Professional OOH salespeople learned that they should never ask a question, make a statement, or behave in any way unless it’s in their best-selling interest.
But…it wasn’t always that way.
When they were new to the selling of OOH they didn’t know much about statics or digitals or right hand reads or traffic counts or CPM or well…you get the idea! They didn’t know the needs of their customers or prospects. They didn’t know much about their company’s competitors. They were a bit “clueless” at this point. Didn’t talk much. Asked a few “dumb” questions like, “ Would you share with me what you are currently doing to market and promote your products and services?” and let the prospects do most of the talking.
They allowed the prospects to explain what they wanted, why they wanted it, and what they would do to obtain it. Not knowing any better, the “clueless” salesperson only presented the aspects of OOH that addressed the issues the prospects mentioned. Somehow, perhaps by accident, they closed sales.
Eventually, these clueless, novice OOH sellers attained “amateur” status, They had obtained substantial knowledge about the products and services they could provide, learned a considerable amount about the needs of potential customers, and uncovered weaknesses of their competitors. One can only imagine what kind of success they are now poised for given the success they experienced knowing virtually none of those things! Maybe not – if they feel compelled to display their newfound knowledge.
During presentations amateurs give out more information than is necessary. Sometimes they painted themselves into corners from which they couldn’t escape. Frequently they find that prospects need time to “think it over” as they consider all the information eagerly provided to them. The amateurs still close sales, but fewer of them.
At some point, they looked back upon what they did as “clueless, novice” salespeople (which was ask a few questions and allow the prospects do most of the talking) and the number of sales they closed and decided that approach was a better strategy. At the moment they made that decision, they attained “professional” status.
Now,, they withhold their encyclopedic knowledge and only reveal bits of information when appropriate to keep the selling process moving forward. They ask those “dumb” questions and gather appropriate information with which to frame their presentations in the most favorable light.
As a professional, they do what they did as a novice OOH salesperson…on purpose. They talk less, listen more, and “accidentally” close more sales.
Need help with sales skills or coaching to take your out of home company to the next level. Learn more about OOH Sales Mastery at oohmastery.com or Contact Dan Nausley at dan.nausley@sandler.com, 423.702.5579.
Lisa & Dan Nausley of Sandler Chattanooga have developed the OOH Sales Mastery Program after more than a decade of training/coaching scores of OOH Operators and their teams across the country in sales, leadership, and executive coaching.
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