All things that used to happen when I used to try to sell my services.  Have you ever felt that way?

I can distinctly remember pitching my program once and literally stammering over my words and repeating the same words over an over again because I didn’t want to say the price.

I’m just saying, selling can be pretty uncomfortable.  It can feel at times like your forcing product or service onto a person and who wants to feel like that?  Don’t worry!  I’ve got some tips that I use when selling that help me every time.

Today, we’re going to cover:

• Mindset trick for selling
• The best way to pitch your product/service
• How to close the deal

The Best Mindset Trick for Selling:

One of the best mind tricks that I’ve even been taught was to look at selling as a service to the other person.  Often, we get cold feet pitching our product or service because we are thinking about our own benefit.  Thoughts like this creep into our mind:

“This is really expensive.  She’s not going to want to pay this much for what I have.”

“I’m not good enough yet to charge that much money.”

“This is too much.  Let me just cut the cost down to a more reasonable sounding price.”

Ever hear those before?  I used to say them in my mind all the time until I learned that I was making it all about me.  I was focusing on what I was going to get out the exchange instead of what my customer would receive.

Ever been to an amusement park on a hot day?  We took our kids to Disney World not long ago in the month of July.  Not only was it crowded, but it was BLAZING hot!  My mom wanted to get one of those spray water bottles that have the fan attached to keep everyone cool.

Back in Texas, she found one for $5 at a store and meant to pick it up but forgot.  We didn’t remember until we were in Orlando, so we went to a local Wal-Mart close to the park to get one.  Their spray bottles were a whopping $20.  That’s $15 EXTRA dollars.  Do you think my mom even blinked before she purchased the bottle?  Not at all.

It was the best $20 ever spent to have some sort of relief from the heat.  My point is, if you are providing a solution for someone, they could care less what about the cost.  When the benefits outweighs the cost, people will buy every time.

Best Way to Pitch Your Product/Service

When it comes to pitching, sometimes we get too nervous to let someone know what we have to offer.  Often, it’s the fear of rejection holding us back from doing so, but the real question is, “why?”

Would you be afraid to give someone a cure for cancer?  Would you be afraid to give the hungry food?  Of course not!  The same goes for giving your offer.  You should never be afraid to give someone a chance to have something he/she needs.

So, when pitching to another person, come in the situation with a problem-solution mindset like we’ve learned earlier.

Initially, be less about the solution.  Come in with listening ears to hear how you can help.

As the great Zig Ziglar so famously said, “You get what you want, by first giving others what they want.”

It’s your job to make sure that you can fulfill a potential problem, so give them time to tell you what they view as their actual problem first.  You might think he/she feels like one thing is their problem, when in all actuality they view their problem as something completely different.

Once the problem is exposed through good questioning (here’s an example), then it makes it much easier and comfortable to pitch your offering.

When you are stabbing in the dark at hoping someone needs what you have, it creates uncomfortably that no one enjoys.  So, use the problem-solution tactic every time, and it will feel much more organic and beneficial to the customer.

How to Close the Deal

It doesn’t matter how much you convince someone about business, the bottomline is you need to close the deal.  Some might say this is the most difficult part, however, there are some things you can do to make it a little easier of a process.

The first thing to remember is the thought, no doesn’t always mean no it could just mean not right now.  So many people hear the word “no” and allow their emotions to make them run for the hills when it could just be bad timing.

If someone is told no, he/she has either not sold the person on the value of they are offering or they are asking for too much too soon.  Here’s another example:

You wouldn’t walk up to someone and say:

“Hi!  My name is Kim, I’m independent, yet relational; I’m kind-hearted and fun-loving; a devoted christian that loves sports and romantic dinners.  Would you like to marry me?”

Although it sound like an AMAZING catch (lol), I’m asking a bit much aren’t I? We all know that you’re asking for trouble on a date as a female to talk marriage and babies the at the first meeting.  Same goes with your business.

Don’t just assume that someone instantly wants to purchase you big ticket item after just meeting you.  There’s something to knowing how to be patient.

How many conversations will it take to make the sale?

I wish I could give you a number, but I can’t.  You never know when someone will be ready to purchase from you.  Especially if you are selling a higher-priced item.  You just have to be patient.

In the meantime, you work on “mini” sales.  A mini sale, is when you pitch a smaller step to a potential customer that will ultimately end up as a big one.

Example time: If you are selling a car, get the customer to commit to a test drive.  If the test drive doesn’t work, get them to commit to giving you their contact to keep in touch.  These things are small wins for you because if you stay consistent, when that person is ready to purchase, they’ll think of you.

Patience has helped me win over several customers that weren’t purchase ready, and although it’s not as fun as an instant win, it’ still a win.  Give your customer time to warm up to you and get to know you, and it will feel better all around.