by Tim Roberts
“Who do they think they are?” complained a frustrated rep. “I mean, they pushed me to get the proposal done “in time” so why the silence? I’m sick and tired of it and it happens way too often. I have rights too, you know!”
You can imagine, we’ve had this scenario play out many, many times during our work with salespeople. We feel bad for them and there have been moments when we, too, have heaped blame on buyers for our sales woes. Unfortunately, the blame is wrongly placed, without merit, a waste of energy, non-productive, often childish and represents denial in its most obvious form.
You can‘t get mad at someone for doing something you didn’t tell them they couldn’t do. So the question becomes, why not? Was it because you did a poor job of reading the situation? Were you caught wallowing in mutual mystification? Did your parent scripts come to play with commands like, “Don’t be a pushy salesman!” or “Be grateful they’re even talking to you?”
Buyers don’t return calls because they believe they don’t have to. You already gave them what they wanted so they’ll get back with you IF they need to – and that seems fair to them.
Isn’t it fair to gain agreement that if you do something for them they should do something for you? Are you aware of how the Law of Reciprocity works? Do you believe that you, too, have rights, the Salesperson’s Bill of Rights? You have the right to know what will become of your proposal and when. You have the right to know if it’s a yes or a no. You have the right to ask them to call you back when you need them to just as they expect of you.
Sometimes, the selling challenge has nothing to do with technique or behavior. It has a lot more to do with your beliefs and your mindset.
At Sandler Training, Trustpointe we help salespeople understand their rights. To learn more about heaping blame, reading the situation and mutual mystification, contact Tim Roberts at 317-845-0041 or tim.roberts@sandler.com.
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