A few weeks ago, I was talking with a colleague and the subject of selling came up. Specifically, she mentioned her fear of picking up the phone to make warm calls, let alone cold calls. As she was describing this, I could see the pain on her face and I was reminded how difficult selling can be for so many entrepreneurs and sales professionals. And I can definitely relate, because there are days when those old fears pop up for me, too.
It breaks my heart when people share their stories regarding how fear stops them from selling what they want. The reason it bothers me so much is because when fear stops someone from selling their product or service, they are actually denying someone else the right to say yes to purchasing from them. The real problem with this is that we make selling about US, the entrepreneur or sales professional, when it really is about THEM—your prospect.
The reality is, your product or service is not for everyone. And guess what? That is phenomenal! Why? Because when you know who your target clients are, those you can really solve a problem for, then it frees you to focus on them rather than everyone else. Inevitably people will tell me that they have to be able to sell to everyone, or they will never reach their sales goals. That simply isn’t the truth. Rather, it is a belief based in fear that there aren’t enough clients—when there really are!
Focusing only on your target clients can lessen your fears about selling because it helps you focus only on those you can help. To lessen your fears about selling even more, I recommend that you then deepen your understanding of the problem that you solve for your clients. The reason this is important is because by focusing on the problem you solve, you can remind yourself that selling is not about you. Selling is about your prospect, and either you can help them, or you can’t. If you can help them, great, if not, then you can refer them to someone else. Selling can really be that simple.
When I finally understood that selling wasn’t about me, that it was about helping solve problems for my clients, I was set free! I know that I can’t help everyone, and I know that there are other trainers or coaches who might be a much better fit for my prospect right now. And that’s fine! In fact, that is FREEDOM! And, it alleviated my fears about selling because I could then say to a client, “If I can help you, I will, and if I can’t , I would be happy to refer you to someone that can.”
Action Item: Which prospect or prospects would you call to set an appointment with if you didn’t have any fear. Write those names down. Then, remind yourself that it isn’t about you and pick up the phone to make that call!
When you remember it’s not about you, you can release your fears about selling, and go back to focusing on helping your Target Clients!
Ursula
© Sales Coach Now
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