Many salespeople put far too much pressure on themselves to close every prospect they speak to. You might ask; “isn’t that their job?”
The answer would be; “absolutely NOT!”
Not every prospect is a qualified prospect and qualification is, or at least should be, a two-way street. You might not be qualified to work with them and they might not be qualified to work with you. Either way, it’s okay.
One of the hardest mindsets to master as a seller is the ability to be okay with a no. The Sandler mantra is “qualify hard, sell easy”. Simply put, “no” is a perfectly acceptable outcome of any sales encounter.
Being okay with “no” takes the pressure off the seller and, equally as importantly, off the prospect. Sounds so easy at the intellectual level but it is MUCH harder when standing in front of a potential customer!
What makes this mental state of mind so challenging is that many sellers have a scarcity mindset versus an abundance mindset. “I don’t know where my next prospect might come from so I have to make this sale happen” (scarcity) versus “If this isn’t a good fit for both parties it’s okay, another prospect is just around the corner.” (abundance)
Said another way, it is much easier to adapt an abundance mindset with a full sales pipeline.
I have long contended that nothing in life can’t be analogized with a Seinfeld episode and this is no different. On an episode of the show Jerry receives a phone call cancelling a show he is set to perform. When asked why he is not upset he replies, “No problem at all, something else will come along, I’m Even Steven. I always come out just fine.”
It’s been a while since I watched that episode so my quote isn’t exact but the “Even Steven” mindset repeats itself several times over the course of the episode.
It’s the abundance mindset that allows sellers to relax and allow qualified prospects to buy versus being sold. It’s a simple, but not always easy, secret to selling in my opinion.
In sales, it pays to become “Even Steven.”
Chuck Terry, CEO/President
Sandler Training in Denver provides sales training, management and leadership training, and professional development for individuals and organizations. Let us know how we can help your team.
