331 Be Very Careful With Your Chitchat When Selling

<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang="EN-AU">We salespeople love to talk.  We are enthusiastic about our differentiation, our solution, our features, the benefits and a myriad other remarkable things about what we sell.  Many salespeople have never moved out of first gear and are stuck there just telling the buyer all about their widget. The more advanced salespeople are asking questions and trying to become the trusted advisor, helping the client grow their business.  Regardless, one of the biggest failings of salespeople and I definitely include myself here, is that we talk too much.  We want to connect with the buyer, to build the rapport, the trust and so we do that by talking, talking, talking.</span><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang= "EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang="EN-AU">If you ever realise that the only sound in the room or online is your voice, then you are talking too much.  This happens to me still.  I get on a roll and away I go, all enthusiasm and belief and then it clicks – wait a minute – I am doing all the talking!  It is time to ask a question, shut up and let the buyer do the talking.  We know what we know, but we need to know a lot more about the client and their business and the only way that will happen is if we let them talk.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang="EN-AU">When we first meet the client we are not sure of each other.  They are wondering if this meeting is a waste of time or not.  We are wondering if we have what they need.  Usually in Japan, the meetings start with some light conversation before we get into the meat of the discussion.  If we are a bit nervous about this meeting then we can easily find ourselves talking too much and too fast.  The early stage of the meeting is a chance for both sides to get to know each other and it shouldn’t be a one way conversation.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang= "EN-AU"> </span><span lang="EN-AU" xml:lang="EN-AU">By letting them talk we pick up h