If we assume that everyone in this world was born a blank sheet of paper, every experience in your life from the day you were born is a permanent mark on that piece of paper. However similar your experiences are to somebody else, there will always be those marks, rips, and tears that are unique.
Consider this scenario for a second. You walk into a car dealership, and there are two salespeople, Andrew and Michael, both hitting similar sales numbers every month, both have a similar product and industry knowledge, both have the gift of the gab.
You would look at them and think to yourself – they’re the same. But it’s the actions and the decisions that give it away. Andrew knows how much of his commission he can shave off so he can use a portion of that to throw in some goodies for you, whereas Michael would always spend time comparing his offerings to the competition and offering genuine advice on what you should be purchasing.
These two approaches stem from different personal experiences. Andrew might be someone who loves to get the best deal possible in every situation, whereas Michael knows how hard is it to make a decision when there are a plethora of options in the market. The lesson that should be learned here is that both these approaches are adding value – keep that in mind first.
Let’s look at this again from the customer’s viewpoint. If I knew exactly what I wanted, I would want to get the best deal out of what I’m purchasing. If I didn’t, then I would spend more time discovering. Now, going back to our two salespeople, they are taking actions that stem from their own experience, and quite frankly, that’s something that will never change. But what if I have no idea what I’m looking for and all Andrew is doing is giving me the best price? Does that do anything to add value for me?
The salesperson, the customer are both humans at the end of the day, and we must understand that everyone does things and understand things differently. If this was a friendship, then it may be just as simple as not being friends with someone who doesn’t connect with you, but in sales, you will need to read, adapt and be flexible under every situation.
Ask the right questions, find out more about your prospect and be able to come to them with a variety of viewpoints. You are the one who needs to have the initiative and flexibility to be able to be able to add value in every situation.