Guest post by Nicole Crimaldi founder of Ms. Career Girl.
You know those people who just sparkle? The types that make you pause to take it all in? The people you look forward to seeing/getting email from, the ones you don’t forget and will do business with even if they aren’t the cheapest?
When it comes to increasing your sales, the little things about your personal brand are BIG things!
1.) CARE. This advice comes from both me and from the 2009 winner of Dan Schawbel’s Personal Branding award: Gary Vaynerchuk. People sense if your care REAL quick whether you are communicating via your blog posts, your email responses, and or the expression on your face when meeting in person.
2.) Get inside peoples’ heads. Anytime you are communicating with someone, you should be thinking like a detective: what makes them tick, what motivates them, what are their fears. Being aware of these factors can completely transform the outcome of your conversation and build trust. For further insight, study the DISC method.
3.) Don’t operate on auto-pilot. This advice is in reference to the common questions you receive several times a day and to your sales pitch. For example, consider the question, “How are you?”
There is one doorman in my building I always look forward to seeing when I am heading off to work in the morning. Unlike all the other door attendants, his greetings always change along with his response to my usual, “Hi Michael, how are you?” He knows my name and when he sees me he makes me feel like I’m not just one of 100 other people who just walked out the door. I think of him completely differently than everyone else, mostly because I can’t anticipate what he is going to say to me. If he had a product, you can bet I’d be buying it regularly from this guy.
4.) On that note, remember peoples’ names and something that is important to them. I know my doorman Michael has 2 little girls with his wife and high school sweetheart. One of the girls just had a birthday. I integrate these important things into our conversations to make a simple conversation have more meaning. Apply this to a business situation and see how awesome it is. I bet he’d even buy something from ME now.
5.) Respond to your emails (and in a timely manner)! This.is.a.must. Especially in non-business relationships. Why? Because non-business relationships are the best way to breed business relationships. If you are alive, in the country and not in the hospital, there is no reason you cannot respond to emails within 24 hours. If you are swamped, just write a quick line that says “hey I can’t address this right now but I will write back or call you as soon as I can.” At least then people know you received their email. I’m super harsh about this in my own life. If you don’t have time for me, why should I make time for you?
6.) Connect others when there is no tangible or immediate benefit for you. Meet someone out/ have a friend who casually mentions they need ___ or that they like your ___? Put them in touch with someone in your network who can help them get that. Don’t expect anything in return.
7.) Ask people about themselves. Then ask some more questions. People LOVE talking about themselves and the encouragement they receive from your positive feedback and interest.
8.) Then listen to what they are saying. This is the biggest mistake sales people make. Listening doesn’t mean “stop talking so you can think about what you are going to say next.” It means read between the lines and hear what they perceive as valuable and sell it to them, even if it means doing things differently than you originally planned.
9.) Ask without selling. Survey your prospects without selling them anything. This allows you to get inside their head, see what they value, and adjust your product/service/pitch. It also disarms them from thinking of you as a typical sales person.
10.) Always give more than you receive. This makes you a dazzler.
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