“Don’t wish it were easier, wish you were better.” — Jim Rohn
To me, selling sheds has been a way of life for a very long time (almost half of my life). I love the shed industry and there is nothing better than experiencing sales momentum and growth.
On the flip side, there is nothing harder and more disappointing than a slowdown in sales or a slump. In what seems like a roller-coaster ride at times, let’s try and stay focused on the positives of this wonderful business and always be looking for ways to develop our sales skills in terms of creating a wonderful customer experience.
Let me start off by saying something that is going to shock some of us.
YOU’RE NOT GOING TO GET EVERY SALE
As much as we all want to sell everyone that we come in contact with, it’s not going to happen.
I remember during my early days in the shed business I would get frustrated when a customer didn’t buy from me. In one particular situation, I was selling at the Kentucky State Fair and had been on a roll selling sheds right and left. I was in a zone. We always competed against each other to be the top producer.
I remember that this prospect was asking all of the right buying questions and giving me all the correct signals that they were ready to purchase their shed. I boldly asked the prospect and his wife if they wanted to go ahead and take advantage of our “once a year” State Fair Special? I mean, how could they resist such an offer?
That’s when they quickly told me that they were going to enjoy the fair and get back with me. I knew at that moment that they were not going to come back. I believe that most of us shed sellers have a sixth sense that gives you that old gut feeling about how a situation will play out.
Needless to say, they never came back. I shared what had happened to me with Ed, who was my mentor, and he looked at me almost perplexed and said, “The quicker that you realize that you are not going to make all the money and get all the sales, you are going to be a lot better off.”
What Ed said has stuck in my mind ever since that day. Ed was absolutely right! To this day, I strive to give every prospect my best shot and let the chips fall where they may. I still go into every presentation with confidence and the mindset that I am going to win the prospect’s business.
I’m now in my 26th year and guess what, it doesn’t always work out like I want it to. But when I give it my best, it really doesn’t bother me like it did in the past. I have also realized over the years that if I work on developing and sharpening my sales skills, I will increase my closing ratio in a big way.
That’s why we should all be focusing on the following.
ALWAYS BE IMPROVING YOUR SKILLS
I can’t begin to tell you how important this is to having success in the shed sales business. I’ve mentioned the importance of overall personal development in other articles, and it’s absolutely true.
One of the best things that you can do to attract more sales is to develop the skill of being an active listener. When you are engaging a prospect and asking them questions, be totally dialed in to what they are saying. Take notes if necessary. Being an active listener makes the prospect feel important and helps to build a rapport with them.
For example, during the conversation with your prospect, you should be nodding, agreeing, and making facial expressions as if you are hanging on every word. And you should be. This tells the prospect that you are deeply interested in what they have to say and that you care. This is super powerful!
The second skill to develop is your likeability. I’ve always believed that people like to do business with nice people. I can’t tell you how many times that I’ve had folks buy from me for the simple reason that I was nicer than the competitor down the street.
When you combine being an active listener and likeability, it makes it really hard for the prospect to turn you down. My dad would always remind me that “my attitude, not my aptitude, will determine my altitude.” How true that is. In other words, nobody cares how much that you know until they know how much that you care. Strive to be the most caring and nicest shed salesperson and your business will thrive just by doing these two things!
I encourage all of us to focus on doing right by the potential customer and to forget trying to “sell” them. We can’t expect to sell everyone that we come into contact with, but we can develop our sales skills and create a better rapport with potential customers.
Happy Selling!