Sales Process: The 5 Step NLP Process for Successful Sales
Every good salesperson knows the established sales process. You have probably devised your own strategy that you use all the time. The main question to ask yourself is: does it work?
The truth is that the conventional methods used in sales are increasingly ineffective. The main reason for this is that everyone uses them. Also, the competition is too great, so these methods have little effect.
Now is the best time for you to familiarize yourself with the NLP sales process. It has been devised on the basis of neurolinguistic programming (NLP), a psychological method designed to help people cope with different situations and do better in life.
Despite its psychological basis, this sales process is technical. It consists of 5 different steps that require the application of different techniques. Here is an introduction to this innovative method.
Step one: build report
You have to earn the trust of the potential customer. You have to like it. It has to feel like you are bonding on a subconscious level.
Self-confidence and a positive attitude are a must here. You also have to use direct techniques. Flattering the person, telling a funny story, and sharing a “secret” all work.
Despite this, the match and mirror method is much more effective. Be aware of the person’s tone of voice and use the same. Are there any words that the potential customer is emphasizing? Use them in your speech too.
Does the person have a specific gesture? If you have, use it as well, but do it as if you were unconsciously doing the same thing.
Step two: ask questions
Knowledge of the potential customer is a key factor for the successful application of the NLP sales process.
Ask the potential client about their goals and objectives. For example, “What do you plan to achieve?”, “What would be the best result for you?” and so.
Ask about the current situation. This will give you clues to any issues the potential customer may be experiencing. You can easily say, “What is your current progress?” or “What are you wearing now?” or “What have you been wearing in the past?”
Step three: identifying a need
Your main tools at this stage of the NLP sales process are questions again.
You have to know what the person needs so that you can relate this need to your product. Now is the time to discover a real problem. You can simply ask, “What is not working?” or “What are you looking to improve?”
Then you can easily identify the precise need of the potential customer. The questions to ask are simple: “What is working in this situation?”, “How do you see the solution?”, “What will give you the optimal solution?”
Step four: link the need to your product
At this stage of the NLP sales process, you need to use your presentation skills. Just match each feature of your product to the specific look the potential customer requires. Briefly state the benefits and advantages.
One important thing at this stage is to get the prospect to agree with you on the points you are making. You can easily ask them if what you are offering will give the potential customer what they need.
Step five: close
There are a variety of techniques you can use to close the NLP sales process and the deal. You need to know the potential customer well at this point. You must have an idea of how likely you are to make the purchase.
You can easily go for the direct approach. You can simply say, “This product is the right solution for you. I will package it for you.”
Another effective approach to use is emotional closure. You simply need to highlight the intangible benefits of using the product directly. This psychological method works very well, but it is not the best for B2B sales.
Shame closure is another equally effective psychological technique. Your task is to make not buying embarrassing.
You now know the basics of the NLP sales process. It is best to build on what you have learned so that you can start using this method more quickly and effectively.
The more you think about what you have read, the more obviously you will want to learn even more.