Fatal mistakes coaches make in sales meetings
You’ve gone to the trouble of generating a lead and getting an appointment. All that’s left if making the sale. Easy, right?
Well we all know from experience that it’s anything but easy, however there are something things that many coaches do in sales meetings that makes the task even harder. Here are just a few:
Talking too much
This is perhaps the biggest. It’s common for some people when they are nervous to waffle on and on almost as if they are unable to stop talking or that something horrendous will happen if they do. So even if you’re not nervous you will come across as being nervous if you talk too much. And subconsciously that will be communicating that you have something to be nervous about. That you’re either hiding something or you doubt your own abilities as a coach.
Take a breath and relax and only say what you need to say. Particularly when it comes to the part where you are asking them to commit to your program or becoming a client. I know some people don’t like to refer to it as a ‘close’ but whatever you want to call it, it’s often a case of whoever talks first loses when the sale is about to be made.
Pushing what you’re selling not what they want to buy
I sometimes wonder if this is not perhaps the biggest mistake? It probably isn’t but it’s certainly a close second and in some ways like talking too much.
Now I accept that you have programs, products or skills that you want to sell, but there’s no point trying to sell someone something that they have no need of. So instead of talking non-stop about what you want to offer and the benefits you think they will receive, take the time to ask them about their needs and then demonstrate that not only do you understand their needs but that you can offer them a solution.
The only reason they agreed to meet with you is because they have something that they want you to help them with. So, find out what that is and convince them that you can help and you’re 90% of the way to making the sale.
Pretending to know something you don’t
This isn’t just in sales it’s in consultations, meetings and public speaking. Just admit if you don’t know something and move on. No client is expecting you to know everything. But trying to pretend you have knowledge about something that you don’t understand is a recipe for disaster. Not only will you humiliate yourself and not make the sale you’ll also damage your reputation.
Don’t pretend to know more about their business or industry than they do. If you do then great, if you don’t then simply admit it and move on.
Lecturing instead of listening
I’ve sat in sales meetings with coaches where I’ve found myself wondering if the coach has been paying any attention at all to what the client has been saying. The coach, clearly with a process in mind, starts sermonising going off on a completely different tangent to where the client was headed, leaving the client with a frustrated expression on their face as they patiently wait for the lecture to end.
Put yourself in the shoes of the client. If the coach can’t be bothered listening to the client’s needs when they are trying to sell to them, what are the chances that they’ll listen to the client’s needs after the client has actually signed up?
Ask the questions and listen carefully and then make sure you acknowledge what the client has said and that you address their needs as you persuade them that you are the coach they should be working with.
Failing to get them to acknowledge their needs
I’ve seen clients who have a real need for coaching, sit through a sales meeting and then not sign up simply because the coach didn’t bring that need into focus. If you want someone to engage you make them see why they need to.
Ask them if they are completely happy with where they are now and if not, what is going to change for them in the future if they don’t sign up with you. Bring their discomfort into sharp focus and then persuade them that you can help, that together you can turn their business fortunes around. That the goals, dreams and aspirations that they had when they started out in their business can still be achieved if they sign up with you today and work with you to achieve those outcomes.
Do that and you will be well on the way to gaining a new client.