Do you find yourself acting like a child in sales in 2020?
Or maybe not you, but you know someone in Chicago or Northbrook who falls into the child role in sales.
By that I mean the ‘traditional buyer/seller dance’.
If you’ve been in sales for any amount of time, you know this dance is when the prospect is the parent, and the salesperson is the child. In my book “The Contrarian Salesperson”, rule number two is “Sell Adult-To-Adult.
I want you to think about this concept.
Here are the things you might be encountering if you're falling into the child role in sales (or maybe you’ve noticed it in your Chicago sales friends).
• You might be susceptible to lowering prices because the prospect is in the parent role and is saying, "Lower your prices."
• Your prospects are saying, "Give me a quote." And now you're quoting things you don't need to be quoting.
• Maybe you find yourself doing unpaid consulting. This means you’re giving information, quotes and proposals, only to get shopped around. The prospects you did this for, end up stealing your information and then disappearing.
Or do you find yourself just being treated in a lower life form.
Here's the thing.
You'll never get to the status of Trusted Advisor if you're always relegated to the child role, because the child is like a vendor. It’s like a supplier. It doesn't matter what industry you’ve worked in over the years and continue to work in. Every industry has most salespeople being in the child role, but they tend to be the ones that are commoditized.
They're the ones who are treated in a certain way.
But those same industries always have a top tier of salespeople who are Trusted Advisors. They're the ones that connect at a whole different level.
So, think about where you're at. Are you inviting this kind of role into your world without realizing it?
Because many salespeople do that, and they don’t intentionally do it. But the way they act invites the parent/child relationship. Think about where you can make some changes in your process (whether it's with prospects or clients), to be a trusted advisor, and not fall into the child role.
Here are some More of my recent Articles:
Are You A Traditional Salesperson, Or A Contrarian
Are You Allowing Stereotypical Salespeople in 2019?
Improve Your Sales Team in 2019 With The "Lifeboat Exercise"
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