One of my early mentors, the legendary Marlon Sanders, told me from the very beginning that I was an excellent salesperson. Asking for the sale was already a part of my business, and I was not shy when it came to persuading someone to make a purchase of my own products or courses or of one that I was recommending as an affiliate. If you’re not selling as much as you’d like to as an online entrepreneur, your selling skills may need to be updated and revised. Here are some suggestions for you to begin with right now to get used to asking for the sale.
Marlon continues to be particularly fond of how I have no reservations about picking up the phone and reaching out to prospects, clients, and colleagues when I have something to sell. Now remember here that whatever it is that you wish to sell must be an excellent fit for whom you wish to sell it to, and that you must believe in the product or service wholeheartedly. If this is the case, you are doing the others a disservice by NOT attempting to sell to them.
Think about the product, course, or service you want to sell. Go through it with a fine-toothed comb to make sure it includes everything you intended to include and share. Next, envision the person who is the idea customer or client for this product or service. What is their problem? How will your offering be the solution? How will they feel once they have completed what you have put together for them? How will they have changed as a result?
Finally, pick up the phone and call your prospect. Have an open and honest short conversation about them and their problem. Be empathetic and be an excellent listener. Anticipate their objections and overcome them one by one. It is the cost, the time frame, the content, the delivery, or something else? If they begin by telling you it is the cost, remember that we will all come up with the money if it something we want badly enough and believe strongly will help us to solve our problem.
Ask open-ended questions that move the process forward. How is their problem affecting their day to day life. What other solutions have they tried, and what were the results? How and why will your product be the right one for them at this time. If you determine during this phase of the selling process that they are not a good fit for what you have for sell, tell them so! Being honest in this way will build your credibility more than almost anything else.
Asking for the sale closes the deal. Listen intently and overcome any objections. I learned to use closed-ended or choice-type questions when asking for the sale when I first got started in real estate back in the 1980s. “Are you ready to sign the contract?” Would you like a fifteen or thirty year loan?” Yes, no, or “a fifteen year loan makes sense to me.” It works exactly the same with online sales.
People are waiting for you to ask them for the sale, so it’s up to you to follow through and make it happen. If they say no, do not feel like it is a rejection of you personally. Many times the people who say no to me come back in the future and buy. If they say yes, remember that no sale is ever final, and if you think of this as just the beginning of your relationship of your prospect turned customer or client you will be on your way to great success as an online entrepreneur.
Connie Ragen Green is a bestselling author, online marketing strategist, and international speaker working with newer online entrepreneurs on six continents to help them build lucrative businesses on the internet. Find out more and download a Special Report at Online Entrepreneur Blueprint and get started right away.
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