EDUCAT YOUR CUSTOMERS

Educate the customers

What a brave title, doesn't it? How dare as a salesman we educate the customers whilts not all of them feel comfortable being dictated. Now, to explain the situation, I am going to take you take a while to the Orchard Road, Singapore.

Orchard is just like a heaven to ladies, many stores and beautiques along the road. One building named LUCKY PLAZA always become my first priority to visit. The ground floor of this building is the area for the electreonic gadgets. Handphone, digital camera, DVD player, webcam, etc available here with many choices. But, eventhoug it's quite often I came to Lucky Plaza, I never buy any gadget at all, why?

The one reason I make is, I cannot trust the seller. I can say that they are all very clever in do the selling to all visitors, but how the sell and how they talk, almot frighten me to trust them. Once upon a time, I came with my brother to one store, we planed to but one digital camera for our little brother. Digital camera is not my fave of gadget, thus i trust my brother to choose by himself. Surprisingly, he also does not know what kind of digital camera he want to buy?

We came to one store and ask for their advise and then he offer to us a Kodak Digital Camera with some additional accesories on them such as; 256 mb MMC, casing, Etc. As my brother quite trust with him, then the seller come again with other brand, he than offer KONICA MINOLTA digital camera to mny brother. The seller said that this brand is better tha he offered at first. But, the accesories was not very interestin,. We must buy the MMC and others. Then the seller aggresively insist us to buy the Konica Minolta one as he think it will be suitable as per my brother requirement.

What happen next? my brother have to call to his country (not in Singapore) to check with his colleague about those products. He not call one friend, but 3 friends to have their opinion. After having some opinion he came back to the seller and he want to buy the Kodak one (the first item he offered). Then, we then so surprise, because the seller said if we but this item, we only get the camera without MMC, Casing, Etc just like he said before. We than reconfirme about the package and he just said, "I did no say that?". Wow..wow .. wow ...eventually, my brother decided not to buy any of those options. Well, we spent 2 hours "debating" with the seller and we get nothing nor the seller.

Let's see the case;
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1. Seller offer the Kodak with complete accesories => Result => My brother get interest as the matter of the fact he does
not understand about the digital camere nor me.

2. Seller offer another brand of digital camera and he said the better one without accesories => Result => My Brother start to confuse

3. Seller said the package was not as he said => Result => My brother feel being cheated and choose not to buy.

If you are the seller what would you offer to my brother should be?
If you are the buyer, what do you think of the seller?

This case also often come to us as the salesman. Believe it or not, you might even find one case where your customer tell you honestly that he does not understand of the product or service and he asked for your advise. Well, some of us will say, this is the great opportunity to CLOSE, by explaining with your technical languages and bit lie to him, then you can close it without any further process. Will your customer satisfy??

The answer is YES , he will satisfy and apparently he will buy your product. But the next question, how long or how often will he use your product? dont' you ever think that a customer is not stupid, once they have your product, he then will find another substitution for your product. How? Internet, Incoming Fax Quotation from competitors, newspaper, etc.. if you said lie -- then you must prepare that your instant customer will also instanly leave you, may be without a notice to you.


Education a customer is not dictating him about a product or service. It is all about the discussion between you and him. What is being discussed? the discussion is about his needs. It not discussion your product/service. A customer is asking you to come actually to get the solution from you. He wants now more about he never know. He may know a bit or much but he is not provider of the product, thus he still knows not too deep.

If you then find this situation, here are some advises to you, hopefully it might work to you and you will use this opportunity to get a long term customer not a short term one;

1. Ask him => his REQUIREMENTS
Customs ask you because he has a requirements but he does not know how to summarise this requirements. It is your duty to summarise it for him

2. Ask him=> his PRIORITY REQUIREMENTS
It is not possible for a customer to have a perfect product. If they have too many requirements, then it is not
wrong to ask. Whic requirements do they thin as the main priority. They might say 100, actually the priority one
is only ONE.

3. Tell him the truth - which Requirements that might fit if he use your products/service
Well, this is might too difficult to you as a salesman. You know the weakness of your services/products and you are to afraid to tell the truth. This stage also might push you to tell your competitor's strength of products/services. Wow, am I a salesman? how can you say that your competitor products/services might fulfill for his requirements?
Well, If you are a real salesman, you should understand, eventually the customer might not buy his requirements. His
priority might not fulfill, he actually will buy YOU. Why? he feel comfortable with you in getting the solution. He
might not find another salesman will be like you.

4. If they don't buy your products, don't be hopeless
It is not also possible if the customer then ask you to leave and he will call your competitor sales person to explain their products and finally he might buy it from your competitor. Wow, did you miss the opportunity?
I say NO. You actually has sold the solution for him. Will he remember you? May be yes - may be no.

5. REALIZE - He is NOT YOUR CUSTOMER now
Well, you have said that your product will not fit with his priority requirements. Finally he buy from your competitor as you advised. Don't feel guilty, you MUST believe that his present requirements is not for you. If
you insist to make it possible, he might become your short term customer and he might not come to ask you anymore.
Your only left oportunity with him is YOUR SOLUTION.

6. KEEP in TOUCH
Don't forget to keep contact with your prospecst even they have not become your customer. Make him remember you and
it automatically realise him that you are A SOLUTION MAN. You will just to wait not too long, as he will find you
for his next requirements. He might change his priority or he has a new requirements. It is your turn to close then

You have succeeded educate your customers. You have educated to him about ;
1. a value of being a truth
2. what kind of products might fit with his requirements
3. Yourself - that he will believe you than other sales

It is not a simple process for the salesman. I am not going to become a bad digital camera seller by cheating my seller. I jsut believe that my prospect has friends, colleagues, boss, relatives as he will advise them to come to me for any requirements.

On the above story, the bad camera digital seller has spent nothing to nothing. He spent 2 hours to talk and to cheat and he also spent his chance to sell to my brother and to my brother relatives, friends, etc ...

SELLING PROCESS - 2

4. Sales Visit - 1,2,3 (No Sales Visit Above 3 Times)
It's time for you to do your first chance to SELL. The Main rule, don't miss every information and don't interupt
WHAT TO DO ON SALES VISIT will be discussed further The ourput that you will find all the profile requirements
of this target and you can than decide, will it be still your target? Recommended if you cannot close after your
Third Visit, then analyse;
a. They might not need today
b. Review your negotiation performance
Then, you migh think whether to save it first (pending folder) so you can concentrate on your next prospect.


5. DON'T TRY TO CLOSE LET THEM ASK
Every sales sometimes cannot be patient to close the sales on your first visit. It is not also act being passive.
You will not miss the chance. Be patient - and you can use this stage for your time to give your presentation. Now
It is time for them to interview you. Explain patietnly and Don't be a Liar. Use the common words (not technical)


6. CLOSE?
On stage 5, you will find it will take more times. Since you need yo "read" their buying signals. If Positive, then
Try to close, if Negative, hold it and try to reschedule
. Note: Use your negotiation skill on this stage



7. AFTER CLOSE
When you have succeeded close your prospects, what next will you do;
a. Try for your next prospects
b. Don't forget to maintain your existing customers the Final Target is not only
their satisfaction, but you must get their LOYALTY.

8. BE POSITIVE ON EVERY REQUEST

This stage is the last stage, even if it must be used at any stage, but it sometimes come to you to your existing
customers. Belive it or not, their needs will higher everytime, may somtimes it will enforce you to say I CAN'T
What will you do than? you will say I CAN'T or I CAN. The simple advise is DON'T BE A LIAR.



****** NEXT - WILL BE DISCUSSED FURTHER EACH STAGE DEEPLY, BE PATIENT TO SEE THE ARTICLE********

SELLING PROCESS

A selling process is actually the method developed by the own experience or other person experience. There are many selling
process offered thesedays and we could not judge them whether one method is the Best to another. It is not about the

method, moreover it is about how a salesperson know the method and understand how to implement constantly. Otherwise, it

will not success. Therefore, below method is said also not the best or even better than others. Below process is also taken

from by the experience and combining them with the nowadays theory. Hence, be flexible, the main purpose is that you

eventually find your own method.

Selling Stages:

1. Databasing Stage
It is a process on data collecting from many sources (internet, newspapers, magazines, canvassing, etc). The final

process of this stage is A DATABASE (Company Name/Person Name, Address, Phone, Fax)


2. Prospecting
Once you have ready one database, you can try the next stage. It is an investigation of the customer profile. You

could do this by visiting the customer (Said as Prospected Visit), calling, getting info from others, or might be from

competitors. The result is CUSTOMERS' PROFILE, such as Sales Revenue, Main Decision Maker, Influencer, Present Operational

things by present supplier, etc. Sales Revenuw is the most important thing you must get, why? because it will decide whether

you are a RAMBO or you are a Sniper. If you make a visit, this visit will not calculate as the sales visit, it is only

investigation visit. If you find directly to the Main PIC. DON'T SELL FIRST, BE A DETECTIVE to get their data.


3. Target Selecting
It is a process you sort of your databse & profile. A common thing that you must sort by sales revenue. But, it is

not only the sales revenue, add one more column to put one description, SHARE. Share is the possibility that you can get

share from this prospected customer. Sort them based on both condition: SALES REVENUE & SHARE. The outcome will be your

TARGET. CALCULATE !! How many Customers will be required to achieve your TARGET !!



*************************** TO BE CONTINUE **************************************

BASIC SELLING PROCESS !!! Be Master them ! (5)

Now, for you salesman, be happy because presently you are still required more than other department, but be sad when you do not want to CHANGE yourself. Below are some negative and positive things of the most Salesperson;

Negative "things "of Sales Person;
1. Known as a liar to shortened the closing process
2. Known as the disturbing person when finding or collecting data from the customer
3. Hit & Run if receive any complain
4. Like to blame other party, when your client get mad with you
5. Too love find new prospect and forget to maintain the existing
6. Do not like writing and data basing, they prefer to use their memory
7. Etc ... well I only could find SIX, may be reader can help me to add more


Positive "things" of Sales Person;
1. Aggressive and never surrender in one method
2. Most of them has no limitation in working hours (some time they will work 24 hours)
3. They have a very good stamina
4. Always stand for the customer benefit (well, even sometime they forget, whom they work for)
5. Has the terrific memory of the person's name, company's name, etc etc
6. Etc .. etc, add by yourself to get know how good are you

When they realize and have a strong needs to eliminate their negative things, well, you are now ready to be a SUPER SALES MAN or some people say TOP SALES MAN. On the other hand, to become a TOP SALES, usually a salesman have a system. What system they use? well, you have to find your own. But, Next article will show you, what are the selling process. Read, think, and try to find your own system.

BASIC SELLING PROCESS !!! Be Master them ! (4)

An incentive might create a company not have a same vision. Why? you can see how your sales work very hard to get a new customer. But, what do you think, when a delivery man, also must work hard to send the item to the customer right on time. If it is fail, they might get fired. On the salesman side. A Salesman must satisfy to receive a low basic income as the result of the incentive system. Supposing, they have no sales at all on the following month, what will they get? NONE. Thus, don't be so surprise when you find sometime your salesman do "hanky-panky" with other things.

That was only the small of the example, sometimes we never realize that a common system might affect to your team work.

Now let us back to the selling process. Have you get the idea how to make A SAME VISION? If you have not, will than discuss further on the next topics.

Now, we want to analyze also the commong things, what you find the bad things and good things of your Salesperson???

BASIC SELLING PROCESS!!! Be Master Them !! (3)

Now if the marketer and salesperson or the business owner and salesperson has the different point of view, how a company can do their business??

SO BE REMEMBER !! Before you go trough to the TECHNICAL Basic Sales Process, the very fundamental that you have to emphasize is: CREATE A SAME VISION.

A same vision means, there are another point of view that sales person and marketer or business owner always FORGET : How's the others point of view??? Accounting, operational, driver, office boy, etc. They also have their own vision.

One Questions: If you apply the sales incentive to the salesperson. Can a salesperson do everything? until the service is completed. There are Mr. B who always deliver the product to customer, Mrs. C who always check the payment status, also Mr. D who always prepare a cup of coffee to the salesperson. Do they apart on a SALES PROCESS??? Check , Think, Realize, than you go to the next article

BASIC SELLING PROCESS !!! Be Master them ! (2)

Now, you are a business owner or you are a marketer, below are the words you ever sound to your sales on your daily activity;
1. How can they say cannot sell this product?
2. Why they always ask the for the cheaper price?
3. Hey, we need you to close them soon, be focus on this customer!
4. How can you never visit this PRIME CUSTOMERS?
5. You need more incentive? go sell the high price!
6. The customer called you many times, why did not you answer it?
7. What are you doing on your desk? go find prospects!
8. ... .. ... etc
As a salesman, below are the most words you ever ever sound to your boss or to the marketers;
1. Boss, that company can sell cheaper than us, please give me more discount.
2. They wan the best service, but the same price with their present supplier.
3. Off course, I can provide anything you need sir,
4. Well sir, this is not my mistake, my operational is too stupid, he cannot deliver on time
5. ... etc ...etc