Saying YES = Selling More.
Don’t be afraid to say yes, even if you’re not sure what you’re doing or where to start. You’d be surprised how many salespeople say no to an opportunity just because the idea of stepping into uncharted territory makes them uncomfortable.
Being Human = Asking More Questions.
Salespeople who are better at being human sell more stuff. It’s true! You do not need to be an actor—it doesn’t matter if you were never even in a high school musical. Asking questions—and then more questions—is an invaluable skill for a salesperson to have in her arsenal.
Think about it. If someone asks you, “So, how are you feeling today?” and you reply, “I feel awesome,” and you just leave it at that, you’re basically signaling to them that the conversation is over, and P.S. you don’t care about how they feel. That isn’t exactly the kind of interaction that promotes connection and sales. To make sure you don’t find yourself falling into a dead-end conversation with a customer, practice The Question Game. Make your friends or family—or your Uber driver—do it with you. It’s a simple game yet so hard.
Body and Voice: The Two Tools Every Salesperson Must Craft.
The body and the voice are the two tools of every salesperson. If you want your voice to convey qualities that assure customers they are making the right move, start with your posture. You’ll sound best if you are standing up tall and straight. You’ll also want to be relaxed—try not to be rigid and stiff. You don’t want to look like you’ve just been thawed out after spending several centuries frozen in a cryogenics facility. Stiff comes off as weird. Good posture means easier breathing, which means sounding better.
Stretch and Twist: The Two Keys to A Clearer Voice.
Stretch… Your Tongue. Doing this is surprisingly helpful when you want to sound clear and powerful when you speak. Stick your tongue out as far as it will go, then point it up and down. Hold your tongue behind your top teeth, and then push it out. Rotate your head in a circle to loosen up your neck muscles. To finish it all off, toss in a big yawn or two. Go for it.
Tongue Twisters. If you want to speak clearly and confidently, practice tongue twisters. Get used to really moving your mouth and your tongue when you talk. Say the following over and over. It can be surprisingly difficult, but as you practice you’ll soon see how your words come across loud and clear.
- He threw three balls.
- The great Greek grape growers grow great Greek grapes.
- Unique New York. Unique New York.
- Red leather, yellow leather, red leather, yellow leather.
- This is the sixth zebra snoozing thoroughly.
Stretch: The Key to Better Facial Expressions.
There are few things more jarring than talking to a person who does not react using facial expressions. It’s unnatural and weird.
Practice scrunching up your face as tightly as you can. Think about scenarios that would cause you to do that, like maybe you’ve accidentally eaten week-old sushi. Hold that expression for a good 10–15 seconds, then release. Repeat three times.
Now stretch your face the other way by making a Surprise! face. Imagine the face you would make if your dog suddenly spoke to you. That would be so crazy! Hold that face 10–15 seconds and repeat three times.
F3: Follow Up, Follow Through and Follow Back.
The Three F’s Rule is, according to Serhant, one of his most valuable sales secrets.
Follow-up
- Never expect people to get in touch with you.
- Follow up until you get a YES or you read their obituary.
- Follow up with active clients every. single. day.
- Follow-up is smacking the ball—it’s the first step.
Follow-Through
- Do what you say you’re going to do.
- Create accountability if you need to.
- Never forget you don’t just have clients; you have relationships.
- Follow-through drives the ball where you want it to go.
Follow-back
- Keep in touch with past clients.
- The relationship does not end at the closing.
- Touch base with clients you lost.
- Follow-back is your opportunity to get the ball back into play
Failure: The One Thing Every Salesperson Face
Balls will always fall. That’s okay—sometimes there’s nothing you can do. But If you’re dropping a lot of balls, you need to do a self-check. Are any of the following an issue?
- Failure to communicate.
- You’re replying, not responding.
- You’ve set unrealistic expectations.
- You don’t know your shit.
- Your approach is stale.
- You’re overly focused on the money.
Silence: It’s Golden.
It’s human nature to want to reply instantly when someone speaks to you. But in sales, how you respond to a customer can make the difference between closing a deal or losing a customer. Here are two exercises that can help you.
- Say nothing for 20 minutes. Stay silent. Do you have any idea how difficult this is? This exercise can really help you think before you speak so that you can respond to clients in a thoughtful manner.
- Sell something silently. Try selling anything—your car, your dog, your husband—to a friend. You can only use facial expressions and hand gestures to express why this purchase should be made. It’s hard.