3 Dangerous Beliefs That Are Hurting Your Business

Sales is one of the most important skills just about anyone can master. But to this day, many people share misconceptions about the art of selling and the powerful ways it defines our businesses and shapes our everyday lives. 

No exaggeration. 

Even stranger, the ‘average Joe’ isn’t the only person who finds himself being ‘sales-averse’. Many founders and business leaders suffer from sales cooties as well. Needless to say, this isn’t something that’s good for business.

Shake the Misconceptions

Three misconceptions tend to plague leaders in founder-led sales:

• “I don’t want to ruin the relationship.”

• “Asking too many questions, or questions that are too direct, must be annoying for them.” 

• “I don’t want to be seen as too sales-y or pushy.”

Founders who think like this have got it all wrong. Without asking questions, sales literally can’t work. Luckily, there’s a simple fix. Don’t change your approach (asking questions). Instead, rewire your brain.

A Matter of Perspective

A simple hack to immerse yourself into the sales-related aspects of your business is to stop viewing your efforts as being a burden to the client.

Are you really pressuring them into doing something they don’t want to do by asking useful questions? Or are you helping both yourself and the client save time by getting to the root of their issue?

The best part about this?

It’s zero BS.

If you don’t ask them anything, how can you know for sure what they need?

And if you have a solution that’s perfect for their company but miss out on the opportunity to sell them, did you do that client any favors? 

The bottom line: Not asking questions doesn’t make you more tolerable. It makes you less effective. In the end, your business loses and (potentially) so does the client.

It’s About Relationships

Asking ‘annoying’ questions is a sure way to build relationships with prospects. Closing the sale is only one of the ways you win when interacting with potential customers. You can also expand your network by simply helping a prospect get that much closer to what he/she needs (assuming there’s no product fit). 

Sure, prospects are probably in need of a solution that suits their current dilemma. However, most people will appreciate an advisor that saves them time and a headache. Are you ‘annoying’ this prospect with your questions? Or are you adding someone to your network, something that will likely pay dividends down the line? 

A Collaborative Process

Could it be that you’re viewing the conversation totally one-sided? Viewing it like it’s meant to be a one-way street paved with ‘nosey’ questions and ‘endless blabbering’?

You probably are.

And you’re definitely wrong – at least in theory.

After all, these conversations are meant to be collaborative.

When done right, your questions should allow the prospect to open up; you should be learning more about their company, and their needs.

Not monologue like a main character from a Shakespearean play. 

Stop imagining it being some kind of stage on which you have to tap dance and annoy your audience. Look at it as an opportunity to collaborate with a prospect in learning whether you guys are a fit.

Check out this breakdown of how to build your founder-led sales strategy.

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