Sales Advice For Entrepreneurs
The Importance of Using a Sales Script
Written by Chukwuma Asala for Gaebler Ventures
Most people, when asked whether or not they feel that sales is a hard profession, respond with an emphatic "yes". For the brave ones who venture into sales, they find that selling is not hard at all. It is making a sale consistently that is the challenge. This article touches on the importance of using a sales script to achieve consistency in your sales calls, appointments, and ultimately results.
Sales results will come to you after you have mastered the knowledge of your product or service and your pitch or sales presentation to the point of minimal to no error.
Until you have achieved this level of knowledge, any results you get before that point are pure luck and you are still just a rookie.
But fear not. Even Tiger Woods had to practice. He was blessed with natural ability but he still had to practice.
Talent alone will never be enough to reach the higher echelons of the sales industry. History has already proven that. You can find countless books on sales written by people who always started out extremely incompetent with almost no natural ability for selling. These people, however, eventually became the top sales people in their company because of the consistency of their work ethic and developing valued skills which resulted in consistency in their results.
One of the secrets to developing consistency in your sales results is to use a script for as much of the process as you can. From the initial phone call right up to closing the sale, a script will perform wonders for you and your sales team the second you start to use it consistently.
Here are some of the key reasons to incorporate a script into your selling repertoire. If you are new to sales these points will be invaluable in helping you understand the importance of using a script.
The Sales Script Gives You a Place to Start
The toughest part of any call or any meeting is the beginning. This is the toughest part because you must take over control of the conversation right away most times in order to influence how the conversation goes. Once you get started, in most cases, prospects will go along to some degree and the call or meeting usually gets a little easier and more natural because prospects participate (even if they are negative or suspicious about your motives).
The Sales Script Creates a Desired Attitude
A good script has the ability to create an attitude of expectancy in you and in your prospect. Word choice is very crucial when forming a script, and a weak script will have little to no value. Using the right words will lead your prospect down the desired path, putting them in the right frame of mind to listen to what you have to say and subsequently make a purchase.
Keep in mind that using a good script is initially very hard to do because it rarely sounds like you and it rightly shouldn't. If it did then you wouldn't need it! Every actor has a script for a reason. If they tried to ad-lib the entire movie we viewers would not be able to make heads or tails of it. A script will help you to portray the confidence that most prospects need to feel from you in order to purchase your product.
The Sales Script Keeps You On Track
Initially when you first start to get your feet wet in sales you are going to feel in way over your head. This is good, because you can't learn to swim if you're only willing to walk in the shallow end of the pool. You indeed have to be in way over your head. Only when you stand the risk of drowning do you actually learn how to swim and this is the exact same case in selling.
Most inexperienced sales people are not used to controlling conversations and have no concept of power dynamics, and so they will often get bullied by the CEO or representative on the other line or at the office where the appointment is. A script, however, will help you get back on track when you find yourself developing a nervous lump in your throat and failing for words. When all else fails and you find yourself not sure what to say next, just refer back to your script and you will find yourself once again gaining your prospect's attention.
The Sales Script Helps Avoid Unnecessary Questions
This goes back to the previous point made. Most prospects usually tend to position themselves as having more power and authority, especially when they understand that you are trying to sell them something. The goal is to somehow convince them that you are actually in the ascendancy in this case and have all the power. But if you're not successful in doing so they may end up interrupting you and asking questions that you really do not want to answer or make you disclose information that you are not ready to discuss.
Most CEOs especially are usually stressed for time, so your sales pitch has to be very efficient in order to maintain their attention. A script will help in avoiding some of these unnecessary interruptions by eliminating the tendency to disclose too much information. Remember, less is more. Disclosing too much information too soon will give your prospect the upper hand. You want to give them all the information they want, but they must get it in increments.
The Sales Script Can Be Duplicated
Biggest advantage to using a script is that other people can use it! Naturally if you are the CEO or owner of your own sales organization, chances are you are probably the best at selling your product. But if you are indeed the top sales guy and no one else can do what you do because you are just the most talented bloke in the planet of sales, then no one will ever believe they can have the success you have and it will de-motivate your sales team.
By using a generic script that everyone can learn, memorize and follow, you will set a pattern of duplication in your sales team that will guarantee more people producing results faster.
Talent is a scarce commodity, but there are many people who if given the right instruction can excel in whatever industry. Give them the script, and they will give you results.
Chukwuma Asala is an international student from Nigeria who is studying to earn an MBA from the State University of New York in Albany. He has analyzed more than 20 industry case studies throughout his education thus far, and hopes to bring some of his business knowledge to Gaebler.com.
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