CONTENTS...salesperson’s natural aversion to listening is often reinforced by training. Such a training approach can be a serious liability since we know that people are more inclined

C O N T E N T S

Preface 1

Introduction. We’re All in Sales 5

Part I. Before Your First Call 21

Chapter One.

Focus on a Few Top Prospects 23

Chapter Two.

Thoroughly Research Prospectsand their Organizations Prior to First Contact 53

Chapter Three.

Use Insiders to Fully UnderstandProspects and Their Requirements 65

Part II. Selling to Close 95

Chapter Four.

Sell Yourself by Building Rapport 97

Chapter Five.

Ask the Right Questions,Listen, and Guide the Conversation 119

Chapter Six.

Use Powerful Marketing Messages 141

Chapter Seven.

Act As a Business Consultant andExpertly Handle Objections 161

Chapter Eight.

Recognize When the Buyer is Ready to Buy(Buyer’s Shift) and Know How to Close the Sale 177

Part III. Managing the Customer 197

Chapter Nine.

Build Long-Term Relationships with the New Customers 199

Chapter Ten.

Ask for Referrals 221

Conclusion 233

Endnotes 237

Appendix A 241

Appendix B 245

Index 249

CHAPTER FIVE | 119

C H A P T E R F I V E

Ask the Right Questions, Listen, and Guide the

ConversationTo operate at an elite level as a sales professional

you must be a “perfect” listener.

When most elite salespeople meet a new buyer in person,

they will follow a simple three-step process:

First: Build rapport as described in the previ-

ous chapter.

Second: Perform a robust, disciplined needs

analysis to understand the customer needs.

Third: Offer a solution that is a perfect fit.

(Chapter Seven)

120 | CLOSE DEALS FASTER

Average salespeople without sufficient sales training take the

opposite tact. They start talking about their solution first. In some

cases they’ll start with a formal presentation.

Elite salespeople realize it’s important to get buyers the infor-

mation they need, but they also know why talking too much is a

problem: When you’re talking, you’re not listening. The Dalai

Lama puts it this way: “When you talk, you are only repeating

what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something

new.” As salespeople, we need to learn from buyers, and the only

way to do that is by asking questions and listening. If you prefer

data over the Dalai Lama’s insights, studies show that three in

four buyers would be much more likely to buy from a salesperson

if they would just simply listen to them. And more than nine in

ten major procurements are lost because the seller did not really

listen to the buyer13 and respond with offerings that completely

addressed the buyer’s needs. If you don’t really listen, how would

you know how to propose a “perfect” solution?

In addition, it’s impossible to build rapport if you don’t listen.

Nobody likes or trusts a salesperson who launches into a self-

centered presentation without showing any interest in the buyer’s

problems. When you present your solution first, buyers can feel

like they are being “sold to.” But if you listen first and then have

an intelligent conversation that includes offering solutions that

respond to the prospects needs, buyers feel like the meeting has

been a total collaboration.

Most salespeople need to make a conscious effort to listen

because we, as humans, are naturally predisposed to talk. As we

learned in Chapter Three, 34 percent of elite salespeople have

directive driver personality styles and 39 percent are expressive

communicators. Both personality styles are weak listeners,

CHAPTER FIVE | 121

directive drivers because they just don’t like doing it and expressive

communicators because they’d rather be talking themselves.

Talking too much is a pervasive problem in the sales training

industry. Many sales training programs focus on helping sales-

people polish their presentations—in other words, salespeople

are taught to talk, not to listen. The result is that the average

salesperson’s natural aversion to listening is often reinforced by

training. Such a training approach can be a serious liability since

we know that people are more inclined to buy when a salesperson

simply listens. I have an expressive communicator driver personal-

ity style, so this is a skill I’ve had to work hard to develop.

Using Questions to Get the Buyer to ShareSometimes a prospect will ask you a question that is so open-

ended your instinct may tell you to dive into a long-winded answer

instead of staying in the question-asking mode. For buyers who

have the directive driver personality style, they may ask it as soon

as we meet them. For example, once I was meeting with a major

cosmetics company that was interested in giving our sales aptitude

assessment to its department store beauty advisors in their cos-

metics department. Bob, who served as my insider, was a company

board member and told me that physical appearance was a huge

factor when the retailer hired these saleswomen. He also told

me that a typical interaction between one of the beauty advisors

and a department store shopper resulted in an average sale of

$58, while the top 20 percent of the company’s beauty advisors

sold an average of $228 per interaction. The bottom 30 percent

of the company’s beauty advisors sold little if anything and, not

surprisingly, their turnover rate was extremely high. Right away

I realized that if the company put as much emphasis on natural


sales aptitude as they did on the appearance of the beauty advisors,

sales would increase dramatically.

Bob arranged a meeting for me with the head of human

resources of the company and told me I had fifteen minutes. After a

short amount of chitchat between Bob and the HR director, he told

her, “I brought John in to talk about his sales aptitude assessment.

I think there is a real opportunity to help you increase sales and

reduce turnover rate and training costs.” Then she turned to me

with upturned palms and said, “Okay, John, what do you have for

me?” As mentioned earlier in this chapter, average salespeople

will respond by saying something like this, “I appreciate your

taking the time to see me and I brought this two-page summary to

describe our sales aptitude assessment.” Then the average sales-

person would have discussed a chart describing personality traits

or some other relevant details of the personality assessment. That

methodology puts them on the defensive from the start.

Instead of talking, I asked a question, “Why haven’t you been

using sales aptitude assessments in your hiring process?” She

went into a rant about the chief sales officer (CSO) from Paris who

did not believe in such assessments. But, she added, the CSO was

about to leave the company and her U.S. replacement was open

to using these sales aptitude assessments in their hiring process.

Instead of the allotted fifteen minutes, this meeting lasted an hour

and a half. At the end of the meeting I closed a small initial sale.

This company is still using our sales aptitude assessments today.

Gender and Personality DifferencesWomen, in general, are better listeners. Georgetown Professor

Deborah Tannen’s groundbreaking research tells us why.14 Part

of the difference between men and women goes back to childhood.

CHAPTER FIVE | 123

Girls talk to one another in pairs and small groups, while boys

hang out in packs playing games. Behavioral psychologists tell

us that essentially 100 percent of the sounds a five-year-old girl

makes are verbal (words), while up to 40 percent of sounds a five-

year-old boy makes are noises, like VROOM! Men tend to talk to

solve problems, give instructions, and boast about what they do

well. Women avoid bragging and often engage in conversation to

learn more about others.

Tannen has also done extensive research into the biological

reasons that explain why women are better listeners. When men

listen, they use only the left side of their brains, whereas women

use both sides. This difference in brain wiring gives women longer

attention spans and stronger focus. Men are distracted more easily

and they are more likely to begin developing a response before they

have all the information. Men also are more likely to interrupt.

Let’s look at some differences in approach to be effective when

selling to men and women.

When selling to women:

• Don’t interrupt. It’s not polite to interrupt men, either,

but special attention is warranted when you’re meeting with

women buyers. Why? Because they are almost three times

more likely to be interrupted—by men and other women.15 If

you’re a man, your old brain will encourage you to interrupt,

so be ready to override that temptation. If you do interrupt

women, you may silence them. If you do not interrupt them

and patiently listen to them, they are much more likely to

be receptive to your offerings.


• Feel the sale. Women place more emphasis on finding

emotional satisfaction from the sale. They’re more inter-

ested in the social harmony of buyers and sellers coming

together, so think of your interactions as being collaborative.

• Shorter is better. Women are interested in the product

and how it applies to their specific needs. Long stories that

are meant to prove your knowledge or illustrate past success

may have a negative impact.

When selling to men:

• Speak clearly and confidently. Men take more of a

competitive approach to conversation. It means that you

should come across as confident and knowledgeable. If you

don’t understand something, ask the buyer to elaborate.

If you don’t know the answer to a buyer’s question, don’t

fake it. Tell the buyer you will get back to them with the

appropriate information.

• Present the facts and hard evidence. Men are less

swayed by the emotions that come from collaboration.

They’ll feel more confident in their decisions if they have

numbers to back them up or the big picture (depending on

their personality style).

• Have a sense of humor. Men respond to it more than

women. They are also more likely to use jokes, self-depre-

cating stories, and funny anecdotes to build rapport.

CHAPTER FIVE | 125

Listeners Are in ControlAs previously mentioned, directive drivers and expressive com-

municators, meaning 73 percent of salespeople, are weak listen-

ers. When salespeople with these personality styles talk too much

and interrupt, they’re following their natural impulse to try to

control the conversation and, by extension, the sales process.

This tendency can be counterproductive because sellers don’t

gain anything when they’re talking. Listening is what helps them

control the conversation. In spite of my expressive communicator

personality style, I know that if I can get buyers to start talking

about their problem or opportunity, they’ll feel that they have

more control over the conversation. This feeling of control makes

the buyer feel more comfortable with me, putting me in a better

position to prepare an offering that is a match to their needs.

Even though the buyer feels like they are in control of the

conversation, you are actually in control. You are asking ques-

tions and listening. You are guiding the discussion so you can

get the information you need to determine if you can help the

buyer. If your company has just what the buyer needs, you can

come in with a spot-on solution. If instead you start by recit-

ing everything about your products and services and all their

great features, you’re going to miss out on offering the buyer

a solution that’s a perfect fit. You’ll also alienate the buyer by

showing that you’re not interested in their needs and only care

about making a sale.

Just recently one of my current customers and insiders, a vice

president at a midwestern distribution company, was concerned

about slumping sales in one of his regions. He asked me to reach

out to the regional sales manager and see if I could help him. I

immediately began constructing a long email about our offerings.


Luckily, before hitting “send,” I remembered the old sales adage,

“Don’t show up and throw up!” Don’t use the “spray and pray”

approach.

My training quickly kicked in and I remembered the impor-

tance of asking questions and listening. I deleted my email except

for the introductory rapport-building sentence. Instead of send-

ing a long e-mail detailing the things I wanted to offer to him, I

asked him two simple questions:

1. How are sales in your region?

2. What sales challenges are you currently having?

Within a few hours, I received a two-page response listing his

current challenges and requesting a call to discuss them. Since

I started with questions instead of answers, he felt that I cared

about his situation and wanted to explore a solution with me. The

moral of the story: Don’t work too hard for the sale by talking too

much. In sales, when it comes to talking, less is more.

Forrester Research conducted a study on the top factors

buyers look for in B2B salespeople. The number-one thing that

differentiated one salesperson from another was the seller’s “abil-

ity to match their capabilities to the specific client situation.”

See Illustration 5.1 for the other top factors. You’ll notice that

a salesperson can impact about 50 percent of these top factors.

This analysis means that even if the supplier organization is a

perfect match in terms of offerings, customer service, and return

on investment, the salesperson won’t close the sale if they do

not adequately listen before proposing solutions (the first and

fourth factors).

CHAPTER FIVE | 127

What should you do if you’re listening to a buyer and realize

that you can’t solve their problem? The average salesperson will

try to manipulate the situation to push the company’s solution

anyway. The elite salespeople prefer becoming a long-term,

trusted advisor (see The Trusted Advisor by David Maister).

They will find the right solution, even if it is from one of their

competitors. They want the buyer to realize they have the buyer’s

interest foremost at heart. Then, whenever the buyer has an

issue of almost any kind, they will call you first. You want them

to think of you as their “trusted advisor.”

SHORTCUT: Use the three techniques to be the “perfect listener”

Illustration 5.1: What Differentiates a Vendor from their Competition the Most?

FACTOR % OF BUYERS RANKING IT FIRST ON THE LIST

The ability to match their capabilities to the specific client situation

29%

The expertise, reputation and track record of the vendor 26%

The quality and ability of the vendor’s capabilities to address needs

16%

The ability to clearly and honestly communicate the value

15%

The service quality or ease to do business 14%

A focus on driving a business 10%

The economic value of the vendor’s offerings (ROI) 6%

Adapted from findings of Forrester Research


Perfect ListeningAfter rapport building is complete, the next step is to perform a

needs analysis with the buyer. The elite salespeople use three keys

to become the “perfect listener” in the needs analysis process:

1. Totally focus on the buyer’s point of view.

2. Ask permission to take notes and take notes.

3. Summarize the buyer’s needs and repeat back to

get agreement.

Perfect Listening Key #1: Totally Focus on the Buyer’s Point of ViewMost people do not listen with the intent to understand, as

Stephen Covey observed in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective

People. They listen with the intent to reply. That’s the difference

between passive and active listening. Passive listeners simply sit

there, half-listening and thinking about responses. Their minds

wander and their attention can easily drift. Active listeners, on

the other hand, ask questions, keep their focus on the buyer, and

retain what they hear. They listen with the intent to understand.

Good salespeople are active listeners.

Active listening is about maintaining focus on the buyer

despite possible distractions—both external and internal—and

emotional triggers that may cause us to tune out what someone

is saying. People generally speak at a rate of 100 to 175 words

per minute, while they can listen up to 300 to 450 words per

minute. Therefore, listening uses only a small portion of our

mental capacity. The remaining part of the brain thinks about

CHAPTER FIVE | 129

what to say next or, if we lose focus, our thoughts turn to more

stimulating topics, at which point we simply stop listening at all.

Active listening is the cure for a wandering mind. Listen with the

intent to understand, not reply.

When buyers meet with a salesperson, they usually have a

pain or need a gain. A pain is a problem that they’re looking to

solve; a gain is an opportunity from which they’re looking to take

advantage. The most effective way to uncover the pain or gain is

to ask questions and listen carefully to the responses. Most elite

salespeople have to first convince themselves that they can help

the buyer. Once convinced that they can help, then they can offer

a solution that fits.

What if you already know the buyer’s problem (from your

research and conversations with your “insider”)? ASK GREAT

QUESTIONS AND LISTEN ANYWAY. Even if you already under-

stand the prospect’s issue, it won’t be helpful to demonstrate

it immediately. Buyers don’t believe salespeople who describe

their problem; they believe themselves when they describe their

problem. It’s much easier to get agreement on the problem when

you repeat back what the buyer said rather than transmit the

results of your research. And you build better rapport and develop

a more collaborative environment. Plus, you may learn other

important keys to the sale.

It is vital to totally focus on the buyer’s point of view. For

example, if you are selling drills, your questions should be about

holes. If you are selling pens, your questions should be about

writing requirements. Your product or service must be a solution

to their problem, so you must address that problem from the

buyer’s perspective.


Asking Good QuestionsAs we learned in Chapter Two, it is crucial to do your research before

you approach a prospect. Industry news, general information about

the organization and its executives, and background on the company

are the points you need to know before you start conversations. This

concept of knowing what you’re talking about is appropriate in more

activities than the sales profession. The most effective lobbyists

know the details of a legislative bill they want to influence so well

that when they get their meeting with Congressional representatives,

the lobbyists are seen as problem-solving allies.

Here are a few example questions that will get you in the right

mindset to learn the buyer’s highest level needs:

• In your opinion, what is causing the problem? (Variation: In

your opinion, what is behind this opportunity?) Keep asking

questions until you understand their need, the need behind the

need and the root cause of the issue. The answers to this ques-

tion give you the information you need to present the buyer

with alternative solutions. When prospects have a choice of

offerings from the salesperson, it gives them a sense of having

more control over the decision. This ability to offer alternative

solutions can cause their confidence in you to increase.

• What are the consequences to your company, and to you

personally, if the need isn’t addressed and the current situ-

ation drags on? This question will create a sense of urgency

in the buyer’s mind. Additionally, when you show empathy to

the buyer’s situation so that they know that you will not only

help solve the company’s issue, but also help them personally,

your probability of success increases dramatically.

CHAPTER FIVE | 131

• So I can zero in on the capabilities that would separate

us from the competition, could you tell me who you are

considering besides us? Many buyers say they lose interest

if a salesperson can’t distinguish their offerings from those

of other sellers. Be prepared to highlight your differentiating

factors. Your research should have prepared you for this

question. We’ll cover how to do this research and develop the

differentiators in the next chapter (Skill 6, Develop Powerful

Marketing Messages).

• Could you tell me about your time frame for this project?

This question also reminds buyers of the urgency of the situ-

ation. It encourages them to act quickly, which can shorten

the sales cycle time for you.

• Could you tell me about the process your company uses for

this type of decision? This question gives you insight into

how to prepare for the other buyers that are involved in the

decision making process and what types of internal politics

you might encounter. Ask this question even if your insider

has already filled you in.

• Could you tell me what you look for when choosing a new

solution provider? This question will help you focus on the

features and points of differentiation that are most important

to the buyer. This question can also lead to some information

about an incumbent provider. Again, buyers believe what

they say way before they believe what sellers say.


Hopefully, by what you have read so far about asking ques-

tions and listening it should be obvious that you should get the

buyer to share their needs before telling them about solutions. It

sounds simple, doesn’t it? It is not. There are two reasons why

it is so difficult. First, once your old brain hears several needs, it

recognizes them as the same as many others you’ve heard from

previous customers for whom you’ve provided solutions. So your

old brain sends a signal to your new brain to “tell them what we

can do.” This signal usually comes WAY before you’ve heard all

that the customer wants to share.

Secondly, it only takes 20 percent of brain engagement to

listen. As the buyer is talking, what is going on within the rest of

your brain? You know the answer. You’re thinking about what to

say next. You may be thinking about personal issues, such as what

time to pick up the kids on the way home. It’s very easy for the

other 80 percent of the brain to wander.

The second of the two techniques to be the “perfect listener”

helps us to really listen to the buyer with the intent to understand.

This second key is to take notes.

Perfect Listening Key #2: Ask Permission to Take Notes and Take NotesThere are eight reasons to take notes. Five of them are based on

neuroscience, how the brain works (marked with NS):

1. To listen, process the information and write it down

engages 80 percent of our brain (NS)—as opposed

to 20 percent when you are not taking notes. It makes it

much easier to focus on what the buyer is saying and not

get distracted.

CHAPTER FIVE | 133

2. Taking notes communicates you are actively listen-

ing. It lets the buyer know that their words and thoughts

are valuable enough to write down.

3. It makes you appear like you care and are an inter-

ested, engaged professional. In turn, your engagement

will cause the buyers to take you more seriously.

4. It gives you the information to put into CRM. Then,

the next person to meet with the buyer, whether it is you

or someone else, can access the information in CRM to

logically continue the conversation.

5. It slows down the needs analysis process (NS). It

gives the buyer more time to think and share more informa-

tion. And it gives you more time to process the information

and devise more follow-up questions.

6. Writing down what you hear increases retention

by 40–70 percent (NS). Note taking gives you much

greater recall, so you’ll remember what is discussed more

accurately than if you simply listened without taking notes.

7. Most people cannot remember more than three

main points if they do not write it down (NS). It’s

likely that your buyer’s list of requirements will include

more than three items, so you need to write them down if

you want any chance of remembering their needs accurately.

For example, if the buyer has eight complicated specifica-

tions and you don’t write them down, there is a zero percent

chance that you will be able to remember all eight accurately.


8. It reduces anxiety most buyers feel when salespeople

do not take notes (NS). For comparison, think of how you

feel when you go to a restaurant as part of a group of four and

the server goes around the table taking orders without writ-

ing anything down. You feel anxious; you’re worried that you

and your friends at the table will not get what was ordered.

And guess what? You’d be right. Multiple studies show that

when servers don’t write down what people order at a table

of four, they make many more mistakes and get lower tips for

the anxiety they caused. So if the buyer is sharing their needs

and you are not writing them down, and the buyer is feeling

anxious about you, how are you doing so far? Not good.

The elite salespeople will not just start taking notes, they will

ask permission first. Taking notes is great; asking permission to

take notes is even better.

There are six reasons to ask permission to take notes.

Four of these are based on neuroscience, how the brain

works (marked with NS):

1. It is polite and shows respect.

2. It gives control of the conversation to the buyer

(NS). The benefit to you is that if the buyer sees you strug-

gling to keep up, the buyer will slow down.

3. But, since you’re asking questions, guiding the

conversation where you need it to go and extract-

ing the information you need to determine if you

CHAPTER FIVE | 135

can help the buyer, you are actually in control of

the conversation (NS). So for the buyer it is really an

“illusion of control.” They feel like they are in control, but

they really are not. You are.

4. It lets skeptical buyers know exactly what you are

doing (NS). Asking permission is particularly important

when interacting with skeptical people and, as we all know

or suspect, many buyers are skeptical by nature or training

or both.

5. You get your first “YES” on the “staircase” to YES …

to the deal you want (NS). Neuroscience research shows

that if you can get the buyer to say “Yes” a few times (even

during rapport building), when you ask for the deal you want,

the probability of getting a “Yes” goes significantly higher.

You have conditioned the buyer’s old brain to say “Yes.” So

when the buyer gives you permission to take notes you get

your first “Yes” in the staircase to “Yes.”

Ask, “Is it okay if I take a few notes? I want to get your

requirements down exactly right.” You should phrase the

question this way because the buyer will respond affirma-

tively, “Yes.” If you ask “Do you mind if I take a few notes?”

(and they want you to take notes) their answer is “No” and

you do not get the “Yes” you want—you get your first “No” in

the staircase to NO—not what you want. So it’s very impor-

tant to ask permission to take notes the right way.

6. 100 percent of the buyers will agree to let you take

notes. They will do so because they want you to get it right.


No buyer wants to spend thirty minutes in a needs analysis

with a salesperson who does not take notes and offers a

solution that is not targeted at the right issue. It totally

wastes the buyer’s time. So, they want you to get it right.

No matter how much or how little a buyer has shared with

you, it’s important to make sure you have not overlooked any

aspects of their needs. Therefore, it always pays to ask, after

you’ve exhausted all your other questions, “Is there anything else I

need to know?” There are a number of variations on this question,

including “What other concerns do you have?” “Have we covered

every detail that is important to you?” and “What questions should

I have asked that I haven’t asked you yet?” After one or two of

these open ended questions, you’ll know if the prospect is finished

sharing all the details associated with their issues.

Perfect Listening Key #3: Summarize the Buyer’s Needs and Repeat Back to Get AgreementTo further enhance the buyer’s comfort level, summarize their

requirements back to them. There are only two potential outcomes

and both are terrific:

• The first potential outcome is that you have their needs

exactly right. If you do, it will have a great impact on

the buyer as they not only know you’ve listened, but you

really understand.

• The second potential outcome is you don’t have their needs

exactly right. The buyer will then correct you. This cor-

rection prevents you from offering a solution that doesn’t

respond to the buyer’s needs.

CHAPTER FIVE | 137

In our experience with tens of thousands of salespeople, they

only get the buyer’s needs exactly right 10 percent of the time. This

low percentage illustrates why the third key to be a perfect lis-

tener—summarize and repeat back to the buyer—is so important.

In addition, when you summarize, you’ll get even more infor-

mation from the buyer three-quarters of the time. The additional

information that the buyer gives will not be trivial. It will usu-

ally be very important. After effective rapport building (Skill 4)

and using the three keys to perfect listening, the buyer’s comfort

level with you will be extraordinarily high. They now want you

to get the job right away or they want you to submit a competent,

targeted proposal. They have now become your new “insider”

(Chapter Three).

And they will now share with you everything they know you

need to know to get the job. Here is a list of the typical things

buyers will tell you with this very high comfort level:

• Information they forgot to tell you

• The priority of their requirements

• Information about how the incumbent has fallen short of

expectations

• Information about your competition, what they are propos-

ing and, in many cases, give you the “last look” (what you

need to do to get the deal)

• Internal politics

• Others buyers you may need to talk to (user, technical and

economic buyers as discussed in Chapter Three), including

their personality styles


• Their budget (60 percent of the time)

• Other requirements they have, thereby “broadening” the

scope of the job

• What’s in it for them, personally. If you show empathy for

what’s in it for them personally and they feel the empathy,

you are way closer to the sale (90 percent)

If they have not told you what is in it for them personally, you

can ascertain it by asking this question: “So if the company doesn’t

solve this issue, what are the implications to the company and to

you personally?”

This is an example of what a buyer once told me when I asked

that question, concerning the sale of a CRM system:

“This CRM project is the number one priority for the CEO

this quarter. If we can get the following done on time and

on budget, I’ll be a hero and get a bonus: (1) Requirements

analysis and plan completed in 30 days, (2) CRM imple-

mented and integrated to legacy IT systems by the end

of 60 days, and (3) at the end of 90 days all reps trained

and inputting what we want them to put in the system

100 percent of the time in near real time.”

I showed empathy to the buyer such that, in her mind, I was

not only making her company successful but I was also making her

successful. She was grateful and quickly agreed to our proposal.

To her, our discussion felt like a total collaboration.

CHAPTER FIVE | 139

chapter five highlights

• Active listening (listening with the intent to understand,

not just respond) will help you thoroughly understand

the buyer’s needs. To discover them, ask carefully-crafted,

open-ended questions.

• Use the three keys to be the “perfect listener”:

◊ TOTALLY focus on the buyer’s point of view.

◊ Ask permission to take notes and take notes.

◊ Summarize the buyer’s needs and repeat back to

get agreement.

• When you summarize the buyer’s requirements, the buyer

will provide additional information more than three-

quarters of the time.

• At the conclusion of using the three keys to perfect listening:

◊ The buyer’s comfort level is extremely high.

◊ They want you to get the job.

◊ You have built an initial insider.

◊ The buyer feels like the needs analysis has been

a collaboration.

shortcut

• Use the three keys to be the “perfect listener.”

Documents

CONTENTS...salesperson’s natural aversion to listening is often reinforced by training. Such a training approach can be a serious liability since we know that people are more inclined