Whether we like it or not, personal selling is important in any profession. In HIT, we need to sell ideas and concepts, strategies and solutions. Our “buyers” include bosses and co-workers. Here are some personal selling tips that may help you today, or sometime in the near future:
1) Be sincere with people. People are smart and see right through insincerity. If you are not sincere and honest with everyone you meet then you should not be selling anything.
2) Sell what you believe in. If you do not have a passion what you are selling you will not be happy–or very successful.
3) It is vitally important to constantly hone your sales and communications skills. Continuous growth and training in formal professional selling techniques is also very important. Take training classes, listen to professional development audio podcasts and seminars, read all the professional development material you can get your hands on, and start a program of self-study and development in sales today if you haven’t already.
4) First listen to your “customer”, understand his or her wants and needs, and only then try to determine whether or not you can deliver the product or services to meet those wants and needs. If you approach a prospect with a solution before understanding the problem you are likely to be wrong about the solution.
5) The best sales people ask a lot of questions and genuinely listen to the answers before speaking again. (This is probably the reason we have two ears and one mouth!)
6) Your “customers” are all different so you should treat them differently.
Remember, personal selling is a lot like a first impression…you only get one shot before an opinion is made. So, put your best foot forward in selling yourself, the ideas you have and the solutions you can offer in HIT. Good Luck!
-Sheila Rogers
Sheila Rogers is Founder and CEO of HIT Consulting Jobs. She can be reached at 214-929-8959, or sheila@hitconsultingjobs.com.
