Always, Always, Always Agree!

Top 50 Traits of Great Salespeople #46: Great Salespeople use agreement and acknowledgement to make the sale.

In all the books I have written, I affirm over and over again that the first rule of selling is to Always, Always, Always Agree!

Another word for a contract is "Agreement", yet why do so many salespeople still try to disagree with their customers? I couldn't tell you how many times I've seen this a salesperson lose a sale because he or she couldn't agree with the customer. This doesn't mean that "the customer is always right" (in fact, it's an old saying that doesn't work), but I'm thinking of it like building a bridge.

You are on one side of the river and your customer is on the opposite side. Every time a customer complains and you disagree with them, it's equivalent to adding a brick onto the wall you're building between the two of you. The sale will never happen with a solid barrier in the way.

Solution: When a customer has a complaint or concern, prove to them that you're listening, that you understand and that you are willing to help them alleviate their situation. You must agree with a lot of things that they're saying, and until then, will you make the sale.

Try the Agreement Challenge. Spend 24 hours agreeing with everyone you interact with and let me know how that works out for you.