Magazine Advertising Sales Training: Overcome "What Are You Selling?" as Opening Objection

You hear "What are you selling" up front when your prospect thinks you sound like a sales person. They put their guard up so fast, your head is spinning! What follows this fake objection is the tried and true, “I’m not interested” to which you probably have no response. If you do answer this question by telling them what you sell, you lose anyway. So don’t do it!

The simple answer starts off sounding corny, but it works... if you mean it! Simply respond, “I am not selling anything at this point. I'm calling to investigate if there is a possibility I can help you overcome your biggest challenges (name it). If not, I have nothing to sell you. I’m not looking to take your money. In fact, I won’t accept your money if I don’t think I can help you meet your goals. Is now a good time to talk about this more?”

If they grant you an opportunity to talk, take it or schedule an appointment to ask your Fact Finding questions.

If not, be comfortable walking away from a sale… even if you can’t really afford it. You will make more sales and more easily than ever before when clients sense you care about them first and not your wallet.. When you insist in pursuing a bad sale, you end up begging, not selling!

Here's to stress-free selling ^TM,
Jenae Rubin

Jenae@MagazineAdvertisingSales.com
www.MagazineAdvertisingSales.com

Magazine Advertising Sales Training: What Happens When You Negotiate Price?

If price is the fifth or sixth reason why people choose to buy a product, then why is it the #1 obstacle many salespeople have? This is simple: when there is nothing else to compare you to, price is the only criteria. When sales is approached from the product perspective (here's why you should buy my product/service), you are addressing your needs, not theirs; so price becomes the key basis on which to make a decision since you're missing the mark.

But what happens when you negotiate on price?

1. People who buy on price leave on price - This means you keep customers for short periods of time and there is no sell-through or returns.

2. When price is the overriding issue, you are always fighting for the sale - Sales made by "fighting" for them, are unstable, short-term gains. In fact, if you make sales this way, you probably feel you're losing customers as fast as you're making them... and it's because price is the major determining factor.

3. You always have to negotiate price... and sometimes lower them the second time - Considering this philosophical approach does not pan out, it's strange that a common belief is "I'll give a deal to 'test' my product (service), and then sell at full price when they see how wonderful it is. People who hold this view find themselves not only always negotiating price with the same customers but sometimes having to reduce price even more. Think about this... how do your prospects know they got the best price from you in the first place? They don't! So they keep asking for discounts and you keep lowering your prices to keep the business. Sometimes a sales is not better than no sale.

So what do you do to eliminate this dilemma?

Fortunately, the answer is simple: focus on them. Ask tons of questions and show how you help achieve their goals and overcome their obstacles. When this is your path, sales will become easier, be larger and last longer.

Welcome to stress-free selling^TM,

Jenae Rubin
Jenae@MagazineAdvertisingSales.com
www.MagazineAdvertisingSales.com