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Whether your sales prowess is legendary or mediocre, there are always ways to improve. One such means of growth is learning to sell more. Whether you sell a product or service, whether your clients are few or many, you can always increase sales. Easier said than done, of course, but here are some helpful tips for selling more.

Listen Well

Customers don’t want you to bludgeon them over the head with the spiel you’ve clearly pitched hundreds of times. Your sales attempt can’t be mere monologuing: it’s important that you listen to what your potential customer has to say. If you give clients the chance to speak their minds, you’ll come away with a better understanding of what they’re looking for. Listening is always better than assuming.

Know Your Customers’ Needs

Listening to your customer will greatly affect your knowledge of their needs. After all, a client comes to you with a need, or series of needs, that you are supposed to meet. The quality of your pitch won’t amount to much if the service you offer doesn’t solve a prospective customer’s problems. Keeping track of their needs, both present and future, will help to boost your sales.

Know What You’re Selling

You might be the most charismatic, winsome individual in all the sales world, but it is still crucial that you know your service backwards and forwards. Your charm will fall short if a potential customer asks you a series of questions that you can’t answer. There’s more to this than merely knowing the details of what you sell, however. You must also be able to connect the details of your service to the needs of your client. In many cases clients will need you to connect the dots for them: how do the different elements of your service benefit them, the client?

Know What’s Next

As a meeting with a client comes to a close, it is helpful to establish some action points. What are the next steps for both you and your customer? Few things are more frustrating than when you and your client are in communications limbo, unsure of what to do next. Were you supposed to call them, or were they supposed to call you? This kind of uncertainty is a major hindrance to sales, but identifying and communicating next steps will work in your favor.

Beat the Competition

If you can’t differentiate your product or service from those of your competition you will likely hit a major roadblock to sales. What elements of your business make your service a better option for potential customers? In many cases customers struggle to determine which business they will buy from, so differentiating yourself from the competition helps potential clients make their decision.

Be Confident

If you are confident that you can offer a customer a service that will benefit them, that confidence must be conveyed. When you believe in your product, and have sufficiently identified the customer’s wants and needs, you have every reason to be confident. Customers will be turned off by a lukewarm pitch—they want to know that you truly believe your product will do them good.

Conclusion

There is no magic formula to instantly boost your sales through the roof. Success as a salesperson can only come through hard work and dedication undeterred by failure. If you keep these six tips in mind, however, you will surely sell more than if you tried working without them. Give it a shot!

Jim Bozzelli