Have you ever had a prospect for your technology products say to you "Tell me about your products and I only have 10 minutes"? What have you done in this situation? What was the response you received?

Before we look at three ways to respond, let's look at the "I only have 10 minutes" statement.

The "I only have 10 minutes" statement could be true and/or it could be being used as a protection mechanism. Your prospects want to protect themselves from salespeople and this statement is ideal for this. If they've told you they only have 10 minutes then they are not being rude when they leave the conversation in 10 minutes. Bear this in mind as you read on.

There are three options for how to respond when your prospect says "Tell me about your products and I only have 10 minutes."

Option One

You fall into the trap and tell them about your technology products.

In these trying economic times, sales have slowed down considerably - people just do not want to spend any money. The future is so uncertain right now that both consumers and businesses want to hold on to their money, just in case they need it for an emergency or even for survival. Right now, most people are in fear of loss, and this fear leads to inaction.

In today's market, even if you have been showing your prospect that it makes total financial sense to buy your technology solution right now, and that there is a clear ROI (Return on Investment), you are probably finding that they are still not motivated to buy right now. You see, in this economy, it's unlikely that something as simple as a great ROI will motivate your prospect to buy. Actually even using the words 'Return on Investment' probably sends shudders down your prospects' spines! We all know what has happened to a lot of

There are a lot of sales myths that not only diminish your chances of success, they also make selling more complicated and harder than necessary. Selling is, in fact, quite simple, provided you know, understand and apply some fundamentals. And you ignore sales myths.

Here are 6 Sales Myths:

Myth #1: Selling is a numbers game. The greater the quantity of prospects you're working on the higher your chances of success.
Truth: Selling is only a numbers game if you want to waste time and money going after sales that have no chance of success.

Selling is a qualified numbers game. The more qualified prospects you have, the more technology sales you'll make. It's not about the quantity of prospects but the quality. If prospects are qualified, they are already in the quality category. If you have a list of qualified prospects you're working on, chances are that a high percentage will turn into clients.

1. Questions do the selling for you.

2. Questions enable you to see and feel your prospect's perspective - to
walk in their shoes - to understand their problems.

3. Questions MOTIVATE your prospect to act.

4. Questions build trust and rapport so people will open up to you.

5. Questions attract prospects.

6. Questions make people interested in your advice and suggestions.

7. Questions help your prospects gain fresh insights on their own issues.

8. Questions enable you to qualify or disqualify prospects.

9. Questions put the focus on your prospect versus you.

10. Questions gather the information you need so you can make your
presentation of your technology solution highly relevant.

11. Questions enable you to have a conversation.

12. Questions create a buying atmosphere versus a sales atmosphere.

13. Questions control the direction and the flow of the conversation.

14. Questions minimize objections.

15. Questions enable you to diagnose before prescribing.

Tell me in 30 seconds why I should buy from you over your competition. Don't read any farther until you do this.

How did you do?

Did you include any of the following in your response?

• We have been in business for x years.
• We have great support and care about our customers.
• Our technology products are proven, best of breed, flexible, etc.
• We are industry leaders.
• We have lots of clients.

Look back at what you said. Does your competition say any of these things as well? Be totally honest. Put a line through each item you listed that your competition would also say (whether it is true or not), because your prospect will ignore it when he or she compares you to your competition.

I'm not saying that having great support, experience, technology products, clients, and so on is not important and absolutely essential. I'm saying that, if your competition also says they have those things, your prospect will probably not take them into consideration when comparing you.

Starting today, I want you to be on a mission to find a "no" every time you talk to a prospect. When you find the "no," celebrate it, be grateful for it - it is good news.

Be grateful for a "no"? This sounds crazy. But read on and you will see that it is crazy not to be grateful for a "no."

Suppose you have a prospect and they want you to write a proposal (or even worse, respond to a Request for Proposal). They also want you to give a presentation and to have lots of meetings with them.  

Now suppose you do all they ask: you write the proposal, you give the presentations, you have the meetings.

Then, at the end of all this effort, they say they have decided to do nothing or to go "in a different direction" or that they cannot afford your technology solution.

Hi,

My name is Tessa Stowe  and I am here to help you with any questions or challenges you have around selling your technology solutions.

You probably wish you didn't have to sell. If only your prospects could see for themselves how great your technology solutions are and buy them. Unfortunately they don’t and that is where selling comes in and that is where I can help you as your sales coach. 

You'll find my style very non-pushy and non salesy and it is suited to both salespeople and people who have to sell and wish they didn't have to.

I have been selling successfully in the technology world for over 20 years so I also understand a lot of the jargon and the technology world itself.

I will help you not only sell more at higher prices but you'll have some fun along the way! 

From time to time I'll post some tips and strategies on the blog.