Treat Your Prospects As Though They Are Already Your Clients

Articles, Selling

Quickly! Who do people buy from? They buy from those who they like and who they trust. Who do they like and trust? They like and trust those who treat them with respect and who they feel are looking out for their best interests. End of post.

Today I wanted to discuss two aspects of the title of this article …

  1. How we might integrate this concept into the selling process and …
  2. Our overall mindset while dealing with prospective clients
The Selling Process – 
 
Treating your prospects as if they are already your clients, and doing so during the selling process, is a teachable and learned behavior. Much of this hinges on your choice of language used and a great deal of this is very subtle. What is the difference between these to statements? [Tweet “When you treat prospects like customers, you will become a part of their team!”]
  • “If you choose to go ahead and invest in this product, you will …”
  • “Once you open the box of your new “X”, here is what is going to happen”
If you said that the second statement assumes that the prospect has already bought, you can go to the head of the class! Assuming that the sale has already been made, and demonstrating that in both your actions and your statements, is extremely powerful! One of two things is going to happen. 
  1. They are going to stop you and remind you that they have not yet decided to buy in which case … “Oh, I’m sorry. I know that.” or
  2. At some point, their language is going to reflect the fact that they have already bought … “Yes, I am really anxious to open that box!”
Statement #1 gives you an opportunity to answer any questions and to uncover any objections. Statement #2 gives you an opportunity to bring out the contract and you had better shut your pie-hole and do that now! For what it is worth, I have rarely encountered statement #1 and regularly see statement #2.

Your Overall Mind-Set – 

This is only going to work if you actually do treat your existing clients in this manner. If you don’t, and you are actually interested in earning more business, I would suggest that you will want to get started right away in employing these principles to both your clients and your prospects! It’s pretty simple. Start acting like you are a part of their TEAM. You are not a vendor, you are a part of their organization. What do teammates do? They …

  1. Watch out for each other and put the needs of the team above their own
  2. They connect their teammates to new opportunities and valuable alliances
  3. They help each other to get the most out of products and services
  4. They assist the team in maximizing profits

I believe that the highest calling in sales is being in the role of “trusted advisor” and connector. Members of the team get introduced to other team members and they, in turn, recognize that person as a teammate and will provide you with all of the respect that goes along with that title. Trusted advisors do not compete with other vendors because … they are no longer seen as a vendor and, therefore, this competition does not even exist.

Please note – This article was originally written and published by me on my NetWorks! Boise Valley site. If you are a B2B salesperson living in Boise, Idaho and are looking for a top-notch networking group … please visit the site and give us a shout!

Craig M. Jamieson

Craig M. Jamieson

Managing Member at Adaptive Business Services
Craig M. Jamieson is a lifelong B2B salesperson, manager, owner, and a networking enthusiast. Adaptive Business Services provides solutions related to the sales professional. We are a Nimble CRM Solution Partner. Craig also conducts training and workshops primarily in social selling and communication skills. Craig is also the author of "The Small Business' Guide to Social CRM", now available on Amazon!
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