9 Techniques To Increase Sales

The best sales techniques are the ones that work when you're selling. They help you make a better pitch when closing or equip you with better negotiation tactics. In short, the techniques help you sell better and sell more.

Of course, before you can even proceed to technique No. 1, there's one important skill that often kicks to the curb, figuratively speaking, that needs to be put at its rightful place. In fact, it should be a simultaneous activity with other sales techniques or skills.

And that one important skill is PROSPECTING.

There was a long debate, among sales experts, on the most essential activity for salespeople. Many experts tend to see those closing sales as the most critical activity, but MORE experts see prospecting as more significant.

Think about it ...

If we have no person to sell our product or service to, no matter how brilliant the sales strategy is, nothing's going to happen. Even when a company is having a good time, it will only last as long as it has people buying from them, which it gets from prospecting.

So, it makes total sense to put prospecting before these 9 techniques to increase sales.

And here's why salespeople are not prospecting the way they should:

The author makes it clear that, without the prospect that fills a company's pipeline, you find it hard to keep hitting your sales objective (it's obvious, is it not?).

She then outlines 3 reasons why salespeople find it hard to prospect, which include:

• different skills compared to selling
• resistance to calling 'strangers' to ask for business
• only consider prospecting when sales are in the rut

And there are 2 suggestions to solve this issue, which was outlined in the article:

1. consistently look for new business, which means, to keep on prospecting no matter how good the industry seems to be
2. know the right 'hot button' to press when prospecting

I highly recommend you give this article a quick read and plan for your prospecting activities if you haven't.

Then you can move ahead with the techniques (9 in all, in this post) to increase your sales.

Pre-Sales Call Planning

Here are a few things that you want to consider in your pre-sales call strategy:

• Current situation of your prospects

Look at what's going on in your prospect business currently and their working environment.

• Opportunity

Identify space that allows you to come into a partnership with your prospects. It's a long term view of the situation. Can you spot an opportunity to work together with them?

• Call objective

What do you expect from your call today?
What is your long term expectation?
Does your objective specific, result-oriented, and realistic?
Did you record it down?

• Call strategy

Based on your sales call objective:

1. What message are you putting across to your prospects?
2. What are the key points?
3. Any visual aids to use?
4. Any supporting documents you need to reinforce your statement?
5. What else do you need to get the message across effectively?

Call Opening

Good impressions lead to rapport and rapport leads to trust. You already know that trust is vital in building a relationship.

Here are your 3 keys to creating good first impressions:

1. Develop rapport
2. Established credibility
3. Professional appearance

Presentation

You should be able to:

• a) Develop and deliver an Impactful Opening Statement (IOS)
• b) List products features and corresponding benefits
• c) Develop skills to present products effectively

Justifying your claims

You want to be able to:

• a) Prove key message with reprints
• b) Employ visual aid effectively
• c) Prove message during your product presentation

Check for buy-in

You can:

• a) List verbal and non-verbal clues to receptivity
• b) State how to use questions appropriately
• c) Use verbal reinforcement to strengthen positive attitudes
• d) Use trial closes when a positive response is indicated

Friction reduction

You want to know how to:

• a) Handle the technical objection
• b) Handle competition objection

Getting commitment

So here are the 4 steps to closing:

1. Summarize benefits
2. Ask for commitment
3. Thank the prospect
4. Present sample (when appropriate)

Talking about other products

Almost certainly, once you become a salesperson for a company, you will be selling multiple items. Except in cases where your bonus is reliant only on a single product, cross-promoting or cross advertising should take place naturally.

Follow up

You go back to them about the un-answered query, to provide facts and data as promised, to prepare for an event or program, etc. This can be the missing link among the representatives who perform from the representative who makes it big one time and then vanish. Which one are you?