At our March NetStorming event Amy Hardin of  AcSELLerate Sales Development Systems talked about "Selling Up the Relationship Curve." There was also a follow-up teleseminar, the recording of which will be made available to our members this week.

Here is the overview of Amy's presentation which you can also download in this handy 1-page PDF: Relationship Curve.pdf

4 POSITIONS ON THE RELATIONSHIP CURVE:
• Vendor
• Solution Provider
• Consultant
• Trusted Advisor or Partner Advisor

REALITIES:
• Most professionals want to be a Trusted Advisor or Partner Advisor to their clients.
• Most professionals position themselves as Vendors or Solution Providers during the sales process without knowing it.
• Positioning yourself as a Partner Advisor with a prospect starts from the very first interaction.
• It is very difficult to climb the Relationship Curve (it’s a slippery slope) to Trusted Advisor status if you, the professional, initially position yourself at a lower point on the relationship curve.
• When the sale to a prospect is based on presenting price, features and benefits, you (the professional) are automatically selling and positioning yourself like a Vendor or Solution Provider.
• Your product or service shouldn’t dictate how you sell and position yourself.

DYNAMICS THAT CHANGE THE POSITIONING:
• Stop acting & sounding like your competition. For example:
1. If you sell on company reputation, service excellence, diversified portfolio, depth of knowledge, ethics and integrity, superior strategies, customized solutions, comprehensive financial planning and advice, etc., etc.—your competition is saying the exact same thing! Mission statements do not differentiate you or your company.
2. Stop telling everyone how bad the economy is and how tough business is. The worst player in your industry can say that.
3. Please don’t use a flipchart to sell. College kids who sell steak knives door-to-door use this tool.
4. While PowerPoint presentations have their place, recognize there is such a thing as Death By PowerPoint. Presentations don’t close deals.
• Develop 3rd Level Questioning Skills
• Implement a Sales Process that keeps the professional in control of the sale.
• Learn to set meetings that are purposeful, accomplish the objectives and require decisions.
• Increase the number of key relationships within your client companies.
• Deepen the relationships with your clients/client companies.
• Change your mind set about selling: You are an expert, not just a salesperson.
• Don’t plead for appointments or the chance to stop by a business.
• Change your objective for the sales call. It should be a peer-to-peer conversation.
• The objective of the Trusted Advisor sales professional is not the old ABCs of Selling (Always Be Closing). The new ABCs of Selling are Authentic Business Conversations.
• The sales professional who is a Trusted Advisor understands that their objective is to lead an excellent discovery process and to help your prospect make the right decision.