In our most recent series of blogs, we’ve been reviewing Negative Reverse Selling and how it is very effective in creating great bonding and rapport with sales prospects. Negative Reverse Selling is a way of saying and doing the opposite of what the prospect expects from a salesperson, disarming them and creating trust with them. We’ve also spent the past couple blogs reviewing the very effective NRS sales tool called Strip-lining, where, using a fishing metaphor. you cast your line to the prospect but instead of reeling them right in, you let some more line out and give the prospect a chance to swim a bit, before hooking them and pulling them in.
Strip-lining is a great tool to use in gathering information from the prospect, while also putting them at ease. It is not a traditional sales method where the salesperson immediately shares features and benefits and tries to sell the person on his ‘better” product or service. Instead, strip-lining helps build a trusting relationship.
Remember: Prospects are people and people are naturally resistant to being “sold.” People feel better about their buying decisions when they feel like they made the buying decision themselves and weren’t coerced, tricked, or sold. Strip-lining allows the prospect and you, as the salesperson, to be on equal footing and ensure there’s a good match for both of you. You won’t look needy trying to force features and benefits on the prospect. When you learn to do it effectively, the prospect will qualify themselves, and decide whether or not it makes sense to discuss buying from you. You won’t master this technique over night, so practice it and initially try it out on smaller prospects before springing it on larger potential clients.
If you do strip-lining correctly, the prospect will easily see that you are the right person for the job and that there is a good fit with you and their company. This outcome sounds unlikely, I know, but it’s what happens. Not every time, of course, but then again, not every prospect deserves to become a customer, either. Strip-lining will save you time and help you develop long-term relationships with customers. By putting the prospect at ease, it will help you establish a trusted-advisor type reputation, which will help prevent your customers from shopping around for better deals. Why? Because they like and trust you! Your customers will reach out to you whenever they have to make a decision that is related to the product or service that you provide. Furthermore, because when you do this right, you come off as (and are!) successful and secure, and people love
to do business with successful, secure people. Negative Reverse Selling and the Strip-lining sales technique are vital tools in any successful salesperson’s arsenal.
