When I first started working in the financial sector, people would often tell me I should get into sales. “You are a people’s person Neville, and you will do well at sales”. In truth, I agreed, I am a people’s person and I most likely would do well in sales. As I entered the selling profession as a financial planner, I quickly learned that people did like me and valued who I was to them. Success started to come my way and I recall coming to the realization that I was successful despite how I worked. Surely there was a method, or an intervention I could attend to improve my skills. There are many options and training tools out there for me to explore. I decided to attend a Dale Carnegie Sales Course and learned that there is a process to effective selling. Identifying and applying a process meant I could start developing consistency and fine tune areas to improve on. For example, cold calling is not my area of strength, presenting to buyers is. I would adapt and develop the calling process and personalize it to my own style with the coaching of the Dale Carnegie Instructor. My cold calling and appointment phrases were more natural and my sales more consistent as a result of finding that method that works with my strengths.
As selling processes turned more virtual over the past couple years, I realized Virtual Selling situations or hosting Virtual Meetings are not much different. We need to identify and practice skills that will allow us to be most effective. In the online space we need to develop visual and verbal cues that build trust.
Top Tips when Interacting & Engaging Online
Verbal Cues that build trust:
- Speak Clearly and in an understandable way
- Change tone and pitch
- Keep audio distractions and background noise to a minimum
- Use appropriate pauses and change pace as needed for word emphasis
- Be excited to be in the meeting /session
Visual Cues that build trust:
- “Create Eye Contact” by looking into the camera as you speak
- Show interest by leaning forward slightly
- Use facial expressions
- Add body movement
- Up your energy by at least 20%
As we navigate through what has become our covid reality, take advantage of opportunities to develop the skills you need to be more effective in today’s virtual world.
Here is a Dale Carnegie course that will teach you how to build sales relationships.
Dale Carnegie Sales Training: Winning with Relationship Selling
This 8-session, Live Online seminar delivers practical tools to connect, collaborate, and create solutions unique to each buyer. You’ll gain confirmation, and secure commitment at all points in the sales cycle. Along the way, you’ll go through a transformative experience that will grow and sustain self-confidence along with belief in the value of your organization and your solutions.
Learn More: https://www.dalecarnegie.com/en/courses/295?franchise_id=219
We thought you were a people person when you lived with us and attended Coonrapids Senior High. You arrived in the US from South Africa as an exchange student in your mid teens in January, 2002. Within four months of starting school amongst a bunch of teenage kids, preoccupied with their fashion and friends, who could careless about a student from a far away land, you won their hearts and minds to be voted the homecoming king! Now, that’s a people person for you.
It was a defining year in my Life TV. Thanks for the comment here. I am so glad to be living in the USA and grateful to this who played a role in making it happen. I trust that you are well. I am enjoying the comments on FB from both you and Carrie.