New Harvard Business Review article touts being an “expert” as top performing sales person profile

Do you picture your sales calls this way?

“My prospect is expecting me to tell them something they don’t already know, about a problem they may not even know they have.”

When you go into a sales call, do you realize that you get to see more people who look like your prospect than they do? They are so busy fighting fires within their own companies, they don’t have enough time to check out what their peers and competitors are doing.

But, you do. By the very nature of your job, your customers can see you as more of an expert than they are. That is, if you deliver the goods.

It’s not about being an expert on your products or services – in other words, being an expert in your story. It’s about being an expert on the threats, risks, challenges, problems, leaks or needs that are impacting your prospect’s key performance indicators – it’s about their story.

You also have the opportunity to be an expert, because you’ve been part of fixing these same problems for someone else at other companies that look like your prospect.

The key is to use this expertise in an artful way that guides the prospect through the process of seeing the changes in their world. Identifying their role in solving the problem. Showing them the path to successfully managing the change. And, equipping them to be the hero.

Experts know they aren’t the hero. Neither are their products or services. Experts facilitate, mentor and coach their prospects and customers in a way that inspires them to have the confidence to succeed.

Read the Harvard Business Review Article here:
http://hbr.org/2010/12/vision-statement-do-you-really-know-who-your-best-salespeople-are/ar/1