I recently got asked a question about selling today. What are the best sales tactics that will work in 2013?
Here’s my answer.
It’s the same ones that worked before, except today there’s less margin for error. You have to come to the meeting prepared. Do your research. Prepare your selling questions. Demonstrate your expertise. All will help build credibility with your prospect and shorten your sales cycle. In the not too distant past, salespeople could get away with “So tell me what you do.” If you said that today with the overloads people experience in tasks, information and activities, you would be shown the door very quickly. The best tactics are to have a persuasion strategy ready. Be able to “read” your customer so you can build rapport quickly. Your questioning strategy should include the questions that guide the customer to understand there’s a need, it’s an important one and he has to buy from you now. Last, keep every promise you make. Make sure you do everything you say you will. Those tactics will serve you well in 2013.