You may think selling is more difficult now than in the past. And it is. Here are 4 big reasons selling seems tougher now along with some tips for making it easier:
1. Latent dissatisfaction. Your dream clients should be dissatisfied, but they're not. Many of them don't know or believe that better results are possible. And more than a few are complacent, bathing in the lukewarm water of the status quo. When there is no belief that change is necessary, there is no reason to change. For my money, this is the most pernicious problem facing salespeople today.
Tip: You make selling easier when you create dissatisfaction. You need to show your dream client what better looks like.
2. Risk and the fear of change. Plenty of your dream clients know they need to change, but they're afraid. Change brings risk. What if it doesn't work? What if it makes things worse? What if they're embarrassed? How painful is it going to be? Your dream clients want to avoid risk. They want to be certain they're going to succeed.
Tip: You make selling easier when you eliminate risk and fear by spending time explaining how you're going to ensure they succeed and how you're going to mitigate risk.
3. Crowded markets and commoditization. For most of us, there are plenty of competitors in our space. We look a lot alike and sound a lot alike. It's difficult for our dream clients to know who is worth spending time with and who isn't. They believe all firms are about the same. So they default to seeing no one—except for those few salespeople who can somehow differentiate themselves and their offerings.
