Monday, 16 November 2009
Negotiation tips for small businesses
Tonight I was interviewed by Louise Barnes-Johnston of Frontline Results on selling and negotiation.
If you missed the interview live you can hear it again here. Let me know what you think.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/louisebj/2009/11/16/flr-42--negotiating-so-everyone-wins
Monday, 2 November 2009
Language Patterning: guest post by Nick Hill of Binary Vision
As a business owner or 'communicator' you're in the business of getting results and when you start to think about business situations you come into, contexts in which you communicate and the differing outcomes that can possibly occur you'll soon realise that your thought processing and communication is geared towards an outcome that is generated by yourself or 'shared' with another and your key objective is to 'get agreement'.
There are numerous ways of 'enhancing' your personal communication to get agreement and before I share those with you there's one thing I have to be clear about.
In any communication transaction there is an 'intention' and consideration has to be given to whether or not you consider your intention in 'persuading another' to be self fulfillment or shared winnings. Only you will know that but you know as well as I do that relationship building is built on shared outcomes that benefit all parties concerned.
Now we've got that out of the way, let's move on.
Getting agreement is about getting people saying 'yes' and there are a number of ways to steer someone towards a 'yes' through language.
Know your outcome and 'pre-frame' your communication
Set the scene by outlining your 'objectives' and create an environment where you and the other person involved in the transaction are in agreement on what is to be achieved. YES number one.
'Pace' the listener using pacing statements
Pacing 'current experience' is very powerful. It is used to 'get people in on the deal' and engaged with you. Notice the following text and how you cannot disagree with it.
"You are reading this material, looking at the text on the page, considering how these tools might assist you...."
Subconsciously, as the reader you have 'accepted' or 'YES'd' three times by reading the above text. Agree?
Asking the right questions to get the right answers
People buy on 'emotion' and in the sales or relationship building process the 'hot buttons' of the prospect are to be identified and utilised to create the condition for the sale.
By asking the following set of questions you can effectively create the right conditions by allowing the listener to highlight their situation and thought processing in relation to the context:
What is your priority? - Allows the listener to highlight their criteria
Why is that important? - Justifies their criteria
What would it mean for you if you had that? - Personalises the justification
What would the consequences be of not having that? - Creates the criteria to be avoided
How would that be a problem for you (not having that)? - Justifies the avoidance criteria
Once you have this set of information you now understand what the person wants, doesn't want and what it means 'globally' (impact on the bigger picture) and 'personally' to the listener.
Repeat back to the listener and confirm what they want or don't want and how it impacts them to get them in agreement with you.
Use of suggestion to create 'options' - don't 'force' communication
Suggestion statements are used to enable the listener to have an option yet the message contained within the sentence is clear.
By giving people an option you don't come across as pushy but 'suggestive' giving the listener the option to make the right decision for themselves. Consider the following sentences:
"Commit to working with my company today" - forced
"Are you able to commit to working with my company today" - option given - "Are you able"
"Could you commit to working with my company today" - option given "Could you"
Embedded commands
As with the above sentences you can see that the message or 'command' contained within the text is 'commit to working with my company today'. Let's combine pacing statements with a command:
"We've discussed your situation, I've highlighted what we offer as a business, and how we can assist you in achieving your objectives, and as you think about what you might achieve by working with me, how our commitment to each other can move you and the business forward and by knowing now, that we have assisted companies in a similar situation to yours grow substantially by these services, I'd like to make it easy for you to be able to commit to working with my company"
Tag questions
Tag questions refer to questions 'tagged' onto sentences that create agreement. It's quite interesting knowing that it is possible to create agreement using such tools like the one's above isn't it? And you can see that by using these patterns you can become more effective in your communication can't you? So you will go on and use them won't you?
As with all 'things' in life, especially honing your language skills, its about putting in practice, time and commitment. Practice saying your sentences with different voice tonality and speed and with 'pauses'. Commit to utilising some of the patterns daily and you'll soon see and increase in your personal performance, won't you?
Nick Hill is an International Business Trainer specialising in human soft skills development techniques and trainings. As the owner of Binary Vision, Nick works with companies and individuals to transform them into high performers by taking them through a programme of workshops designed to accelerate personal performance in business
There are numerous ways of 'enhancing' your personal communication to get agreement and before I share those with you there's one thing I have to be clear about.
In any communication transaction there is an 'intention' and consideration has to be given to whether or not you consider your intention in 'persuading another' to be self fulfillment or shared winnings. Only you will know that but you know as well as I do that relationship building is built on shared outcomes that benefit all parties concerned.
Now we've got that out of the way, let's move on.
Getting agreement is about getting people saying 'yes' and there are a number of ways to steer someone towards a 'yes' through language.
Know your outcome and 'pre-frame' your communication
Set the scene by outlining your 'objectives' and create an environment where you and the other person involved in the transaction are in agreement on what is to be achieved. YES number one.
'Pace' the listener using pacing statements
Pacing 'current experience' is very powerful. It is used to 'get people in on the deal' and engaged with you. Notice the following text and how you cannot disagree with it.
"You are reading this material, looking at the text on the page, considering how these tools might assist you...."
Subconsciously, as the reader you have 'accepted' or 'YES'd' three times by reading the above text. Agree?
Asking the right questions to get the right answers
People buy on 'emotion' and in the sales or relationship building process the 'hot buttons' of the prospect are to be identified and utilised to create the condition for the sale.
By asking the following set of questions you can effectively create the right conditions by allowing the listener to highlight their situation and thought processing in relation to the context:
What is your priority? - Allows the listener to highlight their criteria
Why is that important? - Justifies their criteria
What would it mean for you if you had that? - Personalises the justification
What would the consequences be of not having that? - Creates the criteria to be avoided
How would that be a problem for you (not having that)? - Justifies the avoidance criteria
Once you have this set of information you now understand what the person wants, doesn't want and what it means 'globally' (impact on the bigger picture) and 'personally' to the listener.
Repeat back to the listener and confirm what they want or don't want and how it impacts them to get them in agreement with you.
Use of suggestion to create 'options' - don't 'force' communication
Suggestion statements are used to enable the listener to have an option yet the message contained within the sentence is clear.
By giving people an option you don't come across as pushy but 'suggestive' giving the listener the option to make the right decision for themselves. Consider the following sentences:
"Commit to working with my company today" - forced
"Are you able to commit to working with my company today" - option given - "Are you able"
"Could you commit to working with my company today" - option given "Could you"
Embedded commands
As with the above sentences you can see that the message or 'command' contained within the text is 'commit to working with my company today'. Let's combine pacing statements with a command:
"We've discussed your situation, I've highlighted what we offer as a business, and how we can assist you in achieving your objectives, and as you think about what you might achieve by working with me, how our commitment to each other can move you and the business forward and by knowing now, that we have assisted companies in a similar situation to yours grow substantially by these services, I'd like to make it easy for you to be able to commit to working with my company"
Tag questions
Tag questions refer to questions 'tagged' onto sentences that create agreement. It's quite interesting knowing that it is possible to create agreement using such tools like the one's above isn't it? And you can see that by using these patterns you can become more effective in your communication can't you? So you will go on and use them won't you?
As with all 'things' in life, especially honing your language skills, its about putting in practice, time and commitment. Practice saying your sentences with different voice tonality and speed and with 'pauses'. Commit to utilising some of the patterns daily and you'll soon see and increase in your personal performance, won't you?
Nick Hill is an International Business Trainer specialising in human soft skills development techniques and trainings. As the owner of Binary Vision, Nick works with companies and individuals to transform them into high performers by taking them through a programme of workshops designed to accelerate personal performance in business
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Opening Doors: Selling without selling
At every networking meeting, large or small, there will be some people who treat it exactly like a sales pitch.
These are the people who pounce on any new visitors, stuff a business card in their hand and virtually say, “Well? When are you going to buy from me?”
To me, it’s no surprise when I later hear them complain that networking isn’t winning them any sales. Their approach is like going into a bar and grabbing the nearest group of drinkers to saying, “Hi! My name’s X. Here’s my card. Let me place an order for you now.” You just wouldn’t do it, would you?
Put it this way: would you buy from somebody who did this to you?
I know I wouldn’t. I’d get away from them within 30 seconds, if not sooner!
So why would anyone take this approach when attending networking meetings? They might as well cover themselves in sales repellent spray – it simply won’t work, ever.
But what if that same person took time to get to know you, found out a little bit about your circumstances, listened to the issues you’ve had in the past? What if over the course of a couple of conversations, you realised you liked the person and would bear them in mind whenever you had a real need for their product or service? You might even begin to trust them and refer them onto another contact who might have a specific need right now.
Would you have felt like you’d been sold to? Probably not.
Would you have felt that you’d been listened to and understood? Probably, you would.
Would you buy from them if the time was right? Again, probably you would.
So, in any networking situation, I firmly believe that it’s far better to forget the initial sale and instead concentrate on building rapport and listening to the other person, giving them time to get to know, like and trust you. Then, when the time is right, the sale will come.
This approach is, and always will be, the way to get networking working for any business.
To help further here are my top 10 tips to help you build rapport and increase your chances of winning business in the long term:
1.Listen more than you talk.
2.Show that you are listening by occasionally nodding, saying “yes”, or confirming that you understand.
3.Maintain good frequent eye contact, without staring.
4.Ask open questions such as “What’s the biggest challenge you face right now? What have you done about this so far?”
5.Link your next open question to what they just said, not what you prepared to say.
6.Listen for their speech patterns and mirror their language. If they are a visual person you might say, “Yes I see what you mean” or if they are an auditory person you might say, “I hear what you say.”
7.Get them in a “yes” frame of mind by saying something that they are unlikely to disagree with such as, “growing sales can be a challenge for any business, can’t it?”
8.Use light and shade. Ask probing questions but lighten the mood where possible with humour or an observation. They shouldn’t feel that they are being interrogated.
9.Let them decide how they would like to carry the conversation forward. See whether they feel a further phone call or meeting is the next stage. The more they own the next step the more likely they are to be open and receptive to your proposal.
10.Overall, forget the sale – just concentrate on them.
This article first appeared as a guest posting on www.emilycagle.co.uk. To see the original article visit http://emilycagle.co.uk/blog/2009/10/opening-doors-selling-without-selling/
These are the people who pounce on any new visitors, stuff a business card in their hand and virtually say, “Well? When are you going to buy from me?”
To me, it’s no surprise when I later hear them complain that networking isn’t winning them any sales. Their approach is like going into a bar and grabbing the nearest group of drinkers to saying, “Hi! My name’s X. Here’s my card. Let me place an order for you now.” You just wouldn’t do it, would you?
Put it this way: would you buy from somebody who did this to you?
I know I wouldn’t. I’d get away from them within 30 seconds, if not sooner!
So why would anyone take this approach when attending networking meetings? They might as well cover themselves in sales repellent spray – it simply won’t work, ever.
But what if that same person took time to get to know you, found out a little bit about your circumstances, listened to the issues you’ve had in the past? What if over the course of a couple of conversations, you realised you liked the person and would bear them in mind whenever you had a real need for their product or service? You might even begin to trust them and refer them onto another contact who might have a specific need right now.
Would you have felt like you’d been sold to? Probably not.
Would you have felt that you’d been listened to and understood? Probably, you would.
Would you buy from them if the time was right? Again, probably you would.
So, in any networking situation, I firmly believe that it’s far better to forget the initial sale and instead concentrate on building rapport and listening to the other person, giving them time to get to know, like and trust you. Then, when the time is right, the sale will come.
This approach is, and always will be, the way to get networking working for any business.
To help further here are my top 10 tips to help you build rapport and increase your chances of winning business in the long term:
1.Listen more than you talk.
2.Show that you are listening by occasionally nodding, saying “yes”, or confirming that you understand.
3.Maintain good frequent eye contact, without staring.
4.Ask open questions such as “What’s the biggest challenge you face right now? What have you done about this so far?”
5.Link your next open question to what they just said, not what you prepared to say.
6.Listen for their speech patterns and mirror their language. If they are a visual person you might say, “Yes I see what you mean” or if they are an auditory person you might say, “I hear what you say.”
7.Get them in a “yes” frame of mind by saying something that they are unlikely to disagree with such as, “growing sales can be a challenge for any business, can’t it?”
8.Use light and shade. Ask probing questions but lighten the mood where possible with humour or an observation. They shouldn’t feel that they are being interrogated.
9.Let them decide how they would like to carry the conversation forward. See whether they feel a further phone call or meeting is the next stage. The more they own the next step the more likely they are to be open and receptive to your proposal.
10.Overall, forget the sale – just concentrate on them.
This article first appeared as a guest posting on www.emilycagle.co.uk. To see the original article visit http://emilycagle.co.uk/blog/2009/10/opening-doors-selling-without-selling/
Sunday, 18 October 2009
Asking the right selling questions
"I keep six honest serving men - They taught me all I know, Their names are what and why and when -- And how and where and who."
Six Honest Serving Men, Rudyard Kipling, 1903
As you and I know the secret to successful selling is to ask the right questions.
If we do this skilfully, we become seen as a problem solver and the dynamic or ‘power base’ shifts from a seller/buyer relationship into that of two equal partners. You are then not selling….you are simply helping the customer to buy.
In order to sell effectively we need to know what will make the customer buy from us. In order to do this we need to ask them….and listen wholly and exclusively to what they say!!
A highly effective type of question is known as an ‘open question’. These are often prefaced by either ‘who?’, ‘what?’, ‘when?’, ‘why?’ ‘where?’ or ‘how?’
These are all questions that will encourage the customer to talk about their current situation and needs. If we are listening attentively (and many sales people I work with do not!) then we are able to gather the right level of information and are able to tailor our ultimate presentation to show how we can meet their specific and stated requirements.
Here is a list of some of the possible questions:
‘Who’ questions • Who will be using the product? • Who will need to be trained to use the product? • Who will sign off the order?
‘What’ questions • What problem are you looking to solve? • What impact does this problem currently have? • What do you look for when you are buying new widgets? • What else?
‘When’ questions • When are you looking to introduce the new widget? • When would you need delivery? • When would you want the training programme to start?
‘Why’ questions • Why do you say that? • Why is that an issue for you? • Why do you need to change the process now? • Why do you think that?
‘Where’ questions • Where will the widgets make the biggest impact? • Where will you need the delivery to go to? • Where do you get your widgets from currently?
‘How’ questions • How can I help you solve that problem? • How quickly will you need the widgets? • How would that work in practice? • How will this change the way you currently work?
A word of caution here….in order to maintain rapport it is important to use open questions naturally and conversationally otherwise it could feel to the customer that they are being bombarded.
Likewise, if we can link our next question to the last customer answer we are more likely to demonstrate that we have actively listened to them, show understanding, and ultimately be more successful in matching the benefits of our proposal to what the customer is looking for.
This linking of questions takes time and lots of practice, and is fine tuned on my client workshops, but is superbly effective.
Six Honest Serving Men, Rudyard Kipling, 1903
As you and I know the secret to successful selling is to ask the right questions.
If we do this skilfully, we become seen as a problem solver and the dynamic or ‘power base’ shifts from a seller/buyer relationship into that of two equal partners. You are then not selling….you are simply helping the customer to buy.
In order to sell effectively we need to know what will make the customer buy from us. In order to do this we need to ask them….and listen wholly and exclusively to what they say!!
A highly effective type of question is known as an ‘open question’. These are often prefaced by either ‘who?’, ‘what?’, ‘when?’, ‘why?’ ‘where?’ or ‘how?’
These are all questions that will encourage the customer to talk about their current situation and needs. If we are listening attentively (and many sales people I work with do not!) then we are able to gather the right level of information and are able to tailor our ultimate presentation to show how we can meet their specific and stated requirements.
Here is a list of some of the possible questions:
‘Who’ questions • Who will be using the product? • Who will need to be trained to use the product? • Who will sign off the order?
‘What’ questions • What problem are you looking to solve? • What impact does this problem currently have? • What do you look for when you are buying new widgets? • What else?
‘When’ questions • When are you looking to introduce the new widget? • When would you need delivery? • When would you want the training programme to start?
‘Why’ questions • Why do you say that? • Why is that an issue for you? • Why do you need to change the process now? • Why do you think that?
‘Where’ questions • Where will the widgets make the biggest impact? • Where will you need the delivery to go to? • Where do you get your widgets from currently?
‘How’ questions • How can I help you solve that problem? • How quickly will you need the widgets? • How would that work in practice? • How will this change the way you currently work?
A word of caution here….in order to maintain rapport it is important to use open questions naturally and conversationally otherwise it could feel to the customer that they are being bombarded.
Likewise, if we can link our next question to the last customer answer we are more likely to demonstrate that we have actively listened to them, show understanding, and ultimately be more successful in matching the benefits of our proposal to what the customer is looking for.
This linking of questions takes time and lots of practice, and is fine tuned on my client workshops, but is superbly effective.
Friday, 16 October 2009
Selling Skills: Buyers buy benefits, fools force features
When selling it’s often very easy to forget that a feature is what a product is….an intrinsic characteristic of the product or service.
Examples of features are:
• Priced at £20
• Red/Blue/Black
• Transparent
• Compact
• Lightweight
• TV advertised
• The market leader
• The latest technology
• Covered by a three year warranty
………All very interesting (or perhaps not!) but of no real concern to the buyer who really wants to know what the product will do for him/her.
In other words, the benefits.
For example: “This promotion will increase your sales (feature) which means that you will get increased turnover and profit” (benefit)
Or…. “The new display unit is compact and eye catching (feature) which means that you will get more impulse sales at the till points (benefit) ,therefore increasing your profits” (benefit)
Never forget….the product features are important but they are unlikely to clinch the sale without making the link in the customer’s mind to the specific benefit they will derive from the product.
That is what the customer is really interested in!
Examples of features are:
• Priced at £20
• Red/Blue/Black
• Transparent
• Compact
• Lightweight
• TV advertised
• The market leader
• The latest technology
• Covered by a three year warranty
………All very interesting (or perhaps not!) but of no real concern to the buyer who really wants to know what the product will do for him/her.
In other words, the benefits.
For example: “This promotion will increase your sales (feature) which means that you will get increased turnover and profit” (benefit)
Or…. “The new display unit is compact and eye catching (feature) which means that you will get more impulse sales at the till points (benefit) ,therefore increasing your profits” (benefit)
Never forget….the product features are important but they are unlikely to clinch the sale without making the link in the customer’s mind to the specific benefit they will derive from the product.
That is what the customer is really interested in!
Sunday, 20 September 2009
Ten Ways To Grow Your Business on a Shoestring Budget
NEW WORKSHOP
Are you ready to grow your business but don’t have the money?
Right now if you’re thinking of spending money advertising or marketing your business – STOP!
Simply pouring cash into marketing can prove a risky -and costly- business, with no guarantee of a return.
If you’re looking for ways to gain exposure and generate leads now without breaking the bank, this fast paced three hour session is for you.
I want to share with you ten ways in which I turned my own start-up into a well respected business with over 70 clients in under 3 years…without ever advertising and all for under £600 investment!
What will you learn?
Quickly get the skills you need to grow your business.
From increasing your web presence to reaching out to your target market, you will be amazed at the number of low cost -and no cost- ways you can grow your business today.
In this practical ‘hands on’ session, you will immediately apply what you learn to your own business, developing real strategy and putting it into action to boost your sales.
This workshop is for you if…
· You’re just starting out in business, and don’t have the funds to invest in expensive marketing
· You’re hungry to grow your business, but don’t know where to start
· You’ve poured money into marketing in the past, and seen little return
Book NOW….limited places!
Reserve your place now to get the low cost skills you need to survive and thrive.
Price: £47 + VAT
Date: Friday November 6th 2009 9:30am to 12:30pm
Venue: The Olde Barn Hotel, Marston near Grantham (map)
The session is limited to just 20 places…first come first served.
Book here
To get the most out of the session you should bring a laptop with Wi-Fi capability, although this is purely optional.
Word of mouth
"Worth every penny. If you want help developing an internet sales strategy Gary’s your man!"
-- Chris Penfold, Design Cognition Ltd, Nottingham
"Fabulous course. Highly recommended"
-- Tamsin Higgins, tomhiggins.co.uk, Bishop’s Stortford
"Excellent ideas"
-- Ann Hawkins, The Inspired Group, Cambridge
"I feel lots more confident and have some great tools and strategies to use"
-- Garry Mumford, Insight Associates, Bishop's Stortford
Still not sure?
This workshop comes with a 100% no quibble money back guarantee. If it fails to live up to your expectations or you feel you've had poor value from the day, you will receive a full 100% refund – guaranteed.
Book your place here NOW (includes booking fee) or email gary.gorman (at)paradigmtraining.co.uk for more information.
Are you ready to grow your business but don’t have the money?
Right now if you’re thinking of spending money advertising or marketing your business – STOP!
Simply pouring cash into marketing can prove a risky -and costly- business, with no guarantee of a return.
If you’re looking for ways to gain exposure and generate leads now without breaking the bank, this fast paced three hour session is for you.
I want to share with you ten ways in which I turned my own start-up into a well respected business with over 70 clients in under 3 years…without ever advertising and all for under £600 investment!
What will you learn?
Quickly get the skills you need to grow your business.
From increasing your web presence to reaching out to your target market, you will be amazed at the number of low cost -and no cost- ways you can grow your business today.
In this practical ‘hands on’ session, you will immediately apply what you learn to your own business, developing real strategy and putting it into action to boost your sales.
This workshop is for you if…
· You’re just starting out in business, and don’t have the funds to invest in expensive marketing
· You’re hungry to grow your business, but don’t know where to start
· You’ve poured money into marketing in the past, and seen little return
Book NOW….limited places!
Reserve your place now to get the low cost skills you need to survive and thrive.
Price: £47 + VAT
Date: Friday November 6th 2009 9:30am to 12:30pm
Venue: The Olde Barn Hotel, Marston near Grantham (map)
The session is limited to just 20 places…first come first served.
Book here
To get the most out of the session you should bring a laptop with Wi-Fi capability, although this is purely optional.
Word of mouth
"Worth every penny. If you want help developing an internet sales strategy Gary’s your man!"
-- Chris Penfold, Design Cognition Ltd, Nottingham
"Fabulous course. Highly recommended"
-- Tamsin Higgins, tomhiggins.co.uk, Bishop’s Stortford
"Excellent ideas"
-- Ann Hawkins, The Inspired Group, Cambridge
"I feel lots more confident and have some great tools and strategies to use"
-- Garry Mumford, Insight Associates, Bishop's Stortford
Still not sure?
This workshop comes with a 100% no quibble money back guarantee. If it fails to live up to your expectations or you feel you've had poor value from the day, you will receive a full 100% refund – guaranteed.
Book your place here NOW (includes booking fee) or email gary.gorman (at)paradigmtraining.co.uk for more information.
Monday, 17 August 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
