Let me tell you a story about eight-year-old Nancy, a student in the public school system. One day during art class, Nancy painted a picture. Considering her age and development as a young artist, the picture of a house and the setting sun was really quite good. However, it was obvious that the picture was unbalanced. Nancy had painted the house and the sun to the left side of the canvas.

Nancy's art teacher, who held a master's degree in art, observed the picture and said, "Nancy, this is really a fine painting. But, it needs something on the right side." And with that, the teacher picked up a brush and painted a seagull in the upper right corner of the canvas. Nancy became very upset and began to cry.

That evening at the dinner table Nancy was still upset. Her father asked, "What's the trouble, Nancy?" The little girl replied, "Nothing," but her pouting face encouraged her father to continue pressing the issue. Finally, Nancy showed her father the pain! ting. He admired it and said enthusiastically, "This is very good, Nancy. I really like the seagull." At that, Nancy burst into tears and ran off to her bedroom.

After Nancy's father learned that the seagull was the source of her unhappiness, he complained to the art teacher who, in her own defense, cited her reasoning and her credentials. Getting nowhere with the teacher, Nancy's father visited the school principal, and then he contacted his attorney. One battle followed another and eventually both parties ended up in court. It was a long, drawn out trial with many hours of testimony about the freedom of expression, the role of an educator, and so on. Having listened intently as both sides told their stories, the judge turned to Nancy and asked why she had become so upset about the seagull. Nancy replied, "Because I did not see it there."

Case closed; decision in favor of Nancy.

So what's the seagull have to do with selling? Your prospects have a mental picture of their needs even before they meet you. Every change or addition you make to their picture may cause the prospects to become uncomfortable, even unhappy, like Nancy. If it's necessary to make a change in a prospect's mental picture, you'll be wise to let the prospect "discover" the need for the change.

You might think that certain features or benefits of your product or service would help you close a sale if only your prospect knows about the features or benefits. But it would be a mistake to paint a seagull in your prospect's picture.

Instead, "dummy up." Ask a few questions designed to find out if your prospect would like a seagull in his / her picture. If so, all to your advantage. If not, no damage done.

Jeremy Rawitz 347-385-8500

© Sandler Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Many of us have fished at one time or another, or at least seen a fisherman in action. The most common scenario is a line with a baited hook in the water, the fisherman waiting for a strike. When a fish hits, the fisherman yanks the rod up, often resulting in a return to the fisherman of a hook with no bait, and no fish.

Watching a professional fishing guide led to the discovery of an exciting selling concept known as the Strip-line Technique. When the fish hit, the guide didn't yank the pole. His first move was to drop the tip of the rod into the water, creating slack in the line. The guide began to "strip the line" from the reel as fast as the fish was swimming away. The reasoning behind the guide's technique is intriguing. When a fish is facing the fisherman, a sudden yank on the line can pull the bait out of the fish's mouth. But when the fisherman "strips line," the fish, secure with his find, turns and begins to swim back to deeper, safer water to eat. The! hook can then be set with a flick of the wrist. Let's see how this technique can be applied to professional sales.

During the selling interview, when a prospect is showing interest in the product or service by making positive statements, the usual scene is one in which the salesman joins with the prospect in a high level of enthusiasm. For example:

Prospect: "You really have something great here!"

Salesperson: "I just knew you would be as impressed as I was when I first saw it!"

As the salesperson continues the presentation, he and the prospect generate more and more enthusiasm. Soon the salesperson will go to the close. Now, how many times have you had this experience: at the moment of truth, the prospect has second thoughts, realizes he may have become overly enthusiastic, and begins to cool down? Result: No sale!

Too many times the buyer senses he's getting "hooked" and wants to escape before getting "caught." The buyer wonders ! if he is paying too much, making too quick a decision, etc. Applying the "strip-line" technique to professional selling, you create "slack," by allowing your prospect's interest level to climb while you remain calm and collected. In fact, the more interested your prospect becomes, the more you strip line. For example:

Prospect: "I like it!"

 Salesperson: "That's interesting, George. Just what is it about my product or service that you like?"

By using the Strip-line Technique, your prospect is placed in the position of selling you on the feature or benefit he likes. The prospect actually "sets the hook" himself. Another example:

Prospect: "Well, this certainly answers my question as to how I can solve my problem." Salesperson: "I can see some application, but exactly how do you see it working?" When you are patient, the Strip-line Technique allows your prospects to discover the benefits and features of your product o! r service themselves, without your having to sell them. Your job is as easy as...going fishing!

Jeremy Rawitz

Sandler Sales Institute

jr@salesstrategycorp.com

347-385-8500

© Sandler Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

The selling profession is not generally considered a high-risk profession, yet salespeople face big risks every time they speak to customers and prospects. What do they risk? They risk uncovering the truth. They risk finding out their best customer has just changed the rules of doing business. They risk discovering the prospect with whom they have invested so much time doesn’t really qualify as a prospect at all. They risk wasting time with prospects who purposely mislead them about their intentions or ability to do business. They risk finding out that even their best presentation won’t make a difference to the prospect who has already decided to give the business to someone else.

Every time a salesperson asks a prospect or customer to make a decision or commitment, they risk hearing the most dreaded word in sales – NO! This appears to be such a risky situation that salespeople will often go to great lengths, wasting both time and energy, to avoid hearing the word.

Why do salespeople run from the truth or try to avoid the word “no”? The truth is the truth. Avoiding it isn’t going to change it. Also, a “no” today is still a “no” tomorrow. It, too, is not going to change by avoiding it another day. Logic would dictate that salespeople uncover the truth as soon as possible, especially if the truth reveals the opportunity they are pursuing is not really an opportunity at all. Likewise, if the prospect is going to say “no,” wouldn’t salespeople want to know as soon as possible so they could invest their time identifying and developing an opportunity with someone who could say “yes”?

Salespeople don’t function on a purely logical or intellectual level, however. They often let their emotions cloud their judgment and influence their actions. Discovering that an opportunity they are pursuing is not an opportunity for them, they internalize the experience as personal failure. They believe that they failed to get their point across in a persuasive or convincing manner. They failed to convert the prospect to a customer.

When a prospect says "no," many salespeople process it as personal rejection. They fail to make the distinction between the prospect rejecting the product or service and being rejected personally by the prospect.

While salespeople might fail to skillfully execute some aspects of the development process and close the sale, the real failure is not recognizing the failures for what they are – role deficiencies. In their role as salespeople, they likely missed some critical element and/or failed to uncover some information that would have changed the presentation – content, timing, pricing, etc. – and the outcome. When viewed from that perspective, they have the opportunity to learn from their experiences. They can identify what could have, or should have, been asked, said, or done, and adapt their strategy so as not to make the mistake again with subsequent opportunities.

If you learn from your mistakes, then each failure gets you one step closer to success. Is it worth the risk? You be the judge.

© Sandler Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

Jeremy Rawitz

Sales Strategy Corp.

347-385-8500