In this episode, I am joined by an incredible guest, Sales Coach, Author and CEO of Sales Maven, Nikki Rausch. She shares her process for selling successfully and authentically. Learning from her has totally shifted my approach to selling, and I hope it will leave you feeling refreshed and excited about revamping your own sales process!
Show Notes:
03:01 Slaying Her Own Way
Let’s face it, a lot of people are weird about sales. The episode starts out by Nikki sharing a bit about her background and how she got into sales. Her first real introduction to sales was working a job with a commission structure at the mall. From there she got into the tech field, in a very male dominated industry. These men were very aggressive and she had to figure out how to do things her own way. She looked at her strengths, and with a different approach, she learned how to sell differently than her male counterparts and fell in love with the process.
07:48 Everyone Can Learn to Sell
Nikki believes that everyone can learn to sell, in a way that is unique to them. She talks about making it easy for the buyer, by means of conversation. It’s about thinking about how you can serve and be of value to your customer. Sales is not something you do TO someone, but WITH someone.
10:20 Non-Attachment
We talk about not being attached to the outcome in sales, and how by doing so the pressure is released and allows the process to flow with ease. Nikki doesn’t really feel that the pain points approach to selling really sets up the conversation for success.
12:58 The Framework
Nikki has a 5-Step approach to the sales conversation called The Selling Staircase. One of the biggest mistakes people make is trying to immediately sell to people. The idea is to move people from step to step, rather than skipping steps in the process.
14:11 Overview of the Selling Staircase
Step 1: Make a Powerful First Impression. You can do this in a variety of ways. Step 2: Create Curiosity. Step 3: If the person is showing interest, invite them to a discovery call. Step 4: The Proposal, which is laying out your offer and showing them how it meets their needs. Step 5: The Close, usually a yes or no question.
17:38 Step 1: Introduction
The way that you have a conversation is by asking questions. By asking questions it shows interest and starts the conversation, which makes a powerful first impression. Our brains naturally want to answer when asked a question. If you can just start to ask questions where most of us make statements, you will already set yourself apart from the crowd. Nikki and I also talk about the importance of being authentic and standing proud in the services that you offer. Treat people like they’re people and they will respond.
25:48 Step 2: Creating Curiosity
Nikki teaches this concept as the difference between how you call a dog and how you call a cat. When you use “dog calling energy” it is too much in a sales conversation. Cat calling energy draws people in and creates curiosity. She recommends giving people a little bit of information and entices them to ask more questions.
29:35 Step 3: Discovery
It’s all about asking the right questions that lead people to hire you. You want to uncover what you need to know in order to be able to offer something to this person. Being strategic is important. Nikki also stresses the importance of truly finding out if it will be a good fit to work together, and making it easy for them should they choose to. It’s not about convincing people. If your product or service isn’t for them, wish them well and move on.
37:33 Buying Signals
Buying signals are verbal or nonverbal cues that somebody gives to indicate interest. There are 17 main buying signals, but Nikki goes over a couple of the most important. The first is asking about pricing. The second buying signal is when somebody brings up a negative experience, treat it as if it’s a buying signal. She recommends listening and empathizing, and issuing an invitation for a better experience. It’s all about invitations!
47:43 Step 4: The Proposal
The idea with the proposal is to lay out a clear next step for someone. You need to lay out what you know they need in a clear offer.. She recommends no more than three options. It’s important to be the authority.
50:13 Step 5: The Close
The most important part of the close is getting a yes or a no. If they need to think about it, Nikki recommends getting a circle-back meeting on their calendar. Make it easy for them to think about it and decide.
51:50 Concluding Thoughts
In learning about sales throughout the years, I realized that I too had a weird complex about sales when I first started. Some of this probably came from being approached and sold to in a way that doesn’t feel right to me. Selling doesn’t have to feel weird! Apply Nikki’s 5 steps and watch your sales and impact skyrocket!
Connecting with Nikki
Here’s Nikki’s Website: yoursalesmaven.com
Here’s Nikki’s Instagram: @yoursalesmaven
Here’s Nikki’s Free E-Book: yoursalesmaven.com/dyc
Listen to Nikki’s Podcast Here: yoursalesmaven.com/podcast/
Here’s My Website: micahfolsomfit.com
Follow Me on Instagram: @micahfolsomfit
