When A Person In Sales Says “I’m Not Here To Sell You Anything”

There are many many great sales people out there. But, there are a lot of bad ones too. Most of the time they do not realize that they are bad and most of the time they do not know what is holding them back from reaching higher levels of performance. These sales people need a great coach and mentor like you. They need your honesty. Or, many should just be in a different line of work. There are many extroverts and “people persons” who would perform better in a customer service or promoter role. BUT – they interview very well and we like them during the interview, which can cloud our judgment.

Are you a Sales Manager that works with people in the field? Do your sales people call on prospects face to face? Have you ever heard one of them say, “I’m not here to sell you anything.”

Did you cringe? What is the prospect thinking at that point…well, probably one of 3 or more things:

1.) Prospect Thought #1: “Bull crap.” – prospects know why a sales person is calling on them.

2.) Prospect Thought #2: “Don’t waste my time then.” – If a prospect actually speaks to a sales person for a moment…since most are exceptionally busy in this fast paced world – they want to know what the sales person offers that could potentially make their life better. Prospects do not generally have time to “build a relationship” with someone that they do not know.

3.) Prospect Thought #3: “Well come on in then and let’s talk.” In a past life I worked in a business where we called on Independent Used Car Dealerships. Oftentimes the decision maker was not present. The people at the dealership, if they were not busy, were all too happy to talk with a non-threatening sales person…for a LONG time. Sales people who would say “I’m not here to sell you anything.” were often very very happy to have someone who would talk to them and not reject them.

So why does this happen? Why do some sales people say, “I’m not here to sell you anything” ? Could it be that they fear rejection? Is the sales person trying to play it safe…be non-threatening…be non-salesy?

What is the downfall of this low-risk behavior? Delayed closings. Wasted time with non-decision makers. Wasted time with people who are wasting time themselves. Prospects who lose respect because they know the sales person is not being honest.

If you would like to learn more, so that you can avoid hiring sales people with these belief and thinking challenges… grab a time on my calendar for some pointers and tips on building your sales team.

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