Selling Just Got Harder

How To Sell Coach

I just read an article saying that selling today is much harder than it used to be. Why? Because:
Buyers are smarter and better informed.
Their secretaries are better trained to stop you getting to the decision maker.
The internet means they can find out about what your competitors have to offer.
Customers know all your sales techniques.

Well we better all give up now. What chance have we. Ah, don't worry. The person writing the article is selling a sales course to make all these problems go away. Phew! So let's have a look at what he's selling. Basic selling skills! And good luck to him, I hope he does well and it got my attention any way.

Well let's get some things straight. Let me tell you for sure that customers and buyers 20 plus years ago were pretty smart too. They did not say, "Well I never knew that and thank you so much for calling." They were very well informed without the benefit of the internet. They knew who your competitors were and what they were offering. Why? Because it was their job to know.

Their secretaries or receptionists were pretty good at fending off sales calls too - so that hasn't changed. And yes they had a fairly good understanding of selling techniques. So let's not go down the road that life is harder. What about the economy I hear you say? Well the world has had recessions before - so that's not new. Times are challenging now, they were then and will be in the future.

So let's not worry about what we can't change and concentrate on what we can - YOU.

The only thing that I see which definitely is different is the internet, social media and the ease of the availability to getting information. Yes, that's new and what an opportunity it presents to showcase you, your company and your product.

Sites like Linkedin, Google+, Facebook, Twitter offer a wealth of information about your potential customers which is something we'll talk about later because it's such a massive subject.

While the sales call is all about your customer - the preparation for that call and how you present you, your product and your company all all things that you influence. Are fewer sales being made throughout the world because people are smarter and better informed? No. Likely the opposite as technology has made (and continues to make) it easier than ever to communicate with potential clients and approach new markets.

Is selling harder than it was? Tell yourself often enough and it may become so but I just don't see it.