From Aggressive to Assertive with 3 Ts

Often during our sales courses people ask me what's the number one skill of a successful salesperson.  It must be assertiveness.

Assertiveness is not to be confused with aggressiveness.  When you push your customer to buy based on your own reason (like you have to hit your target), you are aggressive. But when you push your customer to buy because it is in the customer's interest to buy, you are assertive.  

There are 3 steps to be assertive in your selling:

Step 1: Teach

Here you teach your prospect not just about your product's features and benefits but challenge his assumptions.  You also teach him how to take action base on what he desires.

Your teaching must offer an unique perspective and must be a two-way communication.  That means asking questions and listening

Step 2: Tailor

After the prospect is taught on what is the right way to do things, you tailor what you have to what he desires.  It means that you have to adjust your proposal and contextualize it to his needs.  All these tailoring must lead to financial gains for the customer

Step 3: Take Control of the Conversation

Here you take control of the conversation by asking for the sale.  You are comfortable discussing about money and you dare to pressurize the prospect to make a decision NOW. Various tactics including scarcity, scare and fear of loss are used.  The point is you are pushing the prospect to buy not because you are desperate, but because you believe so much in what you are selling is good to the prospect that you cannot see yourself to be soft.  We call this Assertive Selling.

So if you too want to close more sales and never end up with 'We'll contact you in due course" answer from the prospect, you need to be tough but not terrible.  Be assertive and you'll get the sale.  Related articles:

1. Instant Referral System for those that don't hate to sell
2. Always show people the money
3. The essential hard and soft skills of salespeople
4. The only reason that customers buy
5. Aggressive selling: selling that few do
6. Be a salesman, not conman