We all have a SOCIAL STYLE that dictates our behaviors and preferences in all facets of life. These preferences effect salespeople, and influence our naturally preferred behaviors in selling situations. But of course our own preferences are not necessarily those of the people we are trying to sell to. In fact, the odds are 3 -1 that the person you’re selling to is a different SOCIAL STYLE than you.
What is effective in one selling scenario could come off as overly abrasive or unenthusiastic in another.
An effective sales person knows it is all about being able to read the customer — their body language, their eye contact, their voice inflections, but has your sales team been trained to know what all of those behaviors are actually telling them?
SOCIAL STYLE training gives us a better understanding of ourselves and of others. We learn about the four SOCIAL STYLEs (Amiable, Analytical, Expressive and Driving) and form ‘Ah Ha’ moments as we learn things about ourselves that we may have never recognized before, like our backup behaviors when we feel threatened and what triggers us to feel threatened. For example, as an Expressive Style person, I feel threatened when I feel that my efforts aren’t appreciated and when I am receiving too much negative criticism without any positive feedback. My backup behavior is to become defensive. Knowing this about myself I try to not become overly defensive – and try to think of any criticism as constructive.
On the flip side, this understanding of SOCIAL STYLE allows you to pick up on behavioral cues and determine others’ SOCIAL STYLEs, giving you the most comprehensive understanding of how to best interact with them.
For example, your customer is working with someone who is slower paced and less direct in eye contact. They seem to be less interested in small talk and very detail focused. From this your sales person can determine they are working with an Analytical Style customer, and that they should appeal to her need for thorough research and time to make a decision. While other customers might be more concerned with the look and feel of your product, this customer is more concerned with the warranties as they prefer to minimize risk and comparing your research and competitor’s research. Rushing an Analytical Style person into a decision will make them very uncomfortable, and even if they did end up buying in that situation, they would never return to buy from you again.
This is known as having high Versatility, and as any good sales person knows, knowing who your audience is, is the key to surpassing this year’s quota. Training in SOCIAL STYLE gives your sales staff the tools to make a proper assessment of their customers’ body language, and adapt their selling strategies to what the client’s SOCIAL STYLE is.
The SOCIAL STYLE and Versatility Model will help you improve sales by giving your sales people the tools to understand themselves and how they can appeal to others. This training helps them understand what their customers’ behaviors are really telling them.
Want to learn more about SOCIAL STYLE for your Sales team? Click here.
