Once the music starts to play, the lights begin to dim, and the couples begin to pair up and move on to the dance floor, it’s too late to keep your rival from getting the partner you’ve had your sights set on. You needed to get their attention long before that. It’s hard for them to look around to see what others have to offer when you’ve got their attention riveted on you.
Even though you’ve never danced together before, you want to make sure that you’re the only one they’re thinking about. So way before the music begins, you needed to make eye contact, start a conversation and be developing a relationship, or it won’t be you dancing in the moonlight, but your competition.
Unfortunately, in business, you can’t stop your competitors from contacting your prospects, just like you can’t keep your rival from asking for that dance. However, you can keep the attention focused where you have the best advantage to be the partner of choice. Here are a few tips for making sure you don’t leave the dance alone.
Develop a Relationship
You’ve heard it said before, research shows that it takes an average of 7 to 13+ touches to make a prospect a qualified sales-ready lead. Even though you have never sold your prospect a thing, you need to nurture a relationship over time that creates recognition. Ask good questions. Be a good listener. Provide helpful solution-oriented information. Be someone your prospect would like to dance with even if they’re dating someone else.
Stand Out in the Crowd
Make yourself different from the others by not being the stereotypical sales person. Don’t dwell on sales tactics but instead create an image of being a solutions provider. Out distance your competition with relevant information and become known as the expert in your field to your prospect. Own some of the turf–even if you don’t get paid for it; provide a free audit, analysis or other small service so you can “go on record” with your prospect. Ask your prospect for their opinion on a direction you are considering.
Lead Instead of Shove
People don’t like to be shoved onto the dance floor or into doing things they don’t want to do. Extending a hand with a polite invitation to slide the soles on the sawdust or initiating a dialogue that leads them to a logical conclusion is more likely to get positive results. Avoid pushy rhetoric and instead offer helpful suggestions based on the answers to good questions you have posed.
Do Your Homework before the Dance
Research your prospects so you don’t waste time on basic questions to which you should know the answer. In your conversations, be prepared to cite relevant examples of how you have helped others with similar challenges. It’s okay to drop names of who you’ve danced with before and quote valid statistics. (X increase in Y months) Know your competition, their strengths and weaknesses. In your communications, emphasize those areas where you shine compared to your competition.
Half the World
According to a RainToday.com study, only 48% of buyers stated that they were very satisfied with their current provider. The study also showed that the 52% who were not very satisfied were likely to consider changing providers. In other words, even if they currently have a dance partner, if prospects aren’t fully satisfied, half of them will consider switching to another partner. If you want to keep your competition off the dance floor, you need to shine those shoes and make sure you keep those prospects making eye contact with nobody but you.
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