image courtesy of: http://www.roofingsalesman.com/

When we look at the selling process, there is a lot of thought about our product and how we can show others the value of that product. A lot of thought about the customer and how to fulfill the needs that they have and the to solve the problems that they face. Sometimes we get so focused on our customers needs  that we do not take the time or effort to really invest in our own growth so that we can achieve our goals in concerns to selling with less effort and better results. To that end, here are four traits that we should develop within ourselves that will enhance the process and make it more efficient.

First: there is developing strong goal clarity. This is something that we have been talking about quite a bit here, the ability to create goals that are clear and precise and steps to achieve those goals. In the selling process, we want to apply those same concepts. Before we ever sit down with our customer, we want to create goals for the interaction, things that we hope to convey and information we are looking for to better help our customers. This step allows us to have a game plan for the interaction and keep us on track, just as our own goals lay out the road that we will travel to our personal dreams. This is just a more finite example of the strength that clear goals can give us.

Second: creating  a high achievement drive. This is the motivation behind the goals. This is the Why for us. In our life goals, this needs to be something powerful and integral to our lives, but in the selling process, it needs to be something that will allow us to resonate with the person we are talking to. The best idea here is to have your Why be the drive to help out someone else, to better someone else’s life. This will create a connection between you and the customer that will build trust and respect, vital keys to our process.

Third: developing emotional intelligence. This is twofold, the first of which is to understand our own emotions and how they affect our behavior and our impact on others. We need to understand ourselves before we can hope to understand other well. So take some time in your life over the next week or so and watch your emotions and how they affect those around you. Are those the impacts that you want to have? If not, how can you adjust the display of your emotions to better achieve the goals you want? The other side of this coin is to be able to recognize other’s emotions and how they might be affecting that person. Reading the other person can be a great instrument in allowing us to connect on a deeper level than we would have otherwise.

Fourth:  Improving our communication skills. This isn’t just learning how to convey information or concepts  well, though that is a part of it. Instead, this is learning to recognize how the person across the table from you or on the other end of the phone acts and what style of communication works best for them. Are they the sort of person that just wants the pertinent details and then to make an immediate decision? Or are they the sort of person that wants few details on the product, but wants a long conversation with you to build connection and trust? Maybe they want all the nitty gritty details and then to be left alone to pour over them to come to a decision. Being able to recognize these behaviors styles and cater to them well will build trust and respect with your customer and allow them to come to the decision on their terms. In fact, if we can present our product to solve the problems in their lives in a method that caters to their behavior style, we don’t actually need to “sell” our product.

Taking time to hone our own skills and to grow into adept communicators will enhance the selling process  and our lives far more than just learning our products inside and out. So take some time and harness your inner abilities and tell me how they do over the next few weeks!