Common Sales Mistakes
1. Too Much Information
Often sales people, who are excited about the product they are selling, just blast the prospect with data. They give so much information so fas
t that it is like drinking from a firehose. This is also called product puking, throwing up everything you know about the product hoping to convince them to buy. This will likely cause them to look elsewhere for a solution even if your product is the perfect product for them. The prospect is so overwhelmed that they can’t make a decision. A confused mind will never buy.
Today with so much information available on the internet you can be sure that a prospect has a lot of information about a product or service before calling you. Ask yourself, if I am looking for a new TV what do I do? Go to the store to buy it? Call the store to order it? Or, do research on google to find the TV that is best for what I want, look at the stores that sell it and then go to a store to get the deal I want. Probably the last one, right? Well, it is the same with your prospects.
Build a relationship with your prospect, ask them questions, learn about what they need and want. Remeber people buy from people they know, like and trust. As you build rapport you build trust and increase the opportunity for sales.
2. Selling the Product
I don’t buy a 1/4″ drill because I want a 1/4″ drill, I buy a 1/4″ drill because I want a 1/4″ hole. If you focus on selling me a 1/4″ drill and don’t ask me any questions you will miss the reason I want the 1/4″ hole. I want the 1/4″ hole to hang the picture 
my daughter made me for Fathers Day.
Lots of sales people focus on selling their product. How great a “mouse trap” they have and how it is better than anything the competition has. The sales “script” is the only thing used to “sell” the prospect on the product. While a script is OK it is important to be able to go “off” script to build a relationship with the prospect. I am not saying to do anything unethical or shady to make a sale just learn to be natural while selling.
Rather than focusing on selling your product, ask the prospect what they need. What problems are they trying to solve? Why are they trying to solve that problem? What is their goal for the product?
3. Not Asking for the Sale
The answer is always “NO” until you ask for the sale. The single biggest mistake most sales people make is not asking for the sale. I know this sounds strange but it happens all the time. You assume they 
are going to say no or you think they can’t afford the service or product. Guess what? You are wrong, if they want it enough, if they know it will solve their problem they will find a way to buy it. Don’t say “NO” for them.
Did you even ask for the sale? Think about it. Did you actually ask them to buy? The answer will always be “NO” until you give them the opportunity to say “Yes”. Do yourself and your prospect a favor and ask for the sale.
In this Blog Post, I give more tips to boost your sales. You can always learn more, take more action and grow your sales. I found a great sales article on the Entrepreneur website from Grant Cardone that covers more mistakes that sales people make. I encourage you to check it out.
