“A New Day to Sell,

A New Way to Sell”

Harold “Bud” Boughton

“Selling carries a lot of negative baggage. It is the second oldest profession, often confused with the first. No matter what you put in front of the word ‘selling’ (consultative, solution, visionary, creative, integrity, value-based, beyond), it still ends up with the sense of doing something to somebody rather than for or with somebody.”

Excerpt from Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play by Mahan Khalsa

Some things don’t change…

The fundamental steps in the Logical Sales Process

1. Developing/Understanding Your Value Proposition2. Initial Benefit Statement (IBS)3. Probing/Questioning Techniques (Qualification)4. Needs Identification and Analysis5. Presenting Your Solution6. Trial Closing/Handling Objections and…7. Ultimately, CLOSING THE BUSINESS!

Some things have changed…. 1. Bankers know more about technology today.

2. Bankers know less about technology today.

3. Most bankers have been through at least one, if not two, core conversions in the last 20 years (1985).

4. Technology vendors have not been the most reliable prophets. (i.e. “The branch is dead.” circa 2000)

5. American business has lost the people’s trust. (i.e. Enron, Adelphia, Tyco, Martha Stewart. Etc.)

Maybe we need to…

1. Take a more cerebral look at our profession.

2. Force ourselves to be more introspective about who we really are as sales professionals.

3. Ask ourselves… “How can I truly become a more

effective sales professional?”

Ten Thoughts/Ideas to

Stimulate Your Thinking

As a Professional

Salesperson

Number One:

Develop a “Personal” Sales Philosophy

Number Two:

You only have one chance to make a first impression. I’d rather earn the respect of my

prospect on the first call than be liked.

Number Three:

Most technology evaluations start in the head and end in “the gut.” Buyers justify logically, but in the end, it’s a gut decision.

They buy emotionally.

Number Four:

The best salespeople are the best listeners.

Number Five:

Nobody “sells” anything to anybody. People make decisions “to buy.”

Selling is telling. Decisions to buy come from within.

We need to educate our prospects.

Number Six:

You begin to build TRUST when you tell the prospect, “No.”

Number Seven:

Not all business is good business. The customer is not always right!

There are deals you need to walk away from.

Number Eight:

The best time to close is when the prospect is “ready” to buy.

Number Nine:

Selling is an honorable profession, if you choose to make it so.

Number Ten:

In the sales profession, we have a chance to touch people’s lives in a positive way,

if we allow ourselves to do just that.

In Sales as in Life…

The more we learn, the smarter we get.

The smarter we get, the more we realize

how much more there is to learn.

Thank You

Harold “Bud” Boughton