Recent Articles From EvanCarmichael.com http://www.evancarmichael.com/ http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/6-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Barriers-to-Commitment.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/6-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Barriers-to-Commitment.html The fifth and final step of the Penetration Selling process is “Closing”. Closing is defined as getting a firm commitment from the prospect to acquire the product or service which is being offered. The key barriers that need to be penetrated in order for the close to be successful are often referred to, among sales-trainers, as “Objections”. This is a catch-all term which includes any and every thought a prospect might present, or action he might take, that acts to block the completion of the sale. In the Penetration Selling system, we discover that all variations of customer concerns and objections fall into only two categories, and the handling for both categories is very similar. The two categories are... http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/5-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Barriers-to-Understanding.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/5-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Barriers-to-Understanding.html In Penetration Selling, we therefore recognize that the key barriers which need to be penetrated during the presentation are: • Anything that might block the prospect from achieving a full understanding of the product, and even more importantly, • Anything that might block the prospect from gaining a good understanding of how the product will more than adequately satisfy his key needs and wants for owning that product. For a prospect to develop sufficient interest in and desire for acquiring a product, he needs to not only become familiar with the features of that product, but he needs to additionally become convinced that the benefits which that product offers him will more than satisfy his specific purposes for acquiring that product. For example... http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/4-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-Your-Prospects-World.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/4-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-Your-Prospects-World.html The number one barrier that needs to be penetrated during the Qualifying step of the sale is the lack of knowledge of the key motivations a prospect has for possibly purchasing one of the salesperson’s products or services. And the key tool for penetrating this barrier is... http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/3-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Prospects-Reluctance-to-Communicate.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/3-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Prospects-Reluctance-to-Communicate.html Once your prospect is “located”, the Prospecting step is complete and you are ready to begin the “Opening” step. In Penetration Selling, Opening is defined as getting the prospect into open, trusting communication. That is to say, getting the prospect willing to communicate openly and honestly with his salesperson. In order to successfully lead your prospect through the final three steps of the sales process, which will hopefully culminate in a completed sale, it is essential for... http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/2-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Marketplace.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/2-Penetration-Selling--Penetrating-the-Marketplace.html The first step of Penetration Selling, Prospecting, is defined simply as locating someone to sell something to. This is where the sales process begins. This is the step in which you, or your organization, locates some likely prospects to whom you can sell your wares. This is ordinarily done by seeking out prospects who are already well aware of their need or want for what you are offering, or by taking steps to create a desire for your products within your marketing area. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/1--Penetration-Selling--The-Five-Steps--An-Overview.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/1--Penetration-Selling--The-Five-Steps--An-Overview.html Penetration Selling is the powerful, five-step selling system, which was developed by Harry Frisch and introduced in a series of articles, written by Frisch, originally published in The LATEST Magazine, in 1996. The unique approach of the Penetration Selling system is to clearly identify: • The key barriers -- which salespeople run into, in each of the five steps of the sales process, and • The precise techniques – needed for penetrating, deflating and evaporating these barriers. Penetration Selling is a friendly, “Win-Win” system in which the salesperson learns how to smoothly lead his prospects through any and all barriers which stand in the way of the successful completion of the sale. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/What-Makes-A-Great-Sales-Training-Book.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/What-Makes-A-Great-Sales-Training-Book.html Sales training books of moderate quality are pretty easy to locate. Those which are considered of outstanding quality are a bit more difficult to get your hands on, and truly great sales training books are, as they say, few and far between. What is it that makes one sales training book average, and another great? http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/SureFire-Techniques-for-Closing-Sales.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/SureFire-Techniques-for-Closing-Sales.html Closing sales is considered an art by most, a craft by many, and a science by those who recognize that there are actually invariable rules and a set of specific tools that enable a salesperson to consistently close sales in high volume. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/Finding-a-Workable-Sales-Strategy.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/Finding-a-Workable-Sales-Strategy.html Sales strategy, or “how to systematically approach the challenges of effectively moving one’s prospects from the opening stages of the sale, step-by-step, through to a successful close”, is a worthy objective of a challenging search. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/Cold-Calling-Without-Fear.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Sales/452/Cold-Calling-Without-Fear.html Cold calling techniques are ways to “open” and “qualify” a prospect who is not particularly familiar with the product or service being offered. Unlike a customer coming into a showroom, who is already at least somewhat familiar with the product or service he is seeking, a “cold prospect” may never have heard of the product or service, and even if he has, he may have no awareness of his own need or desire to buy it. When dealing with “cold prospects”, the salesperson needs...