6 Steps to Selling Yourself | How to succeed at interviews, promotion discussions or entrepreneurial presentations
why you should read this?
The article is my adaptation of the selling process to personal selling.
If you read the article and practice the steps, you will be able to:
1. Create a personalized greeting for yourself
2. Begin to make inroads into meetings faster with a higher degree of acceptance
3. Create solutions not products/services
4. Increase your success ratio from interviews/ presentations or demonstrations
I was recently conducting training for a leading life-style retail chain and happened to spend half a day on the 6 steps of selling.
These aren't mine of course. Either they are from a session I attended or from the net, but that is not the point.
While I looked at the notes and recorded my post-session notes, I realized the 6 steps of selling could infact be used very well for oneself. whether you are interviewing for a job, asking for a promotion, selling your services or products, these 6 steps of selling could give you the framework you need to ensure your success.
what are the 6-steps-of-selling?
here:
Step 1 | Greeting  Essentials of a Greeting?
Be genuine
Smile from the heart, do not laugh
Friendly gestures (firm handshake, a wave, open hand gestures)
Smile, stand straight, make an eye contact
Acknowledgment of the interviewer/ boss/ panel/ buyer/ customer
Nod your head while Greeting
e.g. ' Good Morning!'
'Hi!'
'Thank you for taking the time to see me' Step 2 | Find something in common
'windows of opportunity'
 This is actually easier done than said. The common thing could be the place, the education, the jewellery peice, the clother, the hobby, the interests, the artifact on the wall, the painting, the colors used. basically anything & everything around you, about you can be a topic of commonality.
re-searching the link before your meeting/ interview would go a long way. today the internet accords you loads of information and most networking sites will list the interests of people pretty much in the public domain.
List some ideas/ topics you can use
Step 3 | Ask Broad questions to ascertain need, want, desire
The interview is not about you getting a job, its about the company/firm getting someone qualified to THEIR job.
The promotion meeting is not for your benefit, it is for the benefit of the company to ensure they have the right fit for their leadership team.
The customer is not in business to give you business, he meeting you to understand if you can take away the pain he has.
Its not about YOU.  its about THEM!
ask them questions to understand them better.
There are two types of questions that management speak will tell you, you can use:
Closed Ended Questions
Yes/No answers
Simple - Straight forward questions
Multiple Choice
Open Ended Questions
Open-ended questions invite others to “tell their story” in their own words.
Open-ended questions should be used frequently.
When asking open-ended questions one must be ready and willing to listen to the response.
Examples of open-ended questions:
• How can I be of help?
• Would you tell me more about ___?
• Could you help me understand ___?
• What are the good things and the less good things about ___?
Step 4 | Narrow it down- Use Features & Benefits
I love this step.
It has influenced me in so many ways.
Everything I do, offer is now in thought of in the form of a solution, a benefit.  if something does not have a benefit, I do not spend time creating it or talking about it.
you customers (the company you want to work with, the people who will promote you, the people who will hire your services) are looking at you to tell them what it is that you/your services can do for them.
but here is the catch.
they want to know it in the language that they understand & that is 'What's In It for me?'
if you look at the top of the article you will see I have mentioned clearly what you will derive out of this article.
It makes sure you know what you are reading, what I want you to get from this and saves you the trouble of reading it if you do not want to know those things.
Something that works for me, to get this going is, Always imaging the customer asking you 'so what?'
e.g.
1. 'I am a hotel management graduate.'
that means nothing to the customer/ recruiter/ interviewer
'I spent 3 years learning how a hotel operates, across all departments, all levels while doing my hotel management degree. I am aware of hospitality principles and would only need to learn your company standards'
this is more like it! The interviewer is now looking at someone who half ready to do the job.
2. 'I spent 3 years here as an assistant manager. I think I am due for a promotion'
nope. that is your want. not the company's
'In the last 3 years I increased sales, trained people and filled in for my manager. the team knows me, accepts me and is willing to work with me for bigger goals. I believe it is time the company looked at injecting some loyalty into the team by promoting someone from within'
more like it! the boss knows the value add. the boss has just been told what he will get from promoting you.
3. 'I am a hospitality trainer and recruiter'
ok.
'I work closely with your team to ensure your team is trained to run your processes effectively and I also suggest improvements or innovations where required. As a recruiter I take away the hassle of going through hundreds of resumes, screening them, etc. you only get people ready to deliver from day one'
more like it!
try it....
- this has _____________ & for you _______________
e.g.
This cream has Oxyrich Enzymes for a richer/faster cleansing experience, so what?
This is a CRDi engine so you will not need to change oil till 10000 kms or so you will save almost 20% on your fuel bill
Step 5 | Overcoming Objections
the fifth step has a 4 smaller steps.
 In any sales (selling) their will be objections.
I believe and tell people that objections mean the sales pitch has worked.
the buyer (interviewer, customer, boss) likes what he saw, heard and was told.
the only reason he is raising an objection is either to negotiate better terms to to understand the offer better.
An Objection is Good Thing!!
4 Steps to overcome objections/negativity
- show empathy, not sympathy
- try and uncover additional information
- remember - find a solution for the need
- introduce new solutions - remember you have the solutions!
Look at it as a sales within a sales approach.
Do all the things you did earlier.
repeat step 4. mention the features, mention the benefits and then do something nicer. Give a little extra.
wait. some of you may want to ask, Prabhjot, how do we give a little extra in an interview?
for e.g. if the interviewer says 'you are too expensive' then what should I say.
here
- show empathy, not sympathy | 'Mr. Bedi, I can appreciate how you think that my salary expectation is high'
- try and uncover additional information | 'May I ask what is it that your company pays for this positon?' OR (& this like more) 'What skills and experience/exposure do you think someone in this position would need to ensure the company' success?' (we ask this to then use the answer to demonstrate how you fit!)
- remember - find a solution for the need | lets say Mr. Bedi decides to tell you a figure that is 20% less than your expectation. 'Thank you for sharing that with me'
- introduce new solutions - remember you have the solutions! | 'I do believe I we can look at this differently. I bring with me expertise that will bring additional revenue and I do have some ideas on reducing costs/wastage' OR 'the cost to your company in putting in someone with lesser experience would be far more than the cost in bringing me in' OR 'Can we look at variable pay possibilities. that way you pay me only for performance'
the idea is get talking. move in the direction of a YES!
Step 6 | Close the Sale
oh how I wish I had known this simple MEGA! step years ago.  Now that I think about it, most people just give out information - about themselves, their services, their product, but rarely, very rarely do they ask for a sale. Closing starts by asking.
you can do this in 3 ways:
a) Close by asking if the customer would like to make the purchase. This is the most simple and straightforward way of closing.
e.g. ' Can I call you boss now?' OR 'When do I start?' Or 'Am I selected?'
b) Close by alternate choice. Questions like, "Would you like it in blue or grey?" put the customer in a situation where they are not given the option to refuse the sale. If they answer with either of the options you've given them, then you've made the sale.
e..g 'Should I start the coming monday or the 1st of the next month?'
c) Close the sale by attaching accessory products or services to enhance the product / service.
e.g. 'I know some great people who I think you would really like having on your team. when can I get them to meet you?' Or ' I was hoping I could share with you some of the ideas I picked up while doing research on the company. when can I show them to you?'
There you have it!
I am sure the article has been able to make you think about:
1. Creating a personalized greeting for yourself
2. making inroads into meetings faster with a higher degree of acceptance
3. Creating solutions not products/services
4. Increasing your success ratio from interviews/ presentations or demonstrations
As for me, let me try and close a sale here
'So are you going to hire me to become your personal coach, company trainer or someone who helps you design brilliant training material?
Cheers!
Prabhjot Bedi
+91 98720 00604
p.bedi@eclathospitality.com
www.prabhjotbedi.com
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My E-Book |
6 Steps to Selling Yourself |