subject: To Sell or Not to Sell [print this page] To Sell or Not to Sell To Sell or Not to Sell
I have been doing quite a lot of reading lately on the topic of selling; something every business owner must constantly be thinking about. How to best sell your business, your services or products, your credibility, your professionalism, your expertise and essentially yourself.
However, there is conflicting advice about just who is the best person to do this for your business.
On one hand you have the "do it yourself" crowd who believe that because you are the business owner, you have the vision, the passion andthe knowledge to best sell your business.
On the other side you have the "Sales Rep" crowd who feel that selling is a skill and best delegated to those with expertise in this area.
I must say each has its pros and cons.
If you are the person selling your business it is unlikely that you will be asked a question you cannot answer. You have all the inside information and depth of knowledge not just about your business's products or services, but about the overall concept of your business; its inception, history, challenges, learnings and most importantly the ultimate path you are taking it down.
However, if you do not havea good selling technique all the knowledge in the world may not make up for the fact that you came across awkwardly or that you didn't identify the decision maker and target your information in a way that gave them the impetus to take you up on your offer.
Of course if you have a professional sales person holding these meetings they will bring a selling strategy to each meeting which takes into consideration the key touch points for a decision maker, an articulate and professional speaking manner and techniques for asking for the business.
On the downside this sales person will not have an as intimate understanding as you do of the business and may not be able to answer specific questions which may mitigate the overall positive impression of their meeting.
I believe that if you are able to present yourself professionally in attire, speech and manner and do some research into key elements of a sales meeting to identify the "must do's" you may be suited to doing the selling.
If you have a sales person having the meetings with potential clients then I would ensure that they are equipped with all relevant information including a business overview and history so that they are put in the best possible position to seal the deal on your behalf.
Now let's face it, not everyone is comfortable selling and not everyone is good at it, that's why there are so many coaching and trainingcourses in this area. It is an art, there are skills to be learned and techniques to be attained.
So at the end of the day I think each business owner makes a decision based on what works for them, what makes sense for the size of their business and what fits with their vision for where they want their business to go.
To those hitting the pavement like me, I say go forth and conquer!
To those employing sales people, I say equip them and they shall conquer for thee!
