No one cares about your agency’s history or what your agency is capable of…to an extent. If that got your attention, you’re in the right place. Read on to learn more about how you can reframe your sales meetings to win more clients and do more business.
The “Typical” Spiel is Dead
If you’re like most brokers, you’re familiar with the “traditional” sales process. You start by explaining who and what your agency is, its history, some awards it may have gotten or why it stands out, and the vast array of services and products it offers as part of its capabilities.
But, the problem is your prospects tune out when they hear this spiel, and they tune out fast mainly because they’ve heard this pitch a thousand times before.
If you do one thing differently to optimize your sales meetings do this: avoid launching into the same old spiel. If your pitch isn’t maximizing sales meetings now, it won’t maximize them in the future.
Instead, try the tips listed here and create a new approach to sales meetings—one that is faster and more effective.
“Brave Up” to Conquer Your Next Sales Meeting
The fear of failure and the fear of rejection are two of the most common worries holding people back from achieving more success. Brokers are not immune to these inner concerns.
Consider: what’s stopping you from changing your approach to sales meetings?
Maybe you don’t believe there are other more successful ways?
But that can’t be true because then there’s no way to improve.
Once you realize what’s at the root of whatever is holding back from maximizing your sales meetings, you’ll be able to transform your sales meetings, win more clients, grow, and succeed!
Don’t be the lone holdout that has a death grip on what’s not working. Be the broker who, in the words of the renowned leader on transformative action, Kathy Caprino, “braves up,” and takes transformation head on to manifest success.
Clarity Benefit Solutions is committed to helping brokers grow and succeed. We can connect you to several resources that make winning clients easier. Let us help!
Lead with Your Prospect’s Challenges
Approximately 70% of purchasers buy a product or service to solve a problem.1
So, start your pitch with a problem.
Specifically, research what it is prospects need help with, figure out how your products or services solve their problems, and approach them with their problems and your solution.
Skip the spiel. It’s dead anyway for reasons already mentioned. Instead, get right to the point—what you can do to solve your prospect’s problems. That’s what they really care about. If they’re talking to you, on a gut level, they’ve already decided you’re credible and worthy. There’s no need to beat a dead horse going on and on about your agency and its stellar history.
If you’re still hesitant about trying this approach, consider this: the last 5 minutes of a presentation are the most memorable1. In a typical sales pitch, the last 5 minutes are usually about how your products and services can solve the prospect’s challenges. Start with that and your offer will be memorable and enticing from the get-go.
Be Future-Oriented
While about 70% of your prospects will purchase to solve a problem, 30% will buy to gain something1. After you’ve sold a prospect on a product or service that addresses their challenges, appeal to their desire to gain something— perhaps in preparation for the future?
Giving prospects a history lesson about your agency is focusing on the past. Bringing out your capabilities binder to discuss every last thing your agency is capable of is focusing on the present. Addressing the challenges that your prospects will need to navigate and how they will navigate those successfully in the near and distant future is focusing on the future.
Be future-oriented with prospects. Besides hearing about how you can solve their challenges, the only other thing your prospects genuinely care about is how they’re going to stay in business tomorrow.
So, the next time you reach out to a prospect, get right to the heart of what’s important to them. You’ll catapult your prospect's interest and increase engagement.
Give Multiple Meetings a Purpose
Even though every broker would like to close a sale in one meeting, the reality is that closing a deal takes closer to three sessions. You can move closer to your ultimate goal of making a sale by assigning a purpose to each meeting and setting three goals.
Your first goal should be to get your prospect’s attention. You can do this effectively by immediately jumping to your prospect’s problems (now and in the future) and how your products and services solve their challenges.
Your second goal should be to deepen the conversation. You want to get to the “how” of the process.
How will the prospect’s problems be eliminated?
This sets prospects at ease because it shows them what working with you will be like, and it shows them how they’ll move closer to solving their problems with your help.
This is an important step to keep in mind as nurtured leads result in 47% larger sales than non-nurtured leads1, and the multi-meeting process is prospect-centered nurturing at its core.
Your third goal should be to close the deal and talk about additional benefits. As the warmer weather approaches and prospects are thinking about alternative ways to get to the beach to avoid the highway traffic, now may be a great time to about a commuter benefits plan, for example.
Start Now with a Reliable Partner by Your Side
Tomorrow’s success begins today. Take advantage of Clarity’s broker resources and start transforming your approach to sales meetings. Small changes today can lead to big wins tomorrow.
Sources:
1. SlideShare Presentation on 20 Shocking Sales States available at https://www.slideshare.net/JakeAtwood1/20-shocking-sales-stats/15-After_a_presentation_63of_attendees
