The art of sales is simply a series of proven skills that you use over and over again until they become habit. And good habits equal good results.

How is Your Sales Presentation Going?

If you give a demo or presentation to showcase your product or service, then you probably know all about the frustration of getting to the end, presenting your pricing options and then asking for the order only to be told a variation of, “Well, let me think about it/talk to corporate/get back to you, etc.”.

What’s equally frustrating is when you use tie downs throughout your presentation like, “Does this make sense so far?” and all you get back is a tepid, “Um, hum”.

Want a better way of taking your prospect’s pulse and getting a line on exactly how things are going before you waste 30 more minutes and only to arrive at one of the deflating stalls above?

Here it is: If you feel things aren’t going well or if you feel your prospect isn’t engaged and you’re not quite sure how to get them involved, then simply do this: After you complete a slide or part of your presentation, pause and say:

“(Prospect’s name), let’s stop here for a moment. Now I know I’ve given you a lot of information so far, and I’d appreciate it if you’d share with me what your thoughts are so far?”

Good Habits Equal Good Results

Now hit MUTE and give them space to answer. Let the seconds tick slowly by… If they only give you a one or two word answer, don’t un-mute yourself! Instead, let the silence force them to elaborate. If they won’t give you much or give you an unsatisfying answer, then finally say, “Oh?” And MUTE yourself again.

If you do this consistently, you will eventually get to what is on your prospect’s mind. And the sooner you do this, the better off the rest of your presentation will go and the less frustration you’ll get at the end.

As with all my techniques, you don’t have to take my word for it – instead, try it yourself and see how it works for you. Remember, the art of sales is simply a series of proven skills that you use over and over again until they become habit. And good habits equal good results.