Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)The problem with any "how to sell" book like this is, until you can integrate the advice given here so that it comes naturally to you, you will sound as mechanical and forced as some of the "tellers" Richardson criticizes. I used to sell big-tiicket business-to-business, and I can say the advice here is timeless: engage your customer, identify what your customer's needs are and position your product so that the customer realizes that your product meets their needs. Of course, if the customer doesn't need your product, then maybe you need to learn some of those "hard-ball sales" techniques (or find a better product!). No amount of customer empathy, listening, or product positioning will help you overcome a customer-product mismatch. Which brings me to a point: although Richardson argues against this, I think playing hardball has a place in negotiations; remember, the party you are negotiating with doesn't always have to feel warm and cozy inside in the process. A true persuader will know when to be soft and fluffy and when to apply the pressure.
Also, the whole paradigm-replacement languuage ("we are moving into a new age of selling...") is corny. The advice Richardson is giving is not new or revolutionary, as she claims. But she has succeeded in organizing a lot of really good sales principles in a clear and coherent way which can easily be appreciated by readers.
I read this book together with Richardson's "Selling by Phone" and frankly, one is just a rehash of the other. Richardson copied entire paragraphs from one in writing the other. So save your money and buy just one of the two. But if you are an accidental salesperson, or even if by trade you are not a salesperson but you are occasionally called upon to negotiate (maybe you are a lawyer or a manager) Richardson's books will be a refreshing introduction to the discipline of negotiation and persuasion.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Stop Telling, Start Selling: How to Use Customer-Focused Dialogue to Close Sales
In this revised edition of her best-seller, noted sales consultant Linda Richardson offers salespeople the tools they need to successfully use customer-focused, dialogue selling. Featuring real-world dialogue samples, helpful dos and don'ts, self-tests, checklists, and other useful tools, this guide offers insight on every aspect of face-to-face selling, from the initial introduction through the needs identification and the negotiation of terms and price to the successful close, with prime emphasis on the six critical skills necessary to the dialogue-driven sales call: presence, rapport building, questioning, listening, product positioning, and checking.
Get 32% OFF
0 comments:
Post a Comment