Improve Your Listening Skills To Boost Sales
Have you ever tuned someone out, while they are speaking to you? I know I’m guilty of it from time to time. It is easy to tune people out, when you are more interested in something else, are bored with a conversation, or just distracted with other thoughts going on in your head. Listening is a valuable skill, which we could all improve on.
Listening is especially important in Sales. Customers and potential prospects want to know that you are attentive to their needs and concerns and want to be heard. I recently read, “Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Twelve ways to improve your listening skills and increase your bottom-line results,” an article found in the April 2007 issue, of Selling Power magazine that listed twelve tips to help increase your listening skills, which I felt were valuable. They are listed below:
- Think Before You speak: Let the prospect completely finish before blurting out your thought, or response.
- Silence Is A Sales Ally: Use silence to control the flow of the conversation and allow for feedback from the prospect.
- Interruptions Discourage Listening: Let the prospect be heard and make their point, before jumping in with a response.
- Concentrate On The Topic Under Discussion: Make every effort possible to concentrate on the prospect and what they are saying, without allowing your mind to wander.
- Don’t Be Distracted: When making a presentation to more than one person, make sure you look and turn to the person that is speaking at that moment.
- Ask For Details: Ask for explanations, or definitions on anything that you are unclear on.
- Listen For Subtleties: Do not jump to conclusions before you hear the whole story.
- Take Notes: Make sure you have a pen and paper and jot down notes on anything that is detailed, or you may not understand fully.
- Listen And Feel What The Prospect Is Telling You: Focus on the message, as well as the way it is being conveyed to you.
- Concentrate On Listening To One Topic At A Time: Try to concentrate on the topic being discussed at hand. Jumping from one topic to the next can be distracting to the prospect.
- Listen To Everything—Even The Details You May Not Want To Hear: Listen to any problems, then repeat what you’ve heard before trying to deal with the issue.
- Be Patient: Avoid pencil, or finger tapping. They are distracting and can give the prospect the sense that you are not listening to them.
Thanks for reading!
Barb
Posted in Business on July 10th, 2007 by Barb | |
