How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying (How to sell effectively!)

CLICK HERE NOW

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and, when it comes to selling during an economic downturn, the survival of your business may depend on taking some radical, assertive action. Speaker, author and trainer Dave Lakhani contends that old time sales techniques are no longer appropriate. He recommends alternative, innovative selling approaches, including some gutsy – though perhaps clichéd – ploys.

“How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying” is sometimes banal (“The best time to sell more is when people are buying”) and very self referential, and customers may perceive a few of its sales tactics as overly pushy. Nevertheless, I find that Lakhani provides interesting recommendations and numerous valuable web resources for salespeople who want to establish or embellish their personal brands, connect with prospects and operate more efficiently. These pointers make the book a worthwhile addition to any sales professional’s library.

“How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying” book educates one to :

– Why conventional sales methods do not work during a recession
– How to energize your sales
– How to create a personal brand with online tools
– How to use social media to connect with prospects

Believe it or not, people do buy even during tough times.

Not Selling? Better Change Your Approach
An economic cycle has four phases: “expansion, prosperity, contraction” and “recession.” Selling during growth and boom phases is easy. Everyone jumps aboard the sales train and enjoys the party. But selling during contractions and recessions can be a struggle. Conventional sales techniques that worked well
during the good times will not succeed in a recession. Thus, many salespeople who continue to use their tried and tested sales methods may believe that “nobody’s buying” and decide to quit the field. However, economic downturns offer “entrepreneurial salespeople” a golden opportunity. Industrious sellers can fill the sales vacuum other vendors leave behind. These survivors must ask themselves simply, “What else is there that we could be doing that everyone else is not doing?” Perform some “highvalue, highimpact actions” to jumpstart
your sales.

Follow the simple five day plan to gain momentum:
Day one – Contact 25 inactive clients. Get them to work with you again. If they have grievances with your business, assign someone to resolve them. Phone 10 active clients. Offer to sell them a product or service upgrade. Contact a non-competitor and swap leads. Don’t leave the office without making all your “client followup and prospect calls.”

Day two – Call 10 people who could potentially give you a referral. Greet them in a friendly way and use this script: “I’m calling because it is a tough time in our industry, and I wanted to know who I could refer to you right now that would help your business grow. I talk to a lot of people every day and I want to be able to send you some good referrals.” Then, after listening to their responses, politely ask for a referral in return. Follow up with any people whose names you receive.

Day three – Set up three boxes of a dozen doughnuts each. Gift wrap them. Take them to three different prospects. Ask that each prospect personally accept delivery. When he or she is in front of you, say: “I’ve been trying to reach you and haven’t had any luck…so I thought I’d take the sweet approach.” Then ask for a telephone appointment. 🙂

Day four – Learn all that you can about your “top 25 prospects.” List ways you can help each one, and think of novel techniques for getting in touch.

Day five – Contact five customers who are pleased with you and your business. Discuss how else you can be of service. Plan to attend a couple of upcoming networking events.

Exploiting Internet Tools to Garner Sales
Once you have followed the five day plan and re-energized yourself, you need to rethink your attitude. You must adapt your sales strategy to the changes in your industry and the economy. Don’t ask, “What can I sell to people who have money to buy today?” Instead, ask, “How do I find the people who have a need and a
capacity for buying the product I have to sell?”

Practice “fearsome focus” to attain your goals. This involves using the “45/15 formula”: 45 minutes for intense concentration and 15 minutes for ancillary tasks. Condition your team to respect your need to focus. Don’t let them interfere in any way.

Now set yourself up online. Purchase a domain name, preferably yourname.com, if possible. A website gives you credibility and a way to showcase your skills. Keep it simple. Include your web address on your business cards and in your emails.

You don’t have to work harder. You’ve got to work harder at working smarter.

Selling in a recession is a challenge. Therefore, you must develop your own “sales turnaround plan.” Select the individual tips and techniques that will work best for you from the book, and then put them to work quickly. In sales, as in everything else, you must always be ready to invest yourself to get ahead. So even if you are tired, make one additional call on a prospect today.

Remember: “There is no better cure for a slump than a sale.” Get out there and earn it.

Dave Lakhani, the author of “How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying” is a sales trainer, entrepreneur and speaker, is president of a public relations and marketing firm.

Grab a copy of “How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying” today. I am sure you will love the results.

Achieve Goals You Never Thought Possible 4X Faster