Sales Laundry

For your 3 minutes today I will show you one consistent way to come across a little smarter to your prospect in a meeting and how to put them a little more at ease.  Planning is part of the conversation, so with that I am kicking us off with one of my favorite quotes on the subject of planning.   

 “You know what I noticed? Nobody panics when things go according to plan–even if the plan is horrifying. If tomorrow I tell the press that a gang banger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blown up, nobody panics, because it’s all part of the plan.”

-          The Joker (Heath Ledger) “The Dark Knight” 2008

Everyone, prospects included, likes to know there is a plan.  Everyone is happier, still, when they know what the plan is.  It must be hard wired in our DNA somewhere.

 Plans are everywhere.  Go to church?  They give you a church bulletin that lists everything that is going to happen, and we feel better knowing.

 Getting the car repaired?  As soon as we give them the keys we want a plan.  We want to know what they are going to do to it and when it will be ready.

 Going in for Surgery?  It is not quite as frightening when the doctor tells us his plan.  The same is true for every aspect of life, right down to our economy.  When everything falls to pieces and chaos ensues we move to the brink of panic until there is a plan to rally around, no matter how miserable the plan is.

 Want to seem a little bit smarter on your next account call?  Pre-plan the sales call.

Want to look like an expert and put your prospect a little more at ease?  Pre-plan your sales call and explain the details of the plan to your prospect up front and get natural human nature working in your favor.

Example: 

“Hello, Mr. Jones.  It is great getting a chance to meet with you today.  I have done some research, but if you don’t mind, I would like to ask you a few questions to get a better understanding.  Is that alright?”

 “Sure.”

 “Great.  I’ve got five or six basic questions that will fill in some gaps for me and give me a better understanding of your company.  That should take us about 15 minutes, depending upon your answers.  After that we should spend about 20 minutes drilling down into some specifics and identify a few areas where we might be able to help one another, leaving the balance of our time to wrap up any loose ends.  Do you have any questions before we get started?”

 When I was taught this it was called the Predict and Prove Method or the Sandwich Technique.  The objective is to predict the basics of what will occur in the meeting, prove your prediction by executing the meeting properly, and then following up at the end to confirm the fulfilled prediction with your prospect.  End result?  You look smarter and your client is not wondering where or when your sales odyssey will end.

 Got it?

 Good.  See you Monday.

 “I love it when a plan comes together!”

– Col. John “Hannibal” Smith (George Peppard) “The A-Team” 1983