Somebody teach me how to sell things.

[Signora Pæsior]

Does anyone have tips for telemarketing sales?

Most of the above still applies. Also, develop a thick skin very quickly. I have never faced so much vile and personal hatred than as a telemarketer.

[Freeky]

Does anyone have tips for telemarketing sales?

Most of the above still applies. Also, develop a thick skin very quickly. I have never faced so much vile and personal hatred than as a telemarketer.

Yeah, I had a taste of it when I worked the return mail room for Verizon.  I didn't have to sell people things, which made things 100 times better, but people still got hostile when they got calls to update/confirm their addresses.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

I assume you're talking about retail sales.

1. Dress the part. You need to look like someone the customer would respect, and maybe even admire.

2. Move and speak with confidence. Not aggression, just don't be tentative. Be polite and attentive, but not obsequious.

3. Ask questions. You want to find out more about your customer, and what they need. Asking questions does three things; it engages the customer, it opens the door for the consent process, and it makes them feel listened to; they will have greater confidence that you are taking the time to match them to an appropriate product for their needs.

4. Never, ever override a customer's objections. Listen to them, address them if it's appropriate, and if it's not appropriate, move on to a different product. If you really feel that the customer is not going to be as happy with a different product, show them anyway, and then come back around to the one you think they will be happy with, saying something like "I know you are concerned about/not interested in X, but I really think that out of what we have, this is going to be the best option for you."

5. Everyone pushes the close. I am not a believer in pushing the close. If I sense hesitation in my customer, I give them the catch-and-release: "Do you want to take some time to look around and see if you can find something that suits your needs better before you make a decision?" This increases their confidence that you are trying to help them, not just to make a sale, and it also, believe it or not, increases their desire for the product. Don't offer to put a hold on it, yet... wait until that moment of hesitation just before they leave. Then reassuringly say "I can hold this one until the end of the day for you to give you a chance to look around". They'll be back. Maybe the next day, maybe for a different product, doesn't matter. They'll be back. You are now "That helpful saleslady".

This. And try to know your products inside out. If you're selling cell phones, for instance, you want to keep up with converage, rate plans, features, etc. That way people come to you and not the other salespeople.

And - this is weird, but - don't try to sell things to people who come in eating something, it's a waste of time for some reason, even if they act interested. An old man with 40 years of commission sales experience told me that. He said "They're already taking care of themselves." I was never able to prove this wrong. If somebody comes in with an ice cream cone, try not to get tied up with them, let one of the other salespeople waste time.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

Shady tricks:

- Put the product in their hands.  Studies have shown that holding the object feels like posession of that object, and putting it away feels like a loss.

- Stress aspects of the product that reduce risk, even if that risk is so low it's practically meaningless (for example, if there is a .001% chance of something bad happening, a person overweighs the value of reducing that risk by 20%).

When they touch stuff on the shelf, that's called a "buying signal". Go get 'em.
And the "You DESERVE it" angle works, too. (Since we're talking hacks.  )

[Bu🤠ns]

Determine their value driver...

What is their motivation for buying the product. That is what you're selling. You're selling the solution to their unique situation.  Recognize the job they need to have accomplished and sell that.  When you sell a drill, for instance,  you're not selling a power tool, you're selling holes.

[Ayotollah of Ass]

As a starting point, you could do a lot worse than Robert Cialdini. It's also useful if you are trying to avoid common tricks, e.g., it gives you good reason to never fill out a survey.

http://www.amazon.com/Influence-Psychology-Persuasion-Business-Essentials/dp/006124189X

I haven't read this one, but I imagine it is further amplification of the theme.

http://www.amazon.com/Influence-Science-Practice-5th-Edition/dp/0205609996

Both are available at Pima County Public Library: Call Number: 153.852 C48i 2007 & 153.852 C48i 2009.

[Freeky]

Er, thanks.  That's somehow creepy that you looked it up for me, but thanks.

[Ayotollah of Ass]

Er, thanks.  That's somehow creepy that you looked it up for me, but thanks.

I used to be a reference librarian. I remembered you were in Tuscan from when you messaged. The rest was as natural to me as breathing. But, yeah, probably a little creepy if you didn't know that.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

A few ideas - Sales is now a service industry.  It's more about being able to suggest and converse over a product, it's quality, and the value it is going to bring the consumer, than to deliver a "hard sell"  as others mentioned before.  Never push, offer.  Contacts, contacts, contacts, you live and die by who you know, who knows you are selling, and who you know needs product. 

Have a service you can provide post-sale, and use it to build rapport.  All the sales jackasses I know are closers who vanish once the deal is closed.  Be their contact, their advocate, their buddy, and their In-guy with the company.  Even if it's a one-off lifetime product like Cutco, make sure they go to you if a knife breaks.  You get them a replacement from you stock, and REAM the supplier on their behalf.  Even if they obviously took a knife to a rock, advocate for them.   

Ohhh, Cutco.  How could I ever forget about you?

These have all been a great help for in-person sales.  Thanks, everyone.

Does anyone have tips for telemarketing sales?

no.

I've done that.

It's harder now  than it was when I was doing it.

If you get paid an hourly wage regardless of sales or booking showings, then do it, have fun, keep your sense of humor, use it as an opportunity to practice accents, and become impervious to abuse.

If you don't get paid an hourly wage regardless of sales, then don't. Take. The. Job.

I would recommend a million things instead of commission telemarketing, including maxing out your credit card to buy supplies to resell on Etsy.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Speaking of Etsy, that is potentially an excellent way to make money, if you are self-motivated and have, or can acquire, along with materials, a decent camera and a supply of bubble mailers. Supply items like hand-dyed silk ribbons tend to do very well, as do simple resell supply items like Mykonos beads which require less labor but a bit of startup capital.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

If you get into ebay, don't just create stuff, be a speculator.

I know a lady who created a small run of fortune telling cards, very simple folk-arty images, and had them printed up at one of those print on demand places. A lot of people do this, either with their own art or public domain images, they don't make much.

But people come along and buy multiple copies for about $20 each. When the deck goes out of print (happens fast, these are small runs) they flip them on ebay, usually for $100+.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

And what Nigel said about telemarketing: NONONONONO.

You'd actually be WAY better off at RadioShack. They train you in sales and if you end up at a busy mall store and not some dead strip mall location, you can actually make decent money. Plus they LIKE you to play with the products, they want you to understand the shit so you can sell it. If it hasn't changed, they have a bunch of exams you can take on hookups, signal, etc. and when you complete them all, your commission rate goes up. Plus you get "spiff", which is a kind of bonus on cell phones, sattellite dishes and extended warranties. I made over $300 in spiff in one day, once.

[Freeky]

Speaking of Etsy, that is potentially an excellent way to make money, if you are self-motivated and have, or can acquire, along with materials, a decent camera and a supply of bubble mailers. Supply items like hand-dyed silk ribbons tend to do very well, as do simple resell supply items like Mykonos beads which require less labor but a bit of startup capital.

Ooh, this sounds promising. It would require a bit of startup moneys, but it sounds simple. So basically, this would just be basically reselling stuff?

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Speaking of Etsy, that is potentially an excellent way to make money, if you are self-motivated and have, or can acquire, along with materials, a decent camera and a supply of bubble mailers. Supply items like hand-dyed silk ribbons tend to do very well, as do simple resell supply items like Mykonos beads which require less labor but a bit of startup capital.

Ooh, this sounds promising. It would require a bit of startup moneys, but it sounds simple. So basically, this would just be basically reselling stuff?

It's typically easier if you have knowledge of the market you're selling to; for instance, if you make jewelry. However, I wasn't into jewelry when I started making beads and it didn't matter.

Your best bet is to identify a basic item or supply, and then either get a wholesale account somewhere, buy bulk, break it into small lots, and resell it (like Mykonos beads, for example), or to identify a specialty item like hand-dyed silk ribbons, get supplies to make them, and sell those.

I am going to tell you one thing, though; it only SOUNDS easy. You need to be very resourceful, self-directed, and self-motivated to be self-employed. In many ways it's easier to work for someone else who's giving you directions and telling you what to do.

Just listing on Etsy isn't going to sell your product line. You have to research how to sell online. Luckily, there are forums, even on Etsy itself, where you can learn a lot about doing just that.

This last bit is very important:

IF YOU CANNOT RESEARCH WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW INDEPENDENTLY, YOU ARE NOT CUT OUT TO BE SELF-EMPLOYED. PERIOD.

[Freeky]

Noted.


Stella, what is a speculator, and what do they do?