Title: High Trust Selling [Buy]
Author: Todd Duncan
In a nutshell: Todd Duncan has had a phenomenal career in sales, as well as challenging personal battles away from his professional achievements. In High Trust Selling, Duncan brings together his two decades of experience in sales, as well as the wisdom he has gleaned about human relationships to create a must-read for professionals in sales jobs.
Key quote: “High trust is necessary to climb to the top, whether you're selling cars or copiers; hats or home loans; footwear or financial services. And high trust happens by design, not by accident.”
The things you need to know:
The law of the iceberg
Duncan begins his walkthrough with introspection; the beginning of the sales process must begin within the sales person. Sales must be orientated around the service you provide, not purely profitability. For this you must have a reason for doing what you do, and a clear purpose; in this way the true measure of your success will not be visible to your client.
The law of the summit
Risk is essential to success, but a symptom of risk is failure. In order to maintain trust and transparency you must admit your mistakes. Analyse them with your team to ensure future risks do not entail similar failings. If you have lost the trust of your client do everything in your power to win back their trust. Treat failure as a short term setback, and let it shape your long term vision for success by learning from it.
The law of the ladder
Hope is not a strategy; you must prepare thoroughly and make sure that your long term goals are attended to in your short term plans. Clarity of purpose is wasted unless you have a plan of how to achieve your targets, and this involves your life plan as well as your business plan. Your success will depend on the clients trust, and you need to incorporate your personal mentality into your business one if you’re going to inspire trust. Success is a result of the steps you conceive.
The law of the hourglass
Treat time as a resource, like money it is not endless. This applies to both your work and your personal life; your life cannot be all about sales. Be discerning about your clients, focus on relationships with low-maintenance clients that will generate a good return. Place a value on your time, when you learn to value your time you will not waste it.
The law of the dress rehearsal
Don’t push for the close; you are selling a solution to a client’s problem so you must inspire trust by being thorough and patient. Prepare for possible objections, and treat them as an opportunity to convince the client that your provide the best solution to their requirements. Practice and preparation are the two ways to improve performance in the pitching process.
The law of the scale
As a sales person it is quality rather than quantity which will determine your success. Aim to satisfy the needs of a few clients, rather than the needs of many. Trust requires honesty, so take a look at your inventory and ensure that you know your client’s needs inside out. Fewer clients equates to more business.
The law of the hook
Motivate your client to act, and instil confidence in your service by presenting with passion and sincerity. To inspire the confidence for a long term commitment you must show that you are trustworthy by being sincere and attending to their needs, rather than simply spouting your services qualities. Captivate your client and they will commit to your services.
The law of incubation
Add value after the initial sale to demonstrate that the client is more important than the profit. Keep the communication levels high with the client; their needs will change and you must attend to them. Long term relationships mature and trust strengthens; it takes more work to retain a client than to win one.
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