CMJ Office Blog

Have you ever noticed that someone can say the exact same thing as you and they will win the client or sale?

It is a simple matter of saying whatever needs to be said with confidence. It’s true. Listen to your voice and how it sounds when you are speaking. Are you hesitant, stuttering, unclear, or unsure?

You need to speak clearly, confidently, directly and with confidence!

If you don’t, no one will listen. If they do listen, they won’t listen very long. Everyone wants to listen to something that’s interesting. Whatever you are selling, you need to draw interest to it. Get excited about what you sell. Know your information. Do not hesitate. Hesitation will kill everything. People hearing hesitation will doubt your knowledge and your skills. When you hesitate, people hear your lack of experience. This makes people nervous, unsure and unwilling to purchase your product or your services. Your lack of confidence will kill the deal.

So, how does one gain confidence?

Knowledge, training and experience are some of the traits that build confidence in a person. Enthusiasm and passion for a particular product, skill, service or hobby also can build confidence. If you have these basics, you are less likely to hesitate, stutter, and sound unclear or unsure of yourself.

Whatever product or service that you are trying to sell, you must be knowledgeable about it. If you are not, how are you going to accomplish the sale? You will not have the confidence.

My first retail job was a learning experience. I watched the owner of the company sell her wares brilliantly. I swear that the woman could sell chewed gum off the floor to anyone that walked through her doors. She was that confident. She knew her business and knew how to grab the attention of anyone that walked into her store. I tried selling to someone one day. I failed. The owner came out, said the exact same sales pitch as I had just done, and the item was sold.

Why?

The difference was that when I used the sales pitch, I did not say it with confidence or conviction. I was nervous, hesitant and reaching. The customer sensed that and did not buy. The owner came out and sold with confidence. She demanded the attention of the customer and spoke from the heart. She made that customer believe in what she was selling. The owner won the sale.

I learned that lesson well. Know your business. Be passionate about it. Speak with confidence. Take pride in yourself and your business. Who else is going to sell your products or services? No one should be able to outsell you regarding what you value and hold dear. Remember to say it all with confidence.

How many of you have experienced a similar scenario?

Colleen M. Johnson, CMJ Office