NOTE TAKING IS A CRUCIAL SELLING TOOL

The art of recording details on paper during a sales meeting is a subject that seems to divide both salespeople and managers alike. However, the salespeople \i know that are at the top of their game say that note-taking is one of the most valuable of the sales tools in their sales arsenal.

The sellers who fall into the not to take notes in the preliminary sales process will say that note taking can be off putting to the prospect and only serves to stop the prospect from sharing information.

They also say that it can ruin the natural flow of the conversation and can make questioning the prospect a disjointed process. I believe none of that as the note taking in itself is one of the most valuable sales tool available to the sales professional. In my opinion, taking notes only reinforces the communication between the seller and the prospect and confirms many of the points discussed between the two.

Good salespeople will use the notes they took to both consolidate the selling process as well as confirm the final buying decision. I personally use the notes constantly to reaffirm where the sale is heading as often as I can. Comments such as, “The way I see it Jim, according to the notes I have in front of me, is that you would be able to proceed with the initial order on the 4th of the month and then take the next stage around a month later, is that right?”

There are countless ways of confirming the value of note taking professionals use for temperature testing in the early stages of the sale, test closing at a latter stage, consolidation of the points being discussed, ownership factors of importance to the buyer, closing on what had been agreed upon, confirming the issues at hand, agreeing to the terms of sale, confirming the delivery details and then buttoning up the whole of the sale before the salesperson leaves.

As a firm believer in the value of taking notes at every point of the selling process, here is a list of just ten reasons why I believe that note taking not only works within a sale, but is also the reason why the majority of sales are made to more prospects more often. In my opinion this may be in excess of two to three times more sales made by note takers as opposed to tho those that believe they can sell without taking notes at both crucial as well as vital times within the sales interview.

Here are eleven points to consider that help make the sale and reinforce to the seller that they are making a decision to buy that is in truly their best interests:

1. Note taking reinforces the prospects desire to speak and also highlights to the prospect the salespersons role as an information gatherer.

2. From the prospects point of view, the mere suggestion that the salesperson is prepared to take notes during the presentation forces the prospect to really listen to what’s been said. It appears to them that in order for the seller to write something down they have to be listening to the words and sentences being conveyed by the buyer.

3. To the professional salesperson the psychology of note taking is both as simple as it is as fundamental. This occurs fundamentally because the greater majority of salespeople never take notes, the salesperson that does take notes immediately stand out from the sellers competitors.

4. The minute a salesperson takes out a pen and paper they create a statement that says ” I am a professional, and I am organised.” It also suggests that the salesperson is organised sufficiently to take on the task that needs to be addressed.

5. The fact that you are using a pad and paper also allows you to bring to the table a questioning plan that includes a series lead questions that have been written down to ensure that the seller is more than capable of covering all of the points that are important to the buyer during the course of the meeting.

6. The physical aspect of recording the conversation through taking notes throughout the presentation really highlights to the prospect that the seller is taking what the prospect is saying seriously. In fact, the more note that are taken by the seller and communicated upon, the more serious the buyer sees the selling process being undertaken may benefit the buyer.

7. Whenever note taking is applied as a serious attempt to “get a handle” on what is important to the buyer not only serves as an effective visual demonstration to the prospect that you are listening to what been said but also tends to reinforce it.

8. Taking out a pen and paper helps focus the prospects mind on the important details, in other words once they see you are recording the info, it helps to get them to think about and verbalise what they feel you need to know.

9. A well versed salesperson familiar with the sales process understands that having to concentrate on taking notes helps ensure the enforcement of a correct and detailed selling structure. It also assists the professional salesperson to gather enough information to establish both the wants and needs conveyed by the prospect before moving on to the actual selling information of importance to the prospect and his/hers company’s requirements.

10. Remember this. The greatest salespersons asset here is that note taking allows the salesperson to immediately go back over the immediate conversation and look for clues that may have been initially missed by the seller. There may have been certain comments made by the prospect during the meeting that in the early stages may have seemed unimportant but became a vital insight on further reflection.

11. In conclusion, the more notes the salesperson takes and the more relevant questions the salesperson asks, the more likely the seller is able to develop synergy with the buyer. And it’s the synergy with the buyer that is the factor that creates, develops, reinforces, consolidates and reinforces the sale.

This article is an extract from the, “Minimise the Tell – Maximise the Sell” by Peter Collins and is subject to the Laws of International Copyright

? Copyright Peter Collins and Profit Maker Sales, Sydney Australia, 1998, 2002, 2007, 2011, 2015

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This Article is by Peter Collins - In a sales career spanning more than 50 years, Peter Collins has focused on helping and bringing out the best in others - whether it involves training or mentoring salespeople, managers, business consulting to SME’s. Since the 1970’s Peter has built a reputation as a Nationally and Internationally Published author, and has 68 business books to his credit, but he is mainly known for one book based on the Audio Tape series of the same name, Over 50 Ways of Closing the Sale. Peter had his first book published in 1969 and now has over 133 books in all, including Business, Marketing, Sales, Free Publicity, Body Language, Music and over 30 Christian books to date. Peters books have sold over 2.5 Million copies over 48 years. In his personal life, Peter has been sought after as an encourager and motivator that has given of his time and talents freely despite his busy schedule. Subsequently, he has assisted churches, pastors, community and charity groups, as well as individuals through his teaching, training, development and on-going mentoring.

? Copyright Peter Collins, Profit Maker Sales, Sydney, Australia, 1994, 2002, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2017, all rights reserved. Peter can be contacted through his website – profitmakersales.com

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