Personal Confrontations Parallel Sales
Recently, I’ve had a couple confrontations / differences where I reacted very differently. Upon reflection, these two reactions are exactly why I am not yet a great sales person.
There are plenty of research in the field of sales that are key to being a great sales person including:
- 46:54 ratio of talk:listen. That is, have more balanced talking between both parties (in a two-party negotiation), and even better—talk even less.
- Take more pauses following objections.
In general, less skilled sales professionals speak 70% or more in any sale. Less skilled sales professionals feel they need to sell on features and what the product does, rather than on why—let alone listen to the other side. It’s about the sales person, typically, less so on the other side or even both parties.
As I reflect on these discussions, in the “poor sales guy” example, I was quick to jump in with what I have done and what I am doing, etc. I was not quick to pause and ask why. I was not quick to learn more. I was focused on me. I was focused on what I am doing. And as you can imagine, the discussion quickly deteriorated to a non-productive discussion.
I felt the sense that I should’ve taken the pause, but the emotional side of me wanted to jump in and almost overwhelm the other person. And like any sale, good or poor, both parties are not trying to necessarily “outdo” the other person. Instead, typical sales has both parties vying for their respective interests, not the interests of the whole. For me, my interests were to share what I had achieved, rather than hearing more from the other side.
You can take a lot of great sales principles into everyday life and vice versa. For me, interactions on both sides continue to reflect that, though I may be making progress to be a better sales professional, I still have a ways to go.