Feed back what the prospect just said in your own words. Paraphrase the
prospect’s comments or questions. This is known as the “acid test” of listening.
When you can feed back what a customer says, you prove to the customer that
you were
really paying attention. You were not just like
one of those toy dogs in
the back of a car window with its head nodding up and down. You were really
listening.
Only after you have listened attentively, paused before replying,
questioned
for clarification, and fed it back in your own words are you in a position to
comment intelligently or to make a sales presentation.
Listening builds trust, and the very best way to get
an opportunity to listen is
to control the conversation with questions.
5. Use Open-Ended Questions
Earlier we covered the use of open-ended questions. These are questions that
cannot be answered with yes or no. Whenever you ask a question beginning with
the
pronouns or adverbs who, why, where, when, how, what, and
which, you
encourage the prospect to talk and give you more information that can help you
to make the sale.
Closed-Ended Questions
Use
closed-ended questions to bring a conversation to a conclusion. These are
questions that can
only be answered with yes or a no.
Closed-ended questions
always begin with verbs, such as
are, is, and
do. “Are you ready to make a
decision today? Is this what you are looking for? Do you
want to get started right
away?”
Remember to design your sales presentation around questions that you have
planned in advance. As you have already learned,
telling is not
selling.
Presentation Methods
Your presentation should always move from the general to the particular in a
logical order. Use what is called the “ascending close.” With this,
you present
your product features and benefits in the order of importance, from the most to
the least. Usually your most powerful benefit will arouse buying desire. But this
is not always the case. Be prepared to walk through
your features and benefits,
remaining alert and aware of the prospect’s reactions. Sometimes your third or
fourth benefit will be what interests your prospect more than anything else.
