by Karen van Zyl, Founder & CEO, VA Connect and SnappSales

If you Googled “always be closing” the first page will bring up results of Alec Baldwin’s monologue in a dated movie called Glengarry Glen Ross. There was a lot of hype back then regarding this ABC monologue. And if you ask around today they’ll tell you this mind-set dead.

I’m of a different mind. During my sales career I was “raised” to be in this mode of “always be closing”. Because I’m not your typical pushy salesperson I’ve taken a different twist on this.

They say this manner of sales is dead because it’s pushy, however, I disagree. For me, the ABC of sales merely means that you know your business and product so well, you truly understand your target audience and what pain you solve, that you can at a drop of a hat do your elevator pitch in a warm, convincing manner.

As we are now doing business in the noughties (read beyond 2000) there certainly is an evolution in sales, which I love, because it rings so much more true to my natural way of selling. Now we sell based on relationships that have been formed over time, trust has been established and we understand the value of thought leadership.

So why then do sales in a compassionate and understanding way?

Compassionate & understanding sales methods
Surely because you are able to make a lasting impression through relationship selling, by being compassionate & understanding in the sales process ensures that you take away the typical sales pressure.

You’re selling to a person
Remember, people buy from people, and we want to be sure that the money we’re parting with is going to a trustworthy cause and that we are going to see a great return on our investment.

Think of the time you were house-hunting. There was probably one maybe two estate agents that you felt really comfortable with and trusted your home to for them to sell. Recreate the same kind of warm selling journey for your clients.

Place yourself in your client’s shoes.
Place yourself in your buyers’ shoes. What would you make you feel comfortable in this buying process? What words would you like to hear or action would you like to see that will give you confidence to continue with the sales conversation?

Bringing it together
There are two things to remember in sales. The first one is to always stay true to your authentic self. People will very quickly pick up if you’re not being sincere and that is kind of off-putting in sales.

The second thing is you are a salesperson, whether you like it or not. We are all salespeople, from children to adults, from business owners to CEO’s and everything in between. Once you’ve made peace with the above you’ll find the sales process to be so much easier. Remain compassionate and understanding in your dealings with others. It will work out in the end!

Karen van Zyl is the co-founder and COO of VA Connect, a South African virtual assistant platform that provides outsourced administrative support; and is also the co-founder of SnappSales, a company that generates quality sales leads for its clients. Prior to establishing both her companies, Karen spent over 10 years in different sales, marketing & admin support roles. This experience has equipped her with the invaluable skills required to run her two successful business ventures. Follow Karen on her Personal Website | Twitter | Facebook | Google+