again and drove to the body shop. Before you turned around, you real- ized your whole day had been shot because you didn’t have someone who would take the entire responsibil- ity for your car.” Stories create a mental vision in your customer’s mind. They can be a simple one- or two-line analogy. A speaker helps the audience see a mil- lion dollars by saying, “Imagine a stack of one-dollar bills 1,000,000 bills high. You would have a stack of bills as high as the Chrysler building in New York.” Or a story can be just long enough to convey your idea. Carillo says the best stories are to the point and audience-specific.
A cellular phone salesperson could use a story about how buying a phone for a child creates a feeling of secu- rity and safety. A salesperson selling swimming pools could tell a story about family fun and bonding. No matter the situation, a story can help clinch the deal.
Salespeople also can use stories
to refute objections. One copier salesman tells what Dr. Moine calls a “my client John” story. The narrative involves a client named John who had spent many hours analyzing the cost benefits of purchasing a new copier compared with the old machine. The salesman tells his prospects how John had found it would cost his company only one-tenth of one penny more per copy to buy the new machine and that John also had found a way to pass that cost on to his customers. He concludes his story with this line: “I don’t know if you are interested in do- ing this or not, but you can spend 15 or 20 hours of your valuable time like John did, or you can be the benefi- ciary of all his hard work and all his re- search if you just sign the paperwork right now and have the machines delivered to you later this week.” The copier salesman broke many sales records using this selling technique. Or, if your prospect objects by saying, “I need to think it over,” try this story Carillo tells about a technology salesman. One time
the salesman rolled out a sleeping bag in one of his prospect’s offices while waiting for him to sign on the dotted line. He then asked, “You wouldn’t want me to pitch a tent in your office now, would you?” That’s all it took to get the procrastinating client to take the next step.
HEART THROBS These are just a few examples of stories that have proven successful for other salespeople, but the best stories come from your heart. Carillo teaches his clients to search their memory banks for personal stories with a lesson their prospects can relate to. First, think of a topic and write down all the stories you can remember related to that topic. Second, think of a theme – generosity, gratification, responsibility, or trust – and come up with a story that relates
SELLING TIP
Presentation Prep The quality of your preparation affects the quality of your performance. Use these tips to organize your ideas and information for more thoughtfully- prepared presentations.
Collect ideas. On a piece of paper, write the purpose of your presen- tation. Add three to five main points that support your purpose. Next, list all the ideas, considerations, and evidence that relate to each point, then prioritize and evaluate that information. Determine how well each item supports your purpose, contributes to your message, and affects your audience.
Conduct research. Effective, thorough research includes fact finding for both presentation content and audience expectations. Make sure your information sources are reliable and accurate and that the evidence you find supports your selling position. The more you can find out about your buyers’ values, principles, assumptions, and motivations, the more persua- sive you can make your presentation.
Refine your ideas. All the information and ideas you’ve collected provide the raw material you can use to draw conclusions that con- vince prospects to buy from you. Be selective about what you share, and include only the most pertinent and persuasive material in your presentation.
– SELLING POWER EDITORS
to that theme. For instance, if you want to show your clients how responsible your company is, you might tell them a story about your first paper route or babysitting for your little brother. Stories are useless unless they convey the message you are intending. Moine suggests letting your pros- pects create their own picture. For example, if you are talking about an apple, you don’t need to say what kind of apple it is. If you simply say “an apple,” your customers will envi- sion a green apple, a red apple, or even an apple pie.
A story is like a crystal – transparent and multifaceted. It focuses reality in a fascinating way that mesmerizes the eye, stirs the emotions and moves the mind. Stories can make your sales more memorable and more fun, and they can help advance prospects toward the sale.
20 | NOVEMBER 2016 SELLING POWER © 2016 SELLING POWER. CALL 1-800-752-7355 FOR REPRINT PERMISSION.
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