As I told you yesterday, this week, I’m sending you a free mini-course titled “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Professionals Make Selling Their Services And How To Avoid Them.” So, let’s get started with…
Big Mistake #1: Winging It
Business owners wing for one of three reasons:
- They think, “I’m a professional. I help people, and I don’t need to sell.”
- They want to be “spontaneous” and “natural.”( A related reason is thinking that they are a “naturally born salesperson.”
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- They don’t know another way.
Winging a sales presentation is a deadly mistake and not only because you’ll lose clients that could have and should have been yours; it also telegraphs a lack of respect for yourself, your prospective clients, and your profession.
How would you feel going in for surgery only to find that your doctor is unprepared and says, “I haven’t gone over your charts, and I’m not 100% sure what your problem is, but I’m going to cut you open and wing it from there?”
Or, how about if you’re sitting on a plane ready to take off, and the pilot comes over the intercom and says, “You know, I didn’t feel like going through my checklist today, and I don’t know what route we’re going to take, but once we’re in the air, I’ll try and figure it out?”
The fact is pros don’t wing it, regardless of their profession. They all practice, drill, rehearse and have a game plan.
Entrepreneurs mistakenly believe that a “planned” presentation is the same as a “canned” presentation. Those are two different animals.
A canned presentation is where you memorize what you’re going to say and repeat it verbatim regardless of what the prospect says or reacts. An example would be a guy pitching a cooking gadget in a kiosk in the mall or at a fair. The truth is that these types of presentations can be highly entertaining, fun, and even appear spontaneous when in the hands of a professional pitchman.
With that said, do you want your prospects to perceive you to be a pitchman? The answer is, isn’t it? Also, I’d guess that what you’re selling is more sophisticated than a set of super-duper knives.
A “planned” presentation is where you know where you are going during a meeting with a prospect. Your presentation is structured. Yes, parts of your presentation are scripted and memorized, but you are not locked into what you will say. Instead, you adjust based on the prospect’s responses -both verbal and non-verbal.
The advantages of having a planned presentation are significant.
First, it allows you to relax because you know where you’re going. You don’t need to think about it.
Second, a planned presentation gives you the ability to be truly “present” with your prospect. As the late, great Stephen Covey wrote, you can listen with the intent to understand instead of with the intent to reply. As an aside, being present with the prospect is the single best way to develop rapport with a prospect, resulting in more sales.
Third, having a planned presentation gives your prospect permission to relax because they know they are in the hands of a professional who knows what they’re doing. Finally, remember that prospects want you to be in control of the sales process. Some personality types will challenge you and try to take control, but if you are confident and know what you’re doing, even those prospects will stop resisting and let you take control.
I teach a specific framework for doing consultations, but whether you use my structure, someone else’s, or create your own, planning your presentation is the best thing you can do to make more sales and help more clients.
Tomorrow, in part 2 of the series, we’ll bust a ginormous myth around what makes a great salesperson, and I’ll share with you the truth that will “set you free” and put more DEEnero in your pocket.
Kick butt, make mucho DEEnero!
Dave “The Planner” Dee
P.S. I’m sitting with a client in the conference room in my home as you read this. We’re working on his world domination plan. (Actually, a strategy and one-to-many sales presentation for a big opportunity he has coming up.) Someone else is flying in tomorrow. I have two full-day private consultations left available for April/May. If you’re interested in one of them, please reply to this email with “Private Consulting,” Then, I’ll send you the details.
