Introduction of the Host

N. Rajesh Kumar, a graduate in Commerce, has over 15 years of field experience including 5 years of handling a Profit Centre and as a Regional Manager - Sales, covering half of the country. He started his sales career at a very early age and has handled different products - Telecom, Office Automation and Computer Networking industries.

He has been conducting Training Programmes on Professional Selling Skills (PSS) for over 8 years now, based on his vast experience.

About the Class - Monthly
Wednesday, 17th June, 2003

Lesson 11 - The Sales Presentation:

The effectiveness of a sales presentation is measured not in how well you present, but in how well the buyer understands and is motivated to buy. The best way to present your product is to ensure that it satisfies six basic requirements:

• Plan
• Pattern
• Power
• Proof
• Pictures
• Participation

Plan:
Good presentation don't just happen, they are planned. And as you prepare your presentation you should incorporate into it the customer's details you have compiled. Only the relevant materials relating to this buyer should be included. Personalizing or tailor-making the sales story to the customer's requirements will show that your sales message is unique to his needs.

Pattern:
The presentation must follow a step-by step logical sequence that will guide the customer towards a mental acceptance of the product. In all instances, the target of your efforts is to provide the customer with logical and relevant information. A good rule is to present only what relates to his expressed needs.

Power:
The power behind the presentation is a combination of enthusiasm, planning, self-confidence and a positive mental attitude. Enthusiasm, so often referred to as the method that persuades people without pressurizing them, must be injected into the discussion. Remember that, no matter how many times you have told your story before, the customer is only hearing it for the first time.

Proof:
It is not sufficient for a salesperson simple to state that his machine products quality or that there is saving of so much per year. Whenever possible, give proof of all such claims being made about your product. Most customers have doubts or reservations about the claims made by salespeople. A third-party letter from a happy user is more credible in the eyes of the buyer than the verbal claims of the salesperson.

Pictures:
We are a visually oriented society. We grow up surrounded by the influences of television, advertising and all kinds of visual stimuli. Visuals help the salesperson control the presentation and maintain the customer's attention. They force the salesperson to organize his thoughts in an orderly and condense the message into a concise and more understandable story.

When relying on the spoken work alone to communicate, an estimated 90% of a message is misinterpreted or forgotten completely. We retain only 10% of what we hear. Adding appropriate visual aids to the spoken word increases retention to approximately 50%. No words can equal the power of a picture and sales aids help us to communicate more effectively with the buyer.

Participation:
Getting the customer in on the act is very important. He should be involved with action and words. Observe his reaction to elements of your presentation and ask plenty of questions to ensure that he is with you all the way. Any negative comments should be handled to the buyer's satisfaction before continuing.

We all like to think that our opinions are important, so when a customer makes a positive remark, stop and ask why this particular point is of interest to him. Listen carefully to the response; he is about to give you a very good reason as to why he should buy your product.

Buying Signals:
The customer will indicate his interest either verbally or non-verbally. Some of the non-verbal clues are:

• Picking up the product and reading the instructions
• Going back to an item you have already shown him
• Eyes dwelling constantly on a particular item
• Moving forward to get closer to the product
• Suddenly sitting up in the middle of the presentation

The verbal clues comes in the form of questions or statements, for example:

• 'What kind of guarantee do you give with your products?'
• 'Do I have to pay cash right away?'
• 'Do you have quantity discount?'
• 'What colors do you have it in?'
• How much is it going to cost?'
• How much space will it require?'
• Can we take this on lease?'
• Do you have a maintenance contract?'

Queries on this lesson?
Mail us at onlinesellingskills@sitagita.com

or write to us Onlinesellingskills, Sitagita Com Ltd.,
47, Chamiers Road, Chennai - 600 028.

Courtesy: Institute of PSS, No.14-A, Natesan Nagar,
Alapakkam Main Road, Chennai - 600 116. Tel: 044-476 7299 Mobile: 98400-40444