In my last blog post, I shared with you some specific ways you can “economy-proof” your team and your organization.
One of those was to sharpen your skill set. Those with sharp skills can and will succeed!
As promised, I’m writing today to dive a little deeper into that advice … so you can take your company to new heights.
If I asked you to list the skills a good salesperson should have, you’d probably include things like effective communication, prospecting, negotiation, active listening, relationship-building, empathy, problem-solving, engagement, storytelling … the list goes on!
And, as the economy changes, the skills that work change, too.
For example, relational selling just doesn’t work right now.
So which skills are the most important to sharpen in today’s economy? I know you’re busy, so I’ll dive right into the top three:
Prospecting. I probably don’t need to tell you that with the increased prices of essentials like groceries and gas, most consumers have less disposable income. Of course, this carries over to organizations, too. They’re spending more just to stay afloat.
So, whether you’re selling direct to consumers or to businesses, prospects are not just coming out of the woodwork looking for places to spend their money. That means you have to prospect like a boss! Consider who owns the problem your product or service solves. Get to know that person and the challenges they’re facing.
Then, implement the next tip.
Selling Strategically. Let’s be honest (you’ll find I’m always honest): you and your competitors sell the same features and benefits. That’s why it’s so important to consider how your product solves a problem better than that of your competitors. You’ve likely heard of consultative selling, and this is where it comes in.
When you get to know the objectives, pain points, and challenges your prospect faces, you can then position your product or service as a solution. When you do this well, your prospect is willing to spend more. And when your competitors give low-ball offers, you are selling on value instead … you will sell more, because you know how to differentiate your organization from the competition.
Here’s an example from one of my clients, David, whose organization sold doors and windows in Canada: When David joined the organization, sales reps were struggling to sell because they couldn’t define what made their company unique. A window is a window is a window, right?
After learning more about their potential clients—specifically new home builders working on huge developments—David homed in on a great (and profitable!) strategy: his organization would deliver all the windows for every structure in the development at the same time and on time and installed them quickly. Why did this make a difference?
This was essential to the contractors whose crews worked during Canadian winter snowstorms; because without on time, complete delivery the contractor couldn’t reliably schedule all the other trades that were needed to finish the interiors of the homes—before the snow started! “On time and Complete” became their new value proposition. None of their competitors were offering this! And just like that, selling on price became a thing of the past.
This brings me to the next tip …
Negotiation. Because money is tight for (almost) everyone in (almost) every industry, you’re going to get more pushback. You know the objections: the timing isn’t right; a lower-priced alternative exists; expenses are high; we need time to think about the investment; I need to check with my supervisor …
Sharpening your negotiation skills means you’re better able to handle and overcome these objections.
These three skills are the most important to hone now, in today’s economy. When you do, you’ll be better equipped to achieve the profitability everybody wants!
