For
more information visit: www.salestrainingcamp.com.

Does your
selling style address the most fundamental needs of your prospects?
What are the most important factors to someone making an important
buying decision?

Universities
and market research firms have conducted numerous studies to
determine the most important buying decision factors for people
who make significant purchases. We gathered as many of those
studies as we could find, and did simple correlation analyses
to average out the results. Here are the results, in order of
importance.

Weighted
Values* of Buying Decision Factors(c)

1. Level
of Trust in the Salesperson: 87

2. Level of Respect for the Salesperson: 82

3. Reputation of the Company or Product: 76

4. Features of the Product or Service: 71

5. Quality and Service: 58

6. Price (non-commodity): 16

12. Like the Salesperson (rapport): 3

*(Weight = percentage of people listing each factor in their
top 5)

The average
salesperson knows how to effectively present 4 of the 7 factors
cited above: Reputation (#3), Features (#4), Quality and Service
(#5), and Rapport (#12). They try to handle the two most important
buying decision factors, Trust (#1) and Respect (#2), by establishing
Rapport (#12).

Building
"Rapport" is an inherently manipulative tactic. Ironically,
typical salespeople attempt to establish Trust and Respect,
non-manipulative factors, by manipulating people. Building rapport
doesn't establish trust and respect, it diminishes trust and
respect. That's why only 3% of all buyers surveyed rate 'Like
the Salesperson' as an important buying decision factor.

If Trust
and Respect are so important, why don't most salespeople learn
how to establish relationships of trust and respect with their
prospects and customers? We've come to the conclusion that there
are three reasons:

1. Most
salespeople don't know that it can be done.

2. If they
learn a process that develops that kind of relationship, they
feel uncomfortable using it because it's very unconventional.

3. Trust
and Respect are very personal emotions, and sharing emotions
is commonly regarded as only suitable for intimate relationships.
Most salespeople have a fear of intimacy. Yet, we've found that
less than 1/2 of 1 percent of prospects and customers have a
fear of intimacy.

Let's suppose
you're faced with a very important buying decision. Let's say
you have decided to relocate thirty miles away from where you
live now, so that you and your spouse will both have shorter
commutes to work. So, you need to sell your current home and
buy a new one. To whom would you entrust the sale of your most
valued possession? Are you going to entrust the sale of your
house to a charming and friendly Realtor who tells you that
they have the best marketing system, the best skills, the best
negotiating ability, and affiliation with the biggest real estate
firm? Or, will you hire the Realtor whom you trust and respect
the most to sell your most valued possession?

Regardless
of whether you sell to consumers or B-2-B, all sales are made
to people. When the sales are significant, most people want
to buy from someone they trust and respect. Why? Fear of loss
is the most important buying motivation. You could lose tens
of thousands in the hands of an untrustworthy Realtor. At work,
choosing an unreliable vendor could cost you a raise, a promotion,
or your job.

If you learn
a process that establishes relationships of mutual trust and
respect with prospects during your first conversation with them,
you will have the ultimate competitive advantage. If not, hope
to be the most persuasive salesperson your prospects meet- and
hope that someone who practices High Probability Selling isn't
your competitor!

©1996-1999,
2000-2004 High Probability® Selling. All Rights Reserved.

About
the Author:

High Probability Prospecting® is the first phase of the
High Probability Selling® system. Learn how to stop wasting
time with Low Probability Prospects! Read the first four chapter
of Jacques Werth's book, High Probability Selling - FREE –
at http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=108505.

High Probability
Selling is a leading sales training and sales consulting company
founded in 1989. While High Probability Selling principles may
seem quite radical, they have been proven to be highly successful
on hundreds of thousands of sales calls by salespeople in over
seventy industries. More information on Jacques Werth and High
Probability Selling is available at http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=108505.

Contact
Information:

High Probability® Selling

103 Chesley Drive, Suite 200

Media, PA 19063

Foreign: (610) 566-1535, Toll Free: (800) 394-7762

Email: contactus@highprobsell.com

www.highprobsell.com

© Copyright 2003 by SalesVault.com

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