I'm preparing some training for the sales team of a hospice company. We'll cover a wide range of topics, but one keeps surfacing in my mind: It's not about you.

Many of them will feel pressure to meet goals, which is not a bad thing in itself. But many come from a sales background where negative reinforcement is the norm. What these companies might call "sense of urgency" more accurately plays out as desperation. And when someone is desperate, they walk into a sales call thinking, "I need..."

As soon as you're centering your mind on your own needs, you have abandoned the way your customer thinks.

I'm going to tell these reps, "There are several things that are very important to hospice care. Your needs are not one of them."

This is actually a very liberating thought, one I've posted on before. Customers do not exist to help you meet sales quotas or to help you win awards or to keep your manager off your back. You are supposed to be offering something to them, not the other way around. Once you get that, you are free to speak their language and truly help them.

And the funny thing is, that's when you win!

Labels: bad habits, customer centered, employees, management, marketing, salesmanship