How You Say It Is How You Sell It By Katherine M. Hart

Vocal talents and abilities are never more important than when you are selling a product or service. The act of selling creates a covenant between a buyer and a seller and clarity is vital. The seller is communicating information that can, by virtue of its clarity and enthusiasm, motivate the buyer to purchase the product or service. If that message is garbled or lackluster the potential buyer will easily loose interest. The key is how you say it!

All salespeople know that every part of the sales transaction is essential to a successful outcome. From the introduction to the closing, every part of the process must be crystal clear, buoyant, exciting, and genuine. The basis of these elements is the salespersons ability to communicate smoothly and clearly.

Salespeople who may be secure in their product knowledge but challenged by vocal abilities are compromised from the start. An enthusiastic “Hello, how are you?” opens the process and is the seller’s first chance to make a positive impression.

Even the most seasoned and knowledgeable sales professional needs this “hook” to draw in a customer. If this doesn’t occur, all information proceeding is inhibited. Once the foundation is formed an atmosphere of free flowing information occurs. The successful salesperson can keep the river of information flowing and overcome any customer’s objections. But, just as information is the river, communication is the current.

This current is the style and manner that the salesperson speaks and verbalizes. As obstacles appear, the current guides the flow around the rocks and logs that threaten the smooth flow of the river. Communication must be as powerful and graceful as a strong and beautiful river flowing along the banks of a majestic landscape. It can be that wonderful metaphor with training, conditioning, and confidence in one’s vocal abilities.

Every professional relies on their tools to do their job successfully. In sales, the voice is that tool. Too often companies depend upon product knowledge and pricing alone to create a successful sale. But if those were the essential elements to greater sales, the entire structure of the process would ignore the human element. It is communication that provides customer service. Asking and answering questions, overcoming objections, and closing the sale depend on that human element. It is also an element that cannot be replaced. Even as technology advances and selling becomes more automated, the need for human connection is not lost. It is the essence of a positive sales experience.

The sales professional who approaches every customer with confidence in their ability to provide information with interest, clarity, authority, language, and listening is empowered and excited. The power to influence opinion and behavior is indeed an empowering experience. That power really explains the dynamic and energetic atmosphere of the sales world. No day is the same as the previous one as sales professionals walk the high wire of communication exercise. The balance and precision required depend on the vocal balance and precision of the speaker.

Every sales professional can become an effective communicator with development of the tools necessary to allow them success. More and more sales organizations are providing vocal training to their sales training material. Knowing the product is no longer enough to sell the product. With the highly competitive nature of the sales world, good communication skills can be what sets you apart from competitors and propel you to success. The current that drives your river of success can be as strong, swift, and powerful as the “Mighty Mississippi” when it is driven by solid communication skills.

Katherine M. Hart is President and Founder of Hartfelt Communications, a professional training and communications imaging company. Over the past 25 years, Ms. Hart has trained over 25,000 Call Center Agents, Corporate Executives, Politicians, Actors, Community Leaders. She has developed several programs including ICALL and the Communications Connection - a corporate communications training program to work with developing strong internal communications protocols that translate to greater customer satisfaction. For many other presentation, training, and vocal empowerment programs, please visit http://www.hartfeltcommunications.com. Sign up for a monthly ezine-newletter "From the Hart" with vocal tips and communications essentials. To contact Katherine Hart for a recommendation from her network of professional voice-over artists to implement professional voice imaging in your company, please contact her at: khart@hartfelcommunications.com or call 312-786-1868