Sales Acronyms

SEE KISS FUGEIS No matter how long we have been selling, and no matter what we are selling, keeping your eye on the basics will help you to close more deals and make more money. These three acronyms are as true for selling computers or helicopters as they are for selling Girl Scout Cookies. SEE 1. Smile: no one likes a pouter. We feel better when we smile or laugh. Consequently, we like people who smile. The first thing the prospect should see when you walk into the room, is a huge smile. Smiles are infectious. When you smile, the prospect smiles back. If they are smiling, it’s harder for them to say “NO.” 2. Eye contact: We don’t trust people who won’t look us in the eye. When you look the prospect directly in the eye, not only does he or she know that you have nothing to hide, but you suck them into your world, and they begin to see the prospect from your perspective. They believe you are speaking to them, exclusively, and they appreciate the attention. 3. Enthusiasm: Get excited about your product. If you aren’t completely in love with your product, then how can your client be expected to feel anything for it? Once again, we like people with “positive energy.” Stand up straight, chest out, proud, happy, excited, smile and look them in the eye. You pull the people in and give them some of your drug like energy. And then they feel good. People like to feel good. And they like people who make them feel good. Some customers will come back time and time again, simply because they are addicted to the pleasant feeling they get when they talk to a particular salesperson. Remember in sales: first they like you, then they trust you, then they buy from you. My father once said, “If you ask someone a simple question, like what do you do for a living, and he can’t answer in five seconds or less, he is lying.” Nearly forty years later, I would have to say I agree with my Pop. When you meet a lawyer and you ask, “What do you do?” He immediately says, “I am a lawyer.” Other people will say, “I am a teacher,” I am a police officer…” But then, the guy who doesn’t really have a job, or has spent the last ten years collecting investor money to start a fictitious company, when you ask him what he does for a living, he gives you a lengthy essay answer. When he finally shuts up, you still have no idea what he does for a living. My dad would just shake his head and say, “he’s a con-artist.” The same goes for sales. If you can’t give a quick, five to ten second explanation of what you sell and what it costs, people will think you are running a scam. Even if your lengthy explanation is true and necessary, people don’t have the patience to listen. So, this brings us to the next basic acronym. KISS Keep it Short and Simple: You should be able to say, in five seconds or less, what it is you are selling. If you are trying to set an appointment with the prospect, you should be able to tell him in the same amount of time, why you are setting the meeting. People are busy, and they can’t be bothered to set up a meeting if they don’t know what the goal of that meeting is. Your explanation should be short and easy to understand. Don’t use professional jargon or acronyms which only have meaning for people in your profession. Use simple, straightforward English, which is easy for the prospect to grasp. The same goes for the sale itself. When you explain features and benefits to the prospect, keep your explanations brief. People aren’t capable of retaining more than three new pieces of information in a meeting anyway. So, don’t bog them down with details. Never withhold information, but giving to long of an explanation may make the product seem to complicated, and the client won’t buy it. Another reason to keep it short is that you don’t want to talk past the sale. If the customer has already agreed to buy, SHUT UP! The next words out of your mouth might be the deal breaker. Some salespeople get so wrapped up in showing off their product knowledge that they miss the buying signals. The prospect is trying to ask “does it come in red?” which pretty much means he is ready to buy. But instead of listening, the salesperson is talking. He says, “and another great feature of this model is…” and he launches into the next phase of the sales presentation. The prospect wanted to buy ten minutes ago, but now he is just staring at you glassy-eyed, hoping you will stop talking, so he can end the meeting. “Why do you want to close the sale?” If you answered this question truthfully, you would say, “Because I need to make money.” Although that is the force, which drives you to sell, it is not the force which drives the prospect to buy. In fact, if you told the prospect that, you would definitely lose the sale. People buy because of perceived benefits to themselves. Salespeople can use the acronym FUGEIS to create a buying urgency in the prospect. FUGEIS Fear: Create a climate in which the prospect is afraid not to buy the product. “This is a limited time offer. We only have so many in stock, and when they are gone, we won’t be offering these anymore. I am a special sales rep, authorized to sell this product, once I leave, the availability leaves with me. U: Urgency: Make the prospect understand that he must act NOW. “I have a lot of people to see today, so you need to make a decision right now. I won’t be in your area again for several months. This offer is only good at the initial point of contact, you have to act today.” G: Greed: greed and fear are the two most motivating human emotions. But greed is stronger, if it wasn’t, there would be no bank robberies, and no one would gamble on horses or buy lottery tickets. “You won’t get savings like this anywhere else. By buying this product you are saving X dollars over the course of the year. With the savings from this product you can pay for that vacation in Bermuda that you always wanted. Third product is an investment which will make you a lot of money.” E:The Jones Effect: No one wants to be outdone. Everyone wants to feel validated. Everyone wants to keep up with joneses. “Your neighbors all bought this product, and they are happy with it. Your competitor bought several of these, and may have an advantage over you in the market place. The head of your corporate office bought one. You can be on the same level as him.” I: Indifference: Approach each sale with indifference. You shouldn’t care one way or the other if you make the sale. If you lose this one, you have ten more people to see on the same day. Make sure the prospect knows he can’t afford to be indifferent. You will see ten more prospects that day, and have ten chances to close a deal. But the prospect will only see one salesman and have only once chance to buy. If the prospect doesn’t buy, it is his loss. Shrug it off, and approach the next prospect as if it were the first call of the day. S: Power of Suggestion: Once you have closed for the lead product, begin making suggestions of other products the prospect may need or be interested in. Additional products could be products which compliment the product just purchased, such as the speakers which go with the new stereo system. Or, the additional products could be products that you imagine the prospect needs, based on the business he or she is doing or on problems they told you they were facing during your fact-finding. “You purchased new legal-sized hanging folders for your law practice. You should also take a look at our new, state-of-the-art digital stenographic equipment. Lawyers always like to be more accurate and keep better records.” Or, “You said that your employees sometimes punch in for each other, if they are late or absent. You should probably take a look at this new palm scan punch clock.” Invest the energy, focus on the basics, and close more deals. Sales is the simplest job in the world. I don’t know why people try to make it complicated.