| Marketing Q&A By Al Jabaly |
 |
Al Jabaly is a certified marketing and business
consultant with over 20 years of small business
experience. Email your questions to
al@FloridaBA.org.
All questions will be answered via e-mail. Some of the
most interesting questions will be posted in this weekly
column. For further information, Al can be reached at
1-888-899-3190
“AL. I AM NEW TO SALES AND I AM NOT GOOD AT
READING
MY PROSPECT’S BUYING SIGNALS. CAN YOU HELP?”
There is a general rule: if the prospect asks too
many questions or makes a lot of objections about this
or that, these are signs that the prospect has, in his
or her mind, made a tentative decision to buy but has
certain concerns that need to be addressed. I always say
that the more objections thrown at me, the closer I am
to a sale!
As to how you would know when the prospect is ready to
commit, there are 12 BUYING SIGNALS you should
look for. Let me summarize them below:
#1) IF THEY ASK ABOUT YOU: Ex. how long have you
been with the company or selling this product, etc.
#2) IF THEY ASK ABOUT WHAT ELSE YOU SELL: the
prospect may want to consolidate all his purchases of,
say janitorial supplies, from one vendor and needs to
find out if you are the one!
#3) IF THEY ASK YOU ABOUT A SPECIFIC MODEL: if
you made your presentation and the prospect asks you
about a certain model, that is a strong buying signal.
#4) IF THEY ASK YOU “HOW MUCH”: that is a strong
buying signal!
#5) IF THEY NEOGITATE THE PRICE: say you told
them the price in #4 above, and they start negotiating,
that is a very strong buying signal. They made the
decision but they want to see if they can get away with
a lower price!
#6) IF THEY BRING IN A COLLEAGUE TO SEE IT: it
shows you the prospect made the decision to buy but
wants an affirmation from another person (boss, partner,
etc.) and, to your amazement, you will find that the
prospect will start “selling” the other person on it!
#7) IF THEY ASK ABOUT SHIPPING SCHEDULE: delivery
schedule questions show strong buying signals and also
show they would definitely buy if the delivery meets
their needs.
#8) IF THEY ASK ABOUT THE WARRANTY: questions
like what does the warranty cover? How fast can you send
someone to repair it? How long is the warranty for? What
happens after? All are strong buying signals.
#9) IF THEY ASK ABOUT PAYMENT TERMS: this means
they have a strong need for the product but need to know
if they can afford it, or if you would work with them on
the payment schedule, etc.
#10) IF THEY START GOING THROUGH THE CONTRACT:
indicates the prospect is ready to order!
#11) IF THEY ASK “WHO DID YOU SELL THIS PRODUCT TO?”
they want to be sure they are not the first or only
buyers of this product. By mentioning names of other
clients who bought it, you just confirm their decision.
#12) IF THEY ASK YOU A QUESTION TWICE OR ONE THAT YOU
ALREADY ANSWERED: this does not mean the prospect
did not hear you before but wants to hear it again. It
must be something the prospect likes to hear again or
wants to be 100% sure he or she heard it right before
placing the order!
When you hear one or more of the above buying signals,
STOP SELLING and START CLOSING THE DEAL!
