How To Negotiate Trough The Sales Process

You'll never regret:

Asking questions to get more clarity.

You'll always regret:

Making a decision based on a story you've created in your head.

Over at Black Swan Group, Chriss Voss teaches business negotiation.

That's based on experience he's gained for years being a FBI hostage negotiator.

I've spent months dissecting the tactics they teach and here's the sales process they use:

A lot of salespeople go into meetings with potential buyers and spend their time trying to educate them about their products.

But that’s awareness stage stuff. It’s really the job of marketing, and not what your counterpart who’s already agreed to sit down at the table needs to hear.?

At Black Swan, they take issue with the whole idea of the sales process in general. Why map out an eight-month plan when very well might be able to close today and get money tomorrow?

So first things first:

Never go into a sales negotiation thinking you need to complete a five- or six-stage process.

Your top priority needs to be making sure the other side knows that you understand where they’re coming from and can see things from their perspective.

Once they feel they’re understood, they’re going to cut a check.

Step #1: Qualify the prospect

Kick off this phrase with an Accusation Audit by identifying and addressing the potential negatives likely harbored by the other side:

"I'm sure you've talked to many salespeople who looked just like me, and the last thing you want is for me to waste your time."

- This Accusation Audit defuses negative perceptions that may already exist in their mind.

Step #2: Pitching the prospect

The point of your pitch is getting the client to actually pitch you. So ask quality questions - questions that start with why.

"You've got many resources at your disposal - why us?"

"There are many things you could be doing with your time - why did you want to make sure you spoke with our team?"

The answers to these questions will let you know whether you need to waste any more of your time with this person.

If they lay out the reasons why you're valuable, you're 80% of the way there for a sale.

- Don't explain: Let the other side tell you why you're valuable.

Step #3: Overcome any objections

Ideally, you'll have already defused the negative perceptions they brought with them using an Accusation Audit.

That doesn't mean objections won't come up during your interaction.

Use labels to dig deeper into the motivation behind their current objection or direct their thought-process to identify their overall vision.

"It sounds like you have a vision of how you want this to play out."

It sounds like there are things that are top of mind for you that need to be addressed before moving forward."

- Be vocal about the counterparts perspective: Use labels to identify what's unstated.

Step #4: Closing the prospect

If you've done a good job, the client is going to close themselves. Using summary, you might say something like:

"You want to solve this problem because your bottom line is affected in a terrible way for these various reasons, and you can't stand for this anymore because the business isn't going to drown on your watch."

If you get a "That's Right", the deal is done right then. Don't let your average sales cycle stop you from closing.

- Get a "That's Right": When people want to make a deal, they don't need any more convincing.

Step #5: Following up with the prospect

If you're making the deal, you should be the person following up with them, and you should let them know what implementation will look like.

The best way to keep someone's trust is to protect them getting hit with surprises.

There's tremendous value in the salesperson serving as the ultimate resource for the customer.

What if you haven't closed? Use no-oriented questions when you nudge the client next time.

"Would it be a waste of your time for us to revisit what we last spoke about?"

"Is it ridiculous for us to come back together to finish our previous conversation?"

When they are able to answer questions with a simple no, they feel protected, which makes them more willing to trust the other side.

- Be helpful, protect them from surprises: Let your counterpart know what's next.

It's time to close more deals!

The other side isn't really buying a product or a service - they're buying how you made them feel.

The more they feel as though you see where they're coming from and get it, the more likely they'll be to allocate a budget designed to do business with you.

So use tactical empathy out of the gate - and make it rain.

Haven't hit your sales targets or need an audit to show you exactly what you're missing out? Grab your time slot and let's crush it together! https://calendly.com/encorefinance/unlock-digital-subscriber-line