Highly effective salespeople seem to always have great communication skills. They are quick on their feet, and are able to carry conversations seamlessly with their prospects. Let’s be honest, sales is not an easy job and to be successful at it, you must be consistent since there is no guaranteed deal. Sales jobs can become mundane to those who struggle to close deals and have successful conversations. However, those who become top sellers in their teams seem to develop a passion for closing and speaking with prospects. Top performing salespeople view each deal as a worthy challenge. The process of closing a deal can even become exciting to them.
Improving your communication skills can potentially help you close deals. In fact, the more you adapt to these habits and train yourself to show up as a skilled communicator, the more confident you will become and start to close more deals.
Attention is the perfect tool to train your sales reps quickly and efficiently. Using AI, Attention tracks and sends feedback based on key metrics like engagement, body language, time spent speaking or listening, and countless others.
To find sales success, a salesperson must be able to gather and provide the information to its prospect in a way that makes sense to them. Understanding your prospects preferred communication style will help you align your sales strategy in a way that your prospect will want to do business with you. Below, you will find the top 10 sales communication skills that are essential for sales success.
1. Be An Expert on What You Are Selling
A highly effective salesperson understands the product inside and out. This knowledge allows them to sound authentic and well prepared. High performing salespeople develop non-generic talking points. This will allow their conversation to flow smoothly and become an advocate for the product that they’re selling. Having knowledge on the product will allow them to answer any questions that the prospect might have. As a sales rep, you need to know that the prospect is only interested in the product, so being able to explain every feature, use, operation and mechanics is crucial.
2. Read Body Language
When you are speaking to a prospect, keep an eye out on their non-verbal cues. People can say something but their body expressions can be saying something completely different. The same way that you can see your prospects body language, they will be able to see yours. Great communicators are able to identify their own body language and effectively non-verbally communicate to the prospect. You might also be using filler words subconsciously, here are 6 ways using filler words on a sales call hurts sales communication.
3. Create Genuine Urgency
A successful salesman understands the power of urgency. They don’t rely on a promise to get their prospect to the finish line by offering them a discount and getting the deal closed. They understand that price should not be the reason why prospects are urged to “buy now”. Top sellers understand their bottom line. The reality of a deal is that prospects want the product/service for as little as possible, whereas sales reps want to make the deal with as little discount as possible.
A great salesman will work with the prospect to find pressing issues or opportunities related to the product that will peak the interest of the prospect. Once these issues become clear to both, the seller will help the prospect understand that it is in their best interest to make the purchase as soon as possible.
4. Be Empathetic
When speaking with a prospect you might not always agree with everything they say, but you should try to see where they are coming from and relate it back to your product or service. The best sales reps are able to connect with their prospects because they understand their prospects point of view. They connect with them on an empathetic level and show genuine curiosity towards their problems. This characteristic makes you more amiable.
5. Be Time-aware
Great sales closers are time-aware. They don’t risk their time by making assumptions. They check in from time-to-time to make sure they are aligned with their prospects. Many closers understand that time is money, so they prioritize the time they spend with each prospect.
A great closer knows that the sales process is not just one close. Effective closers will start to close their prospect from the first conversation they have. Sales reps have a clear understanding of the buyer's desire, plans and challenges. Prime closers are able to connect their product/service to the prospects' pain points and initiate the closing of the deal from the start.
6. Be passionate and upbeat
In sales, you will hear a lot of “no” from your prospects. Successful salespeople are able to look past this and keep their attitude positive. They understand that a “no” does not mean the prospect is forever forgotten. It is not forever; it just means that it's a “no” for right now. A successful salesperson will not let setbacks get them down, they will continue to keep a positive attitude and continue to look for opportunities. Their drive for success makes them passionate and driven to find those opportunities everywhere. Successful salespeople also enjoy the job they do and want to continue to grow professionally. They foster long-term relationships with their prospects and network to continue to build genuine relationships that can potentially help them grow their pipeline.
7. Be comfortable with silence
Most people get uncomfortable with awkward silences. This is a crucial communication skill for sales reps. When a salesperson asks a question and their prospects get silent, the salesperson will chime in to end the awkward silence by asking a follow up question or clarifying what they’re asking. This is actually a huge mistake you can make as a sales rep. By chiming in, you can be interrupting an important thought that your prospect might be having.
8. Be a great listener
Top performing salespeople are great listeners. They pay very close attention to what the prospect has to say. This gives them an edge over others because they are able to accurately identify the problems that the prospect may be having. If you’re listening very carefully, you’re able to provide a solution to their problem. Once that happens, you have a happy customer. Don’t fall into the trap of “consumer communication barrier”, where you fail to get into the mind of your lead and understand their needs inside and out. Great listening skills are essential in this line of business.
- Truly listen to what your prospect is saying
- Confirm the information you are getting
- Ask relevant follow up questions
- Listen to the tone that your prospect speaks, take notes on when they sound excited or not interested.
9. Don’t make assumptions
When you’ve been doing your sales job for a while, it is easy to fall into a routine. This can lead to you making assumptions on a prospect and trying to qualify them before you’ve really listened to them.
Instead try to ask better qualifying questions to your prospects. This will make them feel listened to and they will be more responsive towards you.
10. Always be honest
In sales, it is important to be transparent with your prospect. Your prospect won't be honest about their needs or goals unless they are able to trust you. When a prospect feels like they can trust you, they will be able to open up and answer your questions sincerely. This will make a huge difference moving forward since you will have a rapport with them.
To expedite the coaching process for your junior reps, try Attention! Attention leverages state of the art AI to effectively give instant feedback and tracks progress on a variety of metrics over time.
