When Joe Gandolfo, a life insurance salesman, was asked how he had sold more than a billion dollars in life insurance in 1975, he said that all it takes is “understanding people.” Although Joe’s answer makes the sale sound simple, his formula for success is one that can be recommended to you without hesitation, because it will work as well for you as it does for insurance agents or any sales representative.
In the insurance industry, as you may already know, members of that profession rave about someone who sells more than a million dollars worth of life insurance each year. In fact, they have a group of elite sales reps whom they call the million dollar round table where people are recognized for their excellent sales performance. To put Joe’s achievement in better perspective, an average million-dollar round table producer would need a thousand years to match Joe Gandolfo’s production figures for 1975 alone.
Joe’s performance is almost incredible from any perspective. However, from your sales productivity, we see that you are part of an elite group of superstars who have discovered the secrets of sales success. So when Joe suggests that it’s a sales rep’s ability to understand and work with people, rather than technical skills or product knowledge that produces sales, you really need to pay attention to what he has to say. . Joe’s sales philosophy is simple if you don’t learn and use the techniques that will help you get to know and understand your prospects, you can never effectively use your product knowledge or persuasion skills to produce a steady stream of sales. .
In our Sales Success Strategies self-directed learning series (http://www.TheSellingEdge.com/manual1.htm), we explore some vital techniques to help you set the stage for getting to know people better. The first and most important step in the sales process is establishing a good relationship with the people you serve. This is a vital step because if you fail to build trust, your potential customers will never reveal enough about themselves to provide you with information to help them meet their needs by purchasing your products and / or services.