6 Responses

1. Just one…
   Hi Sarah

   When training this out, ask your group whether or not they see objections as buying signals. In my experience, some salespeople look upon objections as only negatives and not as signals that the customer wants more information to buys. Objections = interest

   Hope this helps

   Rich
   http://www.supremacytraining.com

2. here’s a thought
   I ran an exercise where I took a number of “saleable” objects to the training event; a multipurpose screwdriver, a pen etc
   The “salesperson2 was tasked to attemp to “sell” the item using benefits rather than features and then try to engage the “prospect” in a discussion about the product and their potential uses.
   We video’d the interaction and then analysed the tape looking for buying signals and the responses to them
   ‘Twas pretty crude but it worked
   Rus

3. Buying signals
   I am working on a similar workshop, where inbound call centre staff are not very effective at recognising the signals, and closing the sale, instead offering to send out info.
   I plan to use “buying signal” soundbites from real calls, using those examples to illicit responses from the delegates. Our teams have responded well to these real life examples, and the audio element adds some variety into the course content.
   I would also agree regarding the negative view of objections, but add that this negativity can come from the start of the call, where sales staff don’t recognise the first buying signal – that the customer called us in the first place!

   Another perspective for you..

   Nicky

4. nicolas idea
   I have used several different methods, but am interested to know how you get over the agents recognising themselves, or someone knowing who is on the taped call that you are assessing within the training session. I have also tried this in the past but as it was difficult to mask the agent and I found it too distracting, although like the practicality of it. Would really be up to hear how others deal with it.

   Sarah if it is face to face sales why not try a “shopping” excercise.
   Put several items in the room and ask your trainees to “shop”. Get them to write down whats interesting them about the object prior to talking to the “shopkeeper” (the trainer), the others write down what they see/hear to be the buying signals and see if it matches up to the buyers original sheet of what interested them. Its fairly basic, however really gets people watching and listening – showing how easy it is to miss the buying signals.

5. Using tapes
   In answer to your previous point about using real tapes and recognising voices, I would suggest the following:

   Using the real tapes as a guide, make some tapes of your own based on the examples from the team. You can then exaggerate the points (i.e. really obvious buying signals that are then missed)and make them amusing too.

   I do this often and find that it takes away the ‘personal’ element but still makes the point very effectively. People feel able to give feedback more freely when they know the tape is specifically made for the training session.

6. Body language is key
   Sarah

   You can brief individuals to role play the customer and instruct them to give various non-verbal communications (open or closed arms, sitting back or leaning forward etc) to the ‘seller’. The seller then has to interact appropriately, by closing, negotiating or handling objections. These methods are always very successful. You can also brief customers to give certain clues as to their personal needs (regognition, power etc), which the seller has to appeal to.

   I always cover buying signals and buyer needs in depth on my training courses and would be happy to discuss this with you.