6 Ways To Get Better At Sales Salesmanship is one of the most important skills in life.

If you look around you, almost everything in this world is about selling. Whether you want a talented employee to join your company, or convince that investor to invest in you, or acquire a client, its sales. And it can make or break your business.

When I was in the retail business, almost every single time we replaced an underperforming salesperson, our sales increased.

So what are the various factors that can help in increasing sales? Here are some of them:

#1 Know your target market

Sometimes, we see sales people chasing anybody and everybody. Having a profile of the type of people you want to meet can save you a lot of time and wasted opportunities.

The best sales people know the kind of people they want to meet, and hang out at places where they can meet these people. If you are not absolutely clear about the kind of people who would buy your product, test your product with various different audiences and figure out the most likely buyers.

#2 Know the difference between benefits and features

Many of us during the initial days of product development get so excited about its features that we tend to forget how it benefits the user.

A customer is more interested in the benefits of the product rather than its features.

Most marketers make the mistake of including features in the sales copy rather than the benefits. But if you can clearly communicate the benefits of each feature, that can make the sales copy more enticing.

#3 Show numbers and statistics

Marketers have used words such as "studies show" in campaigns to convince customers that the brand has taken the time to test, retest, and analyze data to provide factual information about their product.

For example, if you are promoting the idea of a good night's sleep so that one can perform better at work, you could consider conducting a study on your bed or sleep aid product and show results that substantiate your claims.

#4 Consider intangibles and emotions

Customers don't just buy because they have a physical need, but also for emotional reasons.

Identify the real "need' or "want' rather than what seems on the surface. For example, people don't just buy cars to go from one place to another; they are sometimes looking for a status symbol, or something that makes them feel successful.

Len Foley says listen to what your prospect is not saying.

#5 Relationship comes first

Great salespeople know that most sales happen based on a relationship. They take time to get to know the customer and nurture the relationship. Sometimes, the sales process can take longer than expected. Patience and consistent effort in building a relationship lead to improved sales.

#6 Tone of voice and body language

An opinion about a person is formed before we even talk to that person. A confident, welcoming body language matters more than we think.

If we are not meeting a person face-to-face, then the tone of voice on the other side of the line becomes important. How many times have we spoken to a person on the phone and the tone of the person ticked us off?

I remember, I once called a media company to purchase an ad in their newsletter, the only reason I didn't buy the ad was the tone of the salesperson. She just didn't sound confident about her product. If you don't believe in your product, no one else will.

Conclusion

Salesmanship is one of the most important skills in life. Taking the time to learn this skill, and become a smarter sales person can be very rewarding.