...ideas originally found in my book, Guaranteed Retailing and presented here, no strings attached.

We're covering the basics - the Selling Fundamentals.
We've discussed The Prospect & The Seller, The Product, and The Preparation. Here are the next 3 in one post for easy reading - The Approach, The Timing, and The Target.

#5. The Approach.
Once you learn how to break the ice, meet people, make new friends, and approach prospects, your future in selling is guaranteed. Approaching people isn’t all of it, but it’s such a big part of it, when you have conquered the approach, you’re already making money.

 There is no shortage of people. We don’t have a people problem, we have an approach problem. Until you can approach people, you have no hope of selling anybody anything. The selling process begins with the approach.
The key to the approach is putting the focus where it belongs.

If you focus on yourself - your insecurities, fears, needs, and ego - you will be reluctant to make the approach and unsuccessful when you do. However, when you focus on the person in the crowd, his needs and desires; when you care about her and are truly motivated to help her, your fears will disappear and you will peak perform. The key to effective approach is focus. Put the focus where it belongs - on the other person - not on you.

#6. The Timing.
Perhaps you’ve heard it said that nothing is more powerful than an idea who’s time has come. That principle applies to selling, too. The right idea at the right time is irresistible to the prospect. The key to successful selling is to make the right offer to the right person at the right time. However, the best time for the prospect generally has nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that your house payment is coming due. 

It seems that every time I go and buy a new car, a few weeks later, I receive a very expensive, beautifully designed direct mail brochure trying to sell me a car. That’s bad timing. A friend of mine told me about a stock broker who came to a funeral to speak with the widow about investment options for the life insurance check she’d be getting. That’s bad timing.

Master sellers develop a sixth sense about when to approach a prospect. Some times it’s just common sense. Some times it’s research. Every time it matters.

#7. The Target.
For all of their differences, people share many things in common. There are ways to identify groups of buyers who share similar needs, beliefs, desires, and interests. This knowledge can enable you to sell to a segment, a group or a busy hive in the market all at one time, increasing your productivity and your income.
Target marketing works.

I have a painting in my library by Mitchell Tolle called The Kentucky Wildcat. Mitchell created the painting for the University of Kentucky when they won a national championship in the 90’s. He and his staff used target marketing to sell thousands of prints of his painting to UK fans.

“Once you identify a market segment, in this case UK fans, you can gather information that allows you to make one offer to all of them,” the artist told me.

This is selling 101. Even though this market segment was made up of people who were very different, they had one thing in common; they were fans of the same team. They had different careers, went to different churches, lived in different communities, and were diverse in dozens of ways. But, on Tuesday evening at 7:30 when the ball was tipped, 3 & 1/2 million of them gathered in front of their televisions to watch the same team. As different as they were, they shared a common passion for one thing and that made them a huge market segment.

To identify the target, ask and answer a series of questions. Who wants this product? Where are they located? How can I reach them with my offer? How much are they willing to pay for the product? When is the best time to present the offer? When the questions are answered, go to work.