When sales conversations get awkward…

Hi! You’re here because you’re a woman who runs a consulting business, and you want to learn how to make it more profitable, more stable, and more fulfilling. In our world, that means being able to get more of the right kind of clients into your business and get paid on your value, not your time, so you can build a business that supports your life, not the other way around.

If you’re like a lot of women consultants, you’re so good at the work you do, but the process of getting new clients feels a bit like unfamiliar territory. You’ve gotten this far with referrals or word of mouth, but you know you should be doing something more proactive (but you don’t want to be salesy). You also know that what got you here won’t get you to the next level in your business.

If that’s you, you’re in the right place.

Here you’ll learn strategies you can use to attract more of the right kinds of consulting clients and get paid more for your consulting contracts, in a way that doesn’t even feel like selling.

Along the way, you’ll discover that you aren’t “bad at sales.” (I promise.) You simply haven’t learned yet. But you can learn how, feel comfortable, and actually be good at it.

We’ll cover the three critical areas to master in order to get higher-paying consulting clients:

Attract (attracting more of the right clients and filling your client pipeline)

Guide (leading a sales process and keeping clients engaged)

Close (helping clients say yes and getting paid more than you ever thought you could).

I'm glad you're here! Let's dive in.

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So let’s say you’re on a call with a potential client, and there’s an awkward silence… What do you do? Jump in? Or let the silence sit??

If you’re anything like me, or many of the consultants I work with, every bone in your body wants to jump in and fill the silence.

The problem is, if YOU’RE talking, THEY aren’t. And in sales conversations, you want to be in listening mode.

But still… our own feelings of awkwardness get the best of us.?

And that often means we end up saying too much.?

Or saying things we wish we hadn’t said.?

Or talking when we should be listening – because what they would say in this situation would probably be really telling.

So we need to look at why we feel the need to jump in.

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Recently, in The Academy, one of the women summed up how many of us feel.?

She said, “It's like, on some level, I feel like it’s my job to make everyone around me feel comfortable.”?

She told us that she grew up making sure everyone was okay. She’s always been highly attuned to other people’s emotions. She called it, “The double edged sword of empathy.”

A lot of us feel this way for lots of different reasons.

For instance, I was raised in the South, where it’s all about not rocking the boat. And in my family, group harmony was prized over everything. You never wanted to say anything that would make someone else feel uncomfortable.

And that meant, as an adult, I couldn’t bear to be in an awkward conversation. Which made sales highly uncomfortable for me.

That’s why I created The Awkwardness Mantra.?

It’s a quick process to help you create a phrase you can keep front and center as you go into sales conversations – or any gatherings that are likely to have awkward moments.?

Listen, if you feel uncomfortable in these situations, you’re definitely not alone. In fact, you’re just like 99% of the women I talk to! And me!?

We tend to put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We hold ourselves to high standards, and beat ourselves up when things don’t quite go our way.

If you create An Awkwardness Mantra, you get the opportunity to be the observer. You’re less likely to get sucked into whatever's going on.?

Maybe you even get to call yourself out – in a loving way.?

You notice your feelings, reactions, and responses. You can watch with detached amusement and catch yourself just before you jump in to fill the silence.

You can stay steady and remain unflustered.

What do you do when you’re plunged into an awkward silence in a sales conversation, or in any gathering? Do you have a go-to strategy to see you through? Hit reply, I’d love to know!

And if you’d like to create an Awkwardness Mantra so you’re ready for your next awkward silence, send me an email with AWKWARD! in the subject line and I’ll send you the link.

Remember, you are not responsible for how your prospects feel. You can only control your own reactions.?

To your success,

Leah

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Hi! I'm Leah Neaderthal. I'm a sales coach for women consultants and the founder of Smart Gets Paid .

When I left my corporate career and started my first consulting business, I learned three things very quickly:

1- It’s 1000x harder to sell your own stuff than to sell someone else’s.

2- Marketing is not selling.

3- I had no idea how to sell.

I needed clients, but I didn’t know how to actually get them, and I was terrified of coming off like a used car salesman. It made me doubt whether I was even cut out to run a business.

So I taught myself how to get new clients in a way that feels authentic, allows me to be myself, and that works consistently. I now teach these techniques to others. Because I know it’s possible to learn how to land clients, and actually feel comfortable doing it, once you know how.

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Whenever you’re ready to start landing higher-paying clients, here are three ways I can help you.

1. Listen to the Smart Gets Paid Podcast

You’ll hear me chat with my actual clients as we tackle their biggest challenges in getting new clients, and you’ll learn sales strategies you can use today in your own business. It's the only podcast that can help you land higher-paying clients in your B2B consulting business. Listen on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform.

2. Get your copy of Referrals on Repeat

If you’ve gotten clients through referrals or word-of-mouth, and you want to start getting referral clients more consistently, get your copy of Referrals on Repeat, and start getting more referrals coming into your business today: smartgetspaid.com/referrals

3. Break through to the next revenue level in your consulting business with help from my team and me.

Learn the proven, step-by-step system women like you are using to get more of the clients they want, get paid way more for their consulting contracts, and build confidence that they know what they’re doing to get clients. Send me a message here on LinkedIn with “Breakthrough” in the first line and I’ll get you the details.