presentation.
Even though my job doesn’t consist of officially selling stuff, this article introduced me to a good “communication” concept, and I find it written very intelligently. Thank you!
Excellent post. As the old saying goes, too often people spend the first 55 minutes of an hour making the sale and the last 5 minutes talking themselves out of one. Hopefully your advice helps.