No Pain No Gain

 

Qualifying for motivation or pain is time consuming, but it is the most important thing a salesperson can do. And, because the prospect wants to guard against appearing too vulnerable to you, it’s important to remove any and all pressure from the sales conversation. A good tactic to do this is to tell him/her up front that it’s okay to tell you “no” if there’s not a fit.

Discovering the prospect’s pain is a process. It’s a series of questions that takes the prospect from an intellectual, big picture level to an emotional level describing personal consequences and commitment.

The ability to qualify the prospect and understand his pain is one of the most important jobs the salesperson has. Once you learn how to qualify the prospect, you will close a much higher percentage of your proposals. And, you will be providing valuable solutions and gaining referrals.

The Top Ten Tips for Finding Pain

1. The prospect must convince you that there’s a problem and that it’s important to find a solution.
2. People don’t buy features and the related benefits, they buy solutions to their problems.
3. People buy emotionally and justify their decisions logically.
4. Prescription before diagnosis is malpractice.
5. No pain, no change.
6. Features and benefits used prematurely are the primary cause of the prospect’s objections.
7. Observe the 70/30 rule when qualifying your prospect. Let him do most of the talking.
8. You get your credibility by the type of qualifying questions you ask, not by the length and enthusiasm of your sales pitch.
9. The more effective you are at qualifying, the easier the close will be.
10. If you say it, they can doubt it; if they say it, they believe it.