A Successful Salesperson Understands Persuasion
Written by Ray Tamayo on Jun 20, 2008 1:13 am
Upon hearing words such as ‘persuasion’ and ‘selling,’ what is the first profession that comes into your mind?
Majority of you would have thought of a salesperson.
The word ‘persuasion’ seems to have a unique and peculiar meaning that suggests conquering and winning over another person. People have this image of a master persuader, doing everything he can to sell something people do not really need or want.
Many people have the notion that salespersons would only stop pestering them, only after a hole has been dug through their pockets. If you have gone through this unfortunate experience, it is no wonder you think of salespersons as such.
In fairness, not all salespersons are like that. In fact, most people in sales are truthful. Yes, they are also equipped with a persuasive tongue. Most truthful salespersons are indeed persuasive.
Salespersons are equipped with persuasive skills in personal selling. Just like the words suggest, there’s a personal touch involved. In essence, personal selling enjoys an advantage over advertisements. If you are the customer, personal selling can immediately deliver answers to your questions. This is unlike advertisements where you have to be content with whatever is presented.
In order to succeed in the selling business, a salesperson must be persuasive. However, being persuasive does not mean having a sweet tongue. On the contrary, you have to be a good listener. Talking less and letting the customer do most of the talking opens the opportunity for you to know what your customers want. This is the most important part of selling -- getting to know what their concerns and uncertainties are.
Since the customer’s interest is important, your intention to sell is only secondary. A good salesperson would exert every effort to make the customer feel comfortable in talking and expressing his needs and interests. You should wait for the right time. Only when the customer is ready and asks for it, then you can open up the topic on selling so as not to jeopardize your customer’s confidence in you.
Being a salesperson engaged in personal selling gets you face to face with your customer. Professionalism dictates that you must not take things personally when customers decline your offer. Good salespersons are trained to be stonehearted when issues get too personal for them. As a salesperson, you have to maintain composure and concentrate on your customer’s priorities.
The fact that customers spend time with you is a good indication of their interest in your offer to help them. While juggling your customer’s concern on one hand and your intention to sell on the other, try to find a common ground to keep the balls rolling!
Being a salesperson also necessitates that you know your competitors down to the smallest details. After all, they know a lot about you also!
Persuasion and listening are crucial ingredients to become good in sales. Maximize their use and become a top-notch salesperson in your industry!
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Comments: 2 
About the Author: Ray Tamayo
Member Since: 05/16/2008
Company: Success Puzzle Inc.
Industry: Coach
Primary Web Site: http://www.DoingRayTamayo.com
Successful Persuasion
I liked what you had to say about the art of persuasion, Ray.
Are you familiar with Ray Silverstein? He writes for Entrepreneur about sales. In one of his articles he cited research that dispels the myth that customers' purchases are based on need--which, of course, is at the basis of most MLM sales strategies.
The reason I bring Ray up is that he also claims that sales are made in the first 30 seconds of contact with your buyer. This translates into what the online advertising "gurus" have been preaching.
As you infer, persuasion, usually through social proof, can only come after the buyer is "hooked." That hook has to address his wants and desires. It has to speak to where he is.
In online advertising/sales, we have to guess where that potential buyer is when we're starting out. Initially there isn't enough time to set up a website, fill it with content--or contribute to our blogs--and accomplish all the steps necessary to be ready for our potential customers PLUS hit the forums.
But as soon as we do have the time, we should be heading to the social sites and forums to find out the desires of our target audience.
Knowing for certain what they want helps us create that necessary hook to position us as the authoritative answer.
Ray Silverstein?
No but I am familiar with Frnak Rambauskus and a couple of other persuasion marketing men who have really helped me to understand this. Bob Proctor has taught slight hypnotic techniqes to me as well. My Mission in Commision Program has really revolutionized how to teach what 7 figure earners apply in their lives. Also the 7 levels of awareness help you understand how to get to master techniques such as these to help sales forces move with ease peace and confidence. There is so much to know I feel like a small fish in a big bowl but yet my tank is getting smaller by the minute as I increase so rapidly.
Thank You For your comment.