Posted on 03/09/2009 8:39:34 PM PDT by FocusNexus
Whatever your job title, the ability to make others listen to you, trust you, and act on what you say is critical to your success. Take this quiz, adapted for Fortune by Persuasion IQ author Kurt Mortensen, to see how well you influence others. For the full version, go to www.persuasioniq.com.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
I was surprised, some of the time the answer I thought was the obvious one wasn't.
Anyone got a perfect score?
One interviewer a few years ago said that when he spoke to me on the phone it was as if I were a different person from the one who submitted the excellent results of his written screening test, effectively accusing me of cheating. He wanted a BS'er, not a results-producer.
20/60. It’s a good thing I’m not in sales.
You should be a geek like me, in engineering or the sciences.
“Any one got a perfect score?
Yeah, I did. They said I should be King for a day.
Ping to read later
Another 20/60 here- my family would starve if I was in sales.
Unfortunately many times perception is more important than reality and one does need to sell oneself in any job, to various degrees.
I consider myself reasonably good at persuasion, but I did very poorly on this test — I guess one needs to learn the little “tricks”. Some of us want people to make decision based on reality, which is not the way the world seems to work.
A glaring example is the election of Obama.
Wanna buy a bridge? Oh, never mind.
“They said I should be King for a day.”
Or President... run against Obama in 2012!
Hmmm... according to them I’m not persuasive. How come I’ve got more business than I can handle?
They make some good points, but in my experience, some of the stuff is somewhere between “it depends on your setting/market/location/etc.” and utter nonsense.
I would like to read these studies they speak of.
If you ace this test you should be fitted for the cheesiest plaid jacket and start selling edsels.
I know and I resent it. It is reality, though, as you say. This is not the WWII generation, where you and I probably would have been quite at home.
ping
bump
I’m pretty sure I’m not very persuasive, but I might be wrong.....
10 out of 60.
No wonder I am a programmer and like to build things. I couldn’t sell sell water to a man dying of thirst.
Now I know why I am an Aerospace Engineer.
I got one right and that was a lucky guess. No wonder I couldn’t sell a log to a drowning man.
According to this I suck, according to Blue Cross my company has been their largest producer for 5 years running. I think I'll take this test with a large grain of salt.
As I was thinking about it more and took another look at the test, I think this test brings up some less important issues and misses some key factors — you confirmed it.
Maybe YOU should write a book about persuasion — there is nothing like practical experience and success. :)
We would be very interested to hear your responses to each of hte points on the test, and why you made the answers you did. You obviously know more than the clowns who wrote this test.
I got 30 right. I actually don’t agree with some of the answers. The “first” thing you do when meeting a client for the first time is shake their hand. I’m a realist.
...10/60. [/shame]
>10 out of 60.
>No wonder I am a programmer and like to build things. I couldn’t sell sell water to a man dying of thirst.
LOL - You have no idea how much that heartens me. I’m a programmer as well; and, I too, got a 10/60.
I’m a hobbyist programmer, and I got a 10/60, too. I think I see a pattern developing here....
20/60 for me too.
I found more than a few flaws with this test.
When one answer was “Confidence” and not “passion”, then I thought... “What’s the difference?”
10/60, I hate sales anyway.
So here were my answers:
1)I chose demonstrating the value our firm or product brings. Each of those answers can be used depending on what point of the sales process you are in, but if you've contacted a client several times to no avail, I'm prepared to show what WE can do versus showing him what he's missing out on first. This question is too subjective as it's written, there are too many details missing. You go with your gut in each particular situation.
2)I chose red, the color of blood. Too much to analyze that one. :)
3)I chose extroverted or possibly competitive which is what I am and most of the people in sales I know are. We work hard, we play hard. I'm sure there are introverted sales folks out there, but are few and far between in my experience.
4)Show most expensive first, typical sales technique, most probably got this right as it is an intuitive answer. The first one I got "right".
5)Percentages are too close and therefore subjective, I said 75% is subconscious. Basically it's your "gut" giving you the buying signal. If you chose 65 or higher, I would've given that is correct. I was hesitant of the 95% because I know I use my brain more than 5% when buying, if that is true, I would be awash in porn and guns....waitaminute.
6) I chose Friendlyness, every sales person is friendly and I thought product knowledge would be higher than dead last, as a sales person you better damn well know your product. In my business it can be a lawsuit if I tell someone the wrong thing.
7)Personal experience is the best way someone will trust you; friends, family, coworkers a close second. This one is a toss up, how does a client GAIN personal experience? By selling them of course, if they have no personal experience, then the friends, family, coworkers, colleagues are most important BEFORE the sale.
8)Confidence is the number one thing you need, it's what gets you out of bed to make a sale.
9)I got this one right just from vaguely remembering something in a sales class a long time ago. That's the last one I got right.
10)Got it wrong, I look around for something in common to talk about on a first face to face. In my business, the need for the product or service has been instilled before I ever meet face to face. If there wasn't a need, I wouldn't be allowed inside in the first place. Subjective to the situation I thought.
11)I think this is dead wrong, I ALWAYS match the pace of the person I'm speaking to. It's a subconcious thing for me I think. Being from the South, I'm used to the slower pace, but if I'm in Chicago, you better believe my pace picks up to match theirs.
12)There's actually two main reasons people buy - Fear and Greed. Especially in insurance, (Loss, risk, etc) but I think that applies to all sales. Fear of not keeping up, fear of losing an edge, or greed to make you profitable. Feeling of discomfort was not something I thought would be right.
Anyway, sorry for the long post, I was asked to explain how I chose what I chose, and why as a sales person, I got a bad grade like others. This test is geared to too much psycho babble and sales is a gut thing. Every situation just like every person you sell to, is different
Thank you very much. I’m always fascinated when I see a really fine natural salesman at work, and I’d love to understand the process. Yes, there are training courses you can take, but instinct is such a big part of it. My late father-in-law was magnificent; he sold things he didn’t have to sell, just for the pleasure of closing the sale.
I’m starting a home business and will have to be my own salesperson. It’s not going to be easy as I have no natural talent for it.
Many years ago I bought, retrained, and sold horses. I had no idea of how to sell them so I’d leave the potential customer standing at the fence-rail while I got on the horse and put it through its paces. Meanwhile my BFF would stroll up to the fence, pitchfork in hand, as if she was just another manure-shoveler. She’d begin by shaking her head in wonderment at what she was seeing; that part I could see. But I never heard exactly what she said to the buyers. All I know is that within half an hour the buyers were begging me to allow them the privilege of spending more money than they had intended. She was magic—a totally unpretentious, plain woman who gave no hint of her fine education and made everyone like her. She could never tell me what she did, either.
Thanks very much for taking the time to discuss each answer and your insights regarding each one in detail.
Now when can I look forward to YOUR book? :)
I liked Dale Carnegie’s “How to win friends and influence people”. I think it’s still in print, although there are some “modernized” versions, which, I think actually take away some of the useful content. It’s simply written, but it really helped me with dealing with people — it also has a lot of sales relatee example in a straightforward way, not in a gimmicky way, as a lot of “how to sell books” are.
I owuld highly recommend it for you, if you are getting started.
lovecraft — what do you think?
1 - BELIEVE in what you are doing and selling. If you know you don't have the best product or service it WILL show. Be prepared to put your product or service up against ANYBODY else's. A common question I get from business owners is "Why would your product be better for me than XYZ's" Be prepared answer without hesitation.
2-Be CONFIDENT in yourself. That can be hard sometimes, so refer to number 1. Before any prospect, big or small, I get nervous. My palms sweat, my blood pressure goes up, I can't sit still. I feel like I'm going into battle. You psyche yourself up before battle. Sometimes it is WAR, just a war of wills perhaps, but battle nonetheless. Read Sun Tzu's The Art of War, it helps with the psychology side of things.
3-You got to spend money to make money. This is the marketing side of things and the schmoozing. You market to instill a need, to get your product/service out there, to get yourself in front of prospective clients. Once you get them, don't be afraid to buy them dinner or drinks. It depends on your clientele of course, but if you're willing to drop some cash on a client, they do remember it. You would have no idea how much business can be done at a bar. We sponsor cocktail hours for our potential clients almost exclusively for this reason. To us, what is $600 on a dinner and drinks when we can get 2.5 million EVERY year from a client? It's a no brainer.
4-Always be polite and positive in your attitude. You will come across rivals and clients that seem downright idiotic at times. Always be polite and in the worse circumstances try to put a positive spin on things. NO MATTER HOW BAD THE SITUATION HAS PISSED YOU OFF!
5-Be prepared to say NO. A bad client can cost you a lot of money and sleep. If something smells wrong about a potential client, trust your instincts. It's better to lose a sale up front, than get embroiled in contant issues and someone that may be lawsuit happy. This is why it's SO important to know your market and the type of people you are selling to. Also, if your product/service won't help them, back out. Ask your clients questions about who they are, what they do. Information is key in deciding about whether to accept them as a client. Plus it makes you look smart and interested in them as a person, not just a sale.
6-Bend over backwards to help your clients-give outstanding customer service. In today's world, customer service is such an issue. Business has gotten away from it to the detriment of everyone. When your client has a problem, they want to know there is someone as fired up about resolving it as much as they are. This extra effort WILL distinguish you from your competitors. Don't be afraid to go to the mat in resolving anything you possibly can. Fixing someone's problems will get you good will, keep that client on the books forever, and will gain you new business because they will tell their colleagues.
7-Assume the sale-Go in knowing they are going to buy, this helps in all the confidence psyching up issues. Present your product or service in a well practised manner, answer their questions without hesitation if possible, and when it comes to the CLOSE: Remember one little rule, he who speaks first, loses. So ask them to buy and then SHUT UP! Wait for them to respond first. It can be hard to keep quiet, but let them speak first. If you rush in to fill the silience you've just given them an out on whether buy right then. If they say no or want to think about it, thank them for their time, give them a card and say if you change your mind call me. You can get them later. Don't let a no get you down, there's ALWAYS another prospect, so don't waste time or energy and go for the next one.
These things are the most important to me in business and following these rules has got us nominated in two trade magazines as one of the fastest growing small companies in America. It's all common sense really, no magic bullets. But as you know, common sense has become an uncommon value in todays world. Hope that helps, and good luck!! Remember you are a sales machine and one of the baddest dudes in the valley. Go forth and conquer. :)
Well, i said I wouldn’t be writing a book and damn near did....LOL
Some of the things it brings out this study says are old time sales techniques, but as someone said above, a lot of these questions seemed dependent on setting and items being sold.
If you can find the book cheap or in the library I would suggest it just as defense when someone is trying to sell you something. It alerted me to a couple of techniques that salesmen were using on me and I was able to avoid the pitch to buy.
“I won’t be writing a book, I need to bank a lot more money before I could have that kind of moral authority. :) But here are some points that I believe you have to have to be decent at sales:”
Excellent advice. You made very good points that most sales books don’t even mention. Your focus is on truly giving good service and deserving the sales, while many books just focus on the gimmicks.
Again — thanks for taking the time.
AND you just confirmed what I suspected earlier, you really should write a book! :)
Seriously — a lot of people would benefit from your advice and experience and it would be a welcome breath of fresh air.
Do it part time, for fun and see how it will sell like the proverbial hot cakes — you will also need to come up with a hot, catchy, but not gimmicy title.
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