Buy a Business then SELL SELL SELL. A Simple 5-Step Framework

MAKE SALES TO MAKE CASH, THE ESSENTIAL FUEL OF YOUR BUSINESS!

It’s important for your business to sell, to sell so that you can have cash on hand to meet everyday expenses, pay salaries and suppliers, invest in new equipment, real estate or technology, fuel growth, and expansion – and manage unexpected expenses and economic downturns.

Cash can offer a buffer in times of stress or opportunity, so you want to manage it well.

Generally speaking, you should have enough cash to cover two to six months of operating expenses.

It may also be smart to have a line of credit available – just in case.

If your business is a vehicle, cash is the fuel, but nobody wants to have a vehicle that just drives from petrol pump to petrol pump..nobody wants to drive a tour of refilling stations.

So sales are just part of a successful business BUT an important part and I would like to let you in on a little secret.

A high percentage of sales advice can be boiled down into a simple 5-step framework:

S — Serve

A — Ask

L — Listen

E — Empathize

S — Summarize

Let’s break it down, shall we?

S - Serve

First, a reframe:

We’ve got to stop thinking about sales as a process of extracting value.

Instead, think about how you can add it.

Your goal isn’t to “convict them” to buy, but to solve their problem…

Whether that leads to a sale or not, is less important.

When you stop looking for the sale and start looking for ways to serve —good things start to happen.

You demonstrate more value…

You appear less cringy…

You might even get to feel good about yourself, too.

Serve, don’t sell.

A - Ask

Rule numero dos: Ask before you advise.

We’re so eager to prescribe a solution that we fail to ever understand the prospect’s real problem.

But as a salesperson, questions are your ace up the sleeve.

Here’s why:

When you know how to ask the right questions, you:

1) Gain deeper insights

2) Demonstrate your investment

3) Make them feel understood

Try:

"And why would that be a problem?”

"Why is this so important?”

“What would solving this do for your business?”

Dig deeper.

L - Listen

If you’re gonna ask, you better damn well listen.

We tend to get so caught up in our head thinking about our next point, we often fail to really listen.

But listening is where the real rapport is built.

— Take notes

— Give non-verbal affirmation

— Ask follow-ups

E - Empathize

Don’t kid yourself.

Sales are about emotion, not logic.

Lets talk MILK

Before 1993, milk consumption was on the decline for 40 years straight. The California Milk Processor Board (CMPB).

Armed with a yearly budget of $23M, their sole mission was to advertise on behalf of the dairy industry and increase sales of milk.

Then, one ad agency took a radical approach to the problem, GOT MILK!

THE GOT MILK CAMPAIGN WAS ABOUT EMOTION!

By focusing on the feeling of anxiety caused by milk deprivation, the ads brought milk to people's attention.

But by linking milk with complementary food items, they were able to create an occasion and a ritual around milk consumption.

What can we learn from this?

Pay attention to their pain points.

Listen to the emotion in their words.

They need to FEEL like you understand their problems if they’re going to believe that you can ever solve them.

S - Summarize

Lastly, recap everything that you’ve uncovered.

Say: “So if I’m hearing you correctly…”

If you can explain their problems back to them better than they can, you’re going to win.

Remember this, the average American is considered to have a readability level equivalent to a 7th/8th grader (12 to 14 years old). So when talking or writting explain it simply.

"If I Had More Time, I Would Have Written a Shorter Letter"?is an infamously misattributed quote that highlights the importance of brevity.

Keep it short, keep it simple and summarise.

Empathy through summary.

Don’t forget to recap.

Remember SALES

S — Serve

A — Ask

L — Listen

E — Empathize

S — Summarize

“It’s no longer about interrupting, pitching and closing. It is about listening, diagnosing and prescribing.” – Mark Roberge