The biggest stereotype about salespeople is that they are pushy and aggressive. Because of that, we must work extra hard to overcome the perceived sales stereotypes that many people will have when they realize we are in sales.
These five tips will help you come off as less aggressive and intimidating, which will ultimately help you gain trust easier and avoid sales stereotypes.
- Be Genuine
People respond well to good energy, but you don’t want to sound like a robot or a recording. Make sure you know the difference between giving off positive energy and sounding condescending. Try practicing your tone and volume to people at work, family, and friends. Make sure they give honest feedback so that you can perfect your tone and pace. - Be Trustworthy When someone likes you, they’re more likely to trust you. Keep that same positive attitude throughout the entire presentation. Be honest and helpful and don’t make anything up to try to win them over when you don’t know the answer. Admit when you don’t know something, and they will respect the fact that you were honest. If you lose their trust, you lose any relationship you had with them.
- Be Personable Creating conversation while finding things in common will help you see opportunities and make connections that build rapport quickly. I always love it when people tell me they’re about to go on vacation because a lot of the time, it’s a place I’ve been to before. When someone says they’re traveling, I always ask where they’re going and try to create conversation from that. It’s an easy way to keep their attention longer. It gets them talking about themselves which people love. Tell them you can’t wait to hear about their trip because you’ve always wanted to go there and want to hear all about it! This creates a more casual way to follow up and build a real connection with this person.
- Get Excited Your attitude will reflect on the person you’re talking to. So get excited! Think about something that makes you really excited. How would you talk to your best friend about it? What would your tone and volume be like? What types of words and phrases would you use? That is exactly how you should sound when talking about your product/service. If you’re excited, your audience will feel that excitement too and you’re more likely to overcome sales stereotypes.
- You Can Be Persistent and Friendly at the Same Time Just because you should be positive and personable doesn’t mean that you should take no for an answer. You can be persistent without coming off as pushy or aggressive. I’ve had people tell me never take sales calls. But my energy made them decide to listen and they respected my persistence. Because of my tone, I’m not coming across as pushy to them.
Keep in mind, you can’t get through to everyone, but these practices will make a big difference in your sales calls/presentations and overcoming sales stereotypes. Try it out and see the difference a positive attitude and good energy can make!
