qualify

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No Obligation To Sell

Posted on by Jason Kanigan

Do you have no obligation to sell...or must you try to make a sale with every prospect who comes along?

This event occurred two years ago. Facebook Memories brought it back to my attention. I find it amusing.

I guess you could see it as alarming, too, but that's not the way I choose to view it.

A young person from Italy messaged my sales training page, Sales On Fire, demanding to know the price.

When I did not instantly respond, he escalated to swearing.

I do not put up with abuse (sales hint: how they treat you now is how they will treat you later), so messaged that I would not be working with him, and blocked him.

Google searches are easy to do and our young friend quickly looked up my SOF business phone number. I had it for a decade. I know because shortly thereafter I began to receive calls from a number I (also using google) traced back to Italy.

No doubt he wanted to give me a piece of his mind 😉 Good for him and his persistence. He will probably make something of himself.

no sale, zero obligation to sell, no obligation to sell, sales, salesperson, cash register, sales machine

Image by Rose McAvoy from Pixabay

 

As The Seller, You Have No Obligation To Sell

But here's the fact about being the seller:

** Until we have said Yes to the deal and accepted the money, we can say No.

Right up to that moment. **

We have no obligation to sell. We are under zero obligation to give information, do free consultations, provide our pricing or anything else.

Blocked and gone on that platform, too.

We have no idea what this person wants with information from us. Are they doing a price survey for positioning their own offer? Are they asking about price because they don't know what else to ask about or value? Another of a myriad of reasons, not all of which are friendly?

It is part of the role you play as a seller to qualify your prospects. Some you will want to turn away.

Just a reminder of the power you have as a seller, prompted by this funny memory. No one can make you do anything you don't want to do in sales. You're the one in control of the process. Not everyone should be a customer.

>> Jason Kanigan is a business strategist who knows that people asking right up front, "So, what's your price?" probably aren't interested in working with you. To book a session with Jason and discuss your situation, click here (and yes, you're being qualified.) <<

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Qualify Not Close: Make Selling Easier On You

Posted on by Jason Kanigan

Qualify Not Close. You see a ton of emphasis on The Close in traditional sales training. Get that prospect in there, and BAM! Hit them over the head with The Close. Kill 'em like a squirrel in a deadfall trap.

Killer, huh?

You want to be a killer?

What if word starts getting around that you're a killer when it comes to sales? That this is the attitude you bring to the sales conversation?

Why You Should Qualify Not Close

It may work for appliances and cars—people stupidly buy vehicles, a long term, large financial investment, as if they're deciding what brand of orange juice they like—but in a real, senior B2B selling situation you're likely to get "niced out the door" by the prospects you're hoping to "kill."

Let me ask you this: What matters more...what you say, or what they say?

If you answered, "What I say," you're in error.

If they say it, it's true. If you say it, you have to defend it.

Even if it was exactly the same thing!

Closing without Qualifying is exhausting.

shouting qualify not close

It's mud wrestling that prospect to the ground and pinning them there...in the mud.

It's getting hit with objections, trying to come up with the memorized rebuttal, and overcome the issue.

It's presenting to those who are not necessarily a fit to even see your offer. And the fast-tiring struggle that comes with that.

So while you may have a book in your hands that promises to teach you The Secrets of Closing, what it's really teaching you is how to get tired out trying to force square pegs into round holes. Can you do it? Sometimes. But man, is it exhausting.

Qualify Not Close To Use Your Energy Well

I don't know about you, but I don't have the energy for that.

I don't have the energy to support the case for what I offer entirely on the force of my personality, or my confidence.

If they say it, it's true. If you say it, you have to defend it.

I'd much rather get the prospect to say it.

I'd much rather get the prospect to tell me exactly why they're a fit for this offer.

I'd much rather get the prospect to close themselves.

And the way to do that is by Qualifying heavily up front.

Before any kind of dog and pony show. Before any attempt at a Close.

Put your effort into Qualifying, and you'll have a much easier time Closing. You'll have a lot more energy left over, too.

Even another well-known sales trainer, who really pushes the Closing thing, says this: Fill your funnel to the point where it's overflowing.

OK, he didn't use such nice language, but that was the point. Fill your funnel so that you have so many leads—you can do what?

Pick and choose.

Select those who are most likely to say, "Yes!" to your offer.

Qualify.

Yep, that's qualifying.

Behind the big bang of The Close, which is what everyone thinks and says they want, is Qualifying...which is what they truly need.

Hmm...give them what they say they want...they said it, so it's true...but sneak in what they really need...I have to admit that's good selling.

>> Jason Kanigan is a sales trainer and business strategist. To book a consultation with Jason to discuss your Qualification issues, click here. <<

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FIT In Selling: Interview with Jason Kanigan

Posted on by Jason Kanigan

Fit In Selling: Interview with Jason KaniganFit In Selling is a word commonly used--"Let's jump on a phone call and find out if we're a fit"--but poorly understood and badly used.

Fellow sales pros Hugh Liddle and Jim Hamlin interview Jason Kanigan on Fit in this incredible discussion on Sales Chalk Talk. A typical radio host simply would not have the sales knowledge to dig deep into the nature and content of Fit in the way these three did! You won't find a sales primer like this anywhere else.

In this interview on Fit In Selling with Jason Kanigan, you'll learn:

  • What “Fit” really means
  • Why it is important to use the Fit system instead of trying to sell to every prospect who comes along
  • When in the sales process do we qualify for Fit
  • If we've done lots of research about our prospect ahead of time, how important is it to qualify for Fit
  • What happens to salespeople who try to sell without first qualifying for Fit
  • What happens to you when you DO qualify for Fit first
  • Why you shouldn't jump right to the demonstration phase, even though it may initially seem time-consuming not to
  • How to qualify for Fit
  • Why it is so important to know if this prospect has a NEED for what you offer
  • What you need to know about the prospect’s budget
  • Where a prospect’s PERSONALITY enters into the decision about whether you work with them or not
  • When you have a prospect who's a good Fit, what’s the next step?

This interview is so in-depth, it like many others available here could be sold for three or four figures.

Click here for the Fit In Selling interview with Jason Kanigan

>> Jason Kanigan is a business development expert. Do you have a question about Fit in selling? Comment below to let us know! Also, if you know someone who would find this information valuable, please Like or Share it with them. Sales On Fire is an affordable training program to teach your sales staff the principles of Fit without eating up your time. If you want Jason Kanigan on your side to train you or your sales staff on how to qualify for Fit in selling, visit JasonKanigan.com.