How women can overcome their fear of selling in just 7 Easy Steps

“Sell………..…me??????”

It has been a long time since these two little words went off in my head. Well over 35 years to be exact, but most women have at some time or another seriously questioned if they were cut out to sell.

You have probably sold something at some point in your life, even if it was an unwanted present at a car boot or garage sale. At the end of the day, selling is just about the process of transferring your goods or services, for your buyer’s cash. A sales person’s job is to influence the buyer so they willingly want what you are selling.

A Question of Influence

Now let’s face it, women are great at influencing people, so why not influence a buyer to happily part with their cash.

But why is it you still have a fear of selling when you have probably done it many times before?

Because you still fear your prospect rejecting you

Worrying about hearing the word “No” can paralyse many a sales person, especially women. As women we want to please those around us, which means we have a tendency to get more nervous of being rejected by our future clients.

Men don’t tend to suffer this fear of rejection, which is why they come across as more confident. The challenges they face when selling lie elsewhere in the sales process, where women are more naturally stronger.

So how can women overcome this fear of rejection and succeed at selling?

The 7 Step Sales Process

Following the 7 steps of the sales process is always an excellent place to start. By carrying out each one effectively and efficiently, you too can prevent the fear of being rejected from paralysing your sales activity. Skip a step and you will run the risk of not making the sale, or at best creating a deal that doesn’t work for you or your business.

However, there are some specific sales activities you can do that will help you become a strong female sales person who can sell successfully with confidence.

My 7 Steps to a Stress Free Sale

1.    Research thoroughly - The more you know about your ideal client the easier it will be to sell to them. What do they like or don’t like? Where do they go? What is important to them? Creating an avatar of your typical client, or clients will make it easier for you to approach them.

2.    Plan your approach - As a result of your research, you will naturally understand where your clients hang out and the best way to get their attention. If they go networking then check out some local groups who are closely aligned to the services or products you provide. If your ideal clients are mostly online then find out which social media networks do they most frequent and the best way of getting in front of them

3.    Rehearse - Think about what you want to say well in advance of contacting your ideal client. If it helps you remember what you want to say, then write a script and practice it a few times. Reading straight from a script can sound too automated and robotic, but rehearsing what you want to say will help you come across as accomplished and professional. If you are sending an email then reread it a few times before hitting send. Knowing you have send a well-crafted message will definitely help you overcome the fear of being rejected.

4.    Set SMART goals - I love, love, love SMART goal setting. Setting your goals using SMART will always ensure you stand the best chance of achieving them and banishing the fear of failure.

Specific – Be clear about exactly what your goal is.

Measurable – If you can’t measure your goal then you simply don’t know if you have reached it.

Achievable – Making sure you can actually reach your goal will increase your confidence dramatically

Realistic – Ensure you have sufficient resources available to help you hit your target

Timely – A goal without a deadline in the calender is simply not a goal.

5. Diarise time to sell - It is a lot easier to procrastinate when you should be selling, so block time out in your diary and dedicate it to sales activity. Try avoiding anything that might distract you from the important sales tasks you have booked in your calendar to deliver. However, don’t make these appointments with yourself too long and run the risk of demotivating yourself.

“You may delay, but time will not”

Benjamin Franklin

6.    Just do it! - If you need to sell to make money then you will have to carry out some sales activity at some point. Getting it done sooner rather than later will stop you dwelling on why your clients may say no to you. There is nothing better than the satisfaction of hitting your sales goals well before your target date.

7.    Reward yourself - I am a super big fan of rewarding myself for good behaviour and believe points really do mean prizes. Award yourself different prizes depending on what you have achieved. For example, why not book a manicure for collecting 5 hot new leads at your next networking group; or pop a picture of your next holiday destination next to your computer screen to keep motivation levels at their highest.

Selling is the same as any other activity. The more you do it the better you will get. Sell correctly by following the sales process, will ensure that you maximise every sales opportunity you come across.

Combine all that with a bit of feminine grit and determination to succeed, and you too can confidently sell successfully without an ounce of pushiness.

If you want to know how to implement the sales process to help you sell B2B more successfully then get my free training right here.