Calling Someone a "Customer" Is for Third-Rate Salespeople / Taught by the World's Top Salesperson! Sales Secrets You Can Use Starting Today #5

What do most salespeople call the people they are hoping to sign a contract with?

I hope it's not the case, but are they calling them "customer" or "client"?

In the previous discussion, I intentionally used the term "client," but in my daily life, I never use such terms.

This is because,calling someone a customer or client immediately gives off a sales vibe.

The other person's thought process follows this flow:

<Called a customer>

↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓

<Immediately feels like a sales pitch>

↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓

<Being sold to / Being forced to buy>

↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓

<Don't want to join / Don't want to be forced to buy>

I imagine many people have experienced this natural thought process in their own heads when someone tries to recommend something to them.

You should understand that before the merits or demerits of the product or service even come into play, the listener has already put their guard up.

When you are the one buying or being sold to, it doesn't matter what you are called.

That is because you are in the position of the customer, who gets to decide whether or not to buy.

As a customer, if you don't like something or aren't interested, there is no problem with choosing not to buy or not to join.

However, when you are the one doing the selling, you should minimize the parts that make the other person feel this way.

To do that,you need to be considerate enough to keep the other person from putting their guard up, even just a little.

It is a disaster if the words you use cause the other person to put their guard up.

If you use such words and then think to yourself, 'Today's customer seemed a bit guarded,' you should recognize that you are the one making them put their guard up.

So, what should you call someone you intend to have sign a contract?

One answer is the word “client”.

I imagine that since you are reading 'The Misfortune of Others is Sweet,' you have no desire to receive an explanation of English vocabulary from someone with my lackluster academic background, but allow me to explain.

While 'client' can mean 'customer' or 'consumer,' it also means 'someone who requests services.'

When I use the word 'client,' it is based on the idea that I am meeting with someone who has requested my services.

Therefore, I interact with them from the position of someone fulfilling a request, so I also approach the interaction with the mindset that I am in the superior position.

In fact, you need to speak with the intention of listening to the details of the other party's request.

The fact that I, who spent a hopeless student life, was able to become a world-class salesperson in two different industries is largely due to the accumulation of such small techniques.

I will write about the detailed content in the future, but for now, let's start by stopping the use of the word 'customer' immediately.

Furthermore, by saying 'customer' yourself, you also lower your own standing.

If you are dealing with someone much older or if 'client' feels uncomfortable, you can simply avoid using the word 'customer' by using phrases like 'the details of your consultation,' 'the details of your request,' or 'the details of your concerns.'

The point is, I want you to first be conscious of avoiding the word 'customer,' which immediately makes the other party think of purchases or subscriptions, so that you don't make them put their guard up from the start.

Therefore, there is no need to even attach an honorific like 'sama' to the other person.

To that end, it is important to ask for the other person's name early on.

Once you know the other person's name, you should basically just add 'san' to it.

When talking to a company president or a professional, you should only go as far as calling them 'President [Name]' or '[Title] [Name]'.

If this were counter sales or reactive sales, I could at least understand adding the honorific 'sama'.

However, if that is not the case, starting to call them 'sama' puts the other party in a superior position.

Naturally, the fact that the other party is in a superior position means your position is inferior.

Even during a presentation, even if you get a contract, or even if they introduce someone to you, your position remains low.

The fact that your position is low means you are more likely to be taken lightly by the other party.

Even if you arm yourself with clothing or say persuasive things through knowledge or presentation skills, you will continue to be taken lightly.

It might get slightly better, but it will not lead to a fundamental solution.

You must thoroughly eliminate the situation where your position is lower and you are being taken lightly.

This is common not only to stopping the use of the term 'customer' in sales, but also to other techniques.

Try to be conscious of making people think, 'This person is a bit different from other salespeople.'

To do that, you need staging and self-production.

As I mentioned in 'Let me guess your annual income♬', people generally congregate with others who have similar annual incomes.

This means that when you receive referrals from clients you have contracted with, they often have similar assets and annual incomes.

It would be fine if your clients were all high-income earners or wealthy individuals, but if you are generally looked down upon, you will end up dealing only with people whose annual income is lower than yours.

Even if things get a little better, you will end up dealing only with people with mediocre annual incomes.

When that happens, if you try to achieve big numbers, you will have to deal with a large number of clients.

What is even more troublesome is that the amount per contract is also likely to be small.

If it is a monthly payment amount, it will tend to be around 50,000 to 100,000 yen, and you will end up with only low-priced clients rather than the high-ticket items among the products you handle.

As I wrote in 'Busy means losing your heart / To you who spend busy days', the word for busy is written with the characters for 'losing' and 'heart'.

If the clients you deal with are all low-ticket, you will always be running around, getting contracts from many clients, and finally settling for mediocre sales results.

Since your time in life is not infinite, if you are engaging in such inefficient sales practices, you should improve them immediately.

It is difficult to get contracts from many people or to have the contract amounts from clients be low.

I would like you to recognize once again that I am not just a company No. 1 or a top-class domestic salesperson, but someone who has achieved world-class top-level sales results.

Even in two completely different industries, there is, of course, a reason why I have been able to continue producing world-class top sales results.

That is because paying attention to each and every one of these things is also a major factor.

I would be happy if you could like and follow.
I have also posted related articles in the magazine, so please read them if you like.

Hitotarawo

From the beginning of this story ⬇️