Shownotes
Maria Bayer’s Story
How Maria’s career in sales began. [4:31] The manager who cultivated her natural talent and mindset. [6:19]Successful Sales Insights
The sales approach of advocate and consultant. [8:11] It starts with building trust. [11:02] Consistency and fulfilling expectations is key. [13:26] The value of just being yourself. [14:49] The parallels of sales and dating. [15:20] What to do when you hear “No.” [28:03] What to do if you are uncomfortable asking questions. [31:57]Corporate Selling
The first contact with a potential customer. [17:15] It’s important to have a sales process. [19:45] Framing the meeting. [23:29] A breakdown of what should be included in the process. [24:02] How to stand out from other vendors. [26:11]Valuable Resource
Acquity – Online appointment scheduling software. Clients schedule appointments, pay, and complete intake forms online 24/7. [34:00]Contact Links
Website Facebook Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Irresistible Selling FB Group – Learn Collaborate FlourishJoin the Gift Biz Breeze Community – it’s private but it’s free!
If you found value in this podcast, make sure to subscribe and leave a review in Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts. That helps us spread the word to more makers just like you.
Thanks! Sue
Transcripts
You're listening to gift biz unwrapped episode 145.
Speaker:I don't want you to feel like you're selling.
Speaker:I want you to feel like you're just a better version
Speaker:of you.
Speaker:Attention gifters bakers,
Speaker:crafters, and makers pursuing your dream can be fun.
Speaker:Whether you have an established business or looking to start one.
Speaker:Now you are in the right place.
Speaker:This is give to biz unwrapped,
Speaker:helping you turn your skill into a flourishing business.
Speaker:Join us for an episode,
Speaker:packed full of invaluable guidance,
Speaker:resources, and the support you need to grow your gift.
Speaker:This here is your host gift biz gal Sue Mon height.
Speaker:Hi there.
Speaker:It's Sue and thank you for joining me today on the
Speaker:gift biz unwrapped podcast.
Speaker:Today, I have the pleasure of introducing you to Maria Baier.
Speaker:Maria is the creator of irresistible selling an online group coaching
Speaker:program. She designed to help creative entrepreneurs,
Speaker:book, higher paying clients,
Speaker:grow their business and design a life they love.
Speaker:She teaches the authentic selling and mindset strategies that helped her
Speaker:triple her income in less than a year.
Speaker:And go on to book over 25 million in sales from
Speaker:companies like target best buy Alta office max and Hyatt.
Speaker:Maria is a national speaker and has authored and co-authored several
Speaker:Kindle books.
Speaker:She resides in the Chicago area with her husband,
Speaker:Tim and for baby GI,
Speaker:usually with a cold brew in hand,
Speaker:which makes us friends already Maria,
Speaker:welcome to the show.
Speaker:Thank you so much,
Speaker:Sue. I'm so excited to be here today As an extension
Speaker:of your intro.
Speaker:I like to have people get to know you in a
Speaker:little bit of a creative way,
Speaker:and that is by having you describe for us what would
Speaker:be your ideal motivational candle.
Speaker:So if you could give us a visual of that,
Speaker:what would the color be and what would be the quote
Speaker:on your candle?
Speaker:Well, I think it would be an Aqua color,
Speaker:like the sky or the sea,
Speaker:because that just gives me this visual of infinite possibilities.
Speaker:And I think the quote would be,
Speaker:you are more powerful than,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:because I feel like we do not embrace the power that
Speaker:is inside of us and we play small and we have
Speaker:to constantly remind ourselves that the sky's the limit for us.
Speaker:And we need to put ourselves out there and that we're
Speaker:put here on this earth,
Speaker:not to shrink and hide,
Speaker:but to grow and to expand and to be the most
Speaker:that we can be.
Speaker:I so agree with you.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:why do we always diminish what our skills are?
Speaker:Just because there are,
Speaker:I think it's very common and we have to get out
Speaker:of that,
Speaker:particularly women.
Speaker:Yes, absolutely.
Speaker:I hate to generalize,
Speaker:but I do think at least from my experience,
Speaker:women tend to shrink more and not feel like they can
Speaker:brag about what they've done well,
Speaker:and we should be proud of that because we've worked hard
Speaker:to get where we are and we should be proud of
Speaker:that. Absolutely.
Speaker:And just as men should be too,
Speaker:and the majority of our listeners honestly are women.
Speaker:So just bringing up the truth of it,
Speaker:it seems like when we like to state our accomplishments,
Speaker:but it looks like we're being overly boisterous or something like
Speaker:that. Versus if men do it,
Speaker:it looks like being successful.
Speaker:Or however you want to say that,
Speaker:I think the time is to level up.
Speaker:And the big thing about that is,
Speaker:I guess I'll go a different direction with this is if
Speaker:you're not going to share your successes,
Speaker:how is anyone going to know Exactly?
Speaker:You have to be your biggest cheerleader,
Speaker:because if you're not proud of what you've done,
Speaker:your clients will never see that.
Speaker:Absolutely. So I was so excited to find out about you,
Speaker:Maria, because I'll tell you,
Speaker:I think by far the biggest question I'm always getting from
Speaker:coaching clients,
Speaker:especially people in the creative industry is that whole idea of
Speaker:selling is like the farthest thing from anything that people want
Speaker:to even think about much less have to do.
Speaker:So I'm really excited to talk with you because you can't
Speaker:grow a business,
Speaker:unless someone is going to know about your product and you're
Speaker:going to talk about it and there's going to be an
Speaker:exchange of money.
Speaker:There's going to be a sale.
Speaker:So let's dive into that right away.
Speaker:I think let's just go for it.
Speaker:Let's talk about the stigma behind selling.
Speaker:Yeah. You can't see me nodding,
Speaker:but I hear as you're talking,
Speaker:I'm Italian,
Speaker:so I'll continue to talk with my hands as well.
Speaker:So just imagine that as you're listening,
Speaker:The visual,
Speaker:anytime you need to,
Speaker:that's fine.
Speaker:Air quotes,
Speaker:whatever. Yeah.
Speaker:That is absolutely by far the biggest,
Speaker:I think hurdle that so many of us have to go
Speaker:over to get to the other side.
Speaker:And I struggled with that as well.
Speaker:When I went into sales a long,
Speaker:long time ago,
Speaker:part of the reason I went into it was to get
Speaker:out of my shell actually,
Speaker:because I was so painfully introverted and I wanted to not
Speaker:be so introverted and so scared to like talk to people.
Speaker:I didn't know.
Speaker:So I started in sales.
Speaker:I met somebody that introduced me to somebody who needed to
Speaker:hire a sales person.
Speaker:And he was complaining because he couldn't find somebody that knew
Speaker:the finance world.
Speaker:And that was my background.
Speaker:So I went to school for finance.
Speaker:I was working in that industry.
Speaker:And so he hired me with absolutely zero experience in selling
Speaker:because he said,
Speaker:I can teach you how to sell,
Speaker:but I need someone who understands the people they're selling to
Speaker:who can talk their language,
Speaker:who can understand what they're thinking,
Speaker:what they're struggling with.
Speaker:And in this case I was selling software.
Speaker:This is what the product was.
Speaker:And it was selling software to people in companies too,
Speaker:like CFOs or controllers,
Speaker:people that were handling money.
Speaker:And it was helping them with budgeting and a few other
Speaker:things. So he taught me how to sell.
Speaker:But what he wanted was somebody obviously that knew that industry
Speaker:fast forward.
Speaker:He did that.
Speaker:He taught me how to sell.
Speaker:He left a few months later.
Speaker:So here I am stumbling around in this job and having
Speaker:some of the skills that I needed because he taught me
Speaker:some great things before he left.
Speaker:And then I was floundering because I didn't have a manager
Speaker:at that point.
Speaker:And I wasn't just trying to figure it out and it
Speaker:wasn't working so fast forward,
Speaker:I get laid off because I'm the low man on the
Speaker:totem pole and I'm not producing.
Speaker:So of course they laid me off.
Speaker:I find another job,
Speaker:thank God in the same industry.
Speaker:And they took a chance on me because I really didn't
Speaker:have very much experience,
Speaker:but thankfully there,
Speaker:I had a manager that really understood me and was very,
Speaker:very good at just cultivating what was my natural talents and
Speaker:helping me realize that my mindset about selling that it was
Speaker:not correct.
Speaker:And what was impeding me was that I was thinking,
Speaker:Oh, I've gotta be aggressive.
Speaker:I've got to be this used car salesman,
Speaker:no offense to any car salespeople out there,
Speaker:but I didn't have to be that stereotype.
Speaker:And once he helped me realize that,
Speaker:that that's what I was thinking.
Speaker:And that was not necessarily true,
Speaker:that there are many ways to be successful in selling that
Speaker:I could leverage my natural strengths of people skills and befriending
Speaker:people and really understanding them and being their advocate that I
Speaker:could be successful that way.
Speaker:And so he helped me see that my mindset was in
Speaker:my way,
Speaker:but more importantly than that,
Speaker:that it wasn't the only way to sell.
Speaker:So he gave me a different way to frame what I
Speaker:was thinking.
Speaker:And he helped me align my goals with my mindset.
Speaker:So that really made all the difference in my career.
Speaker:And that's when things skyrocketed for me.
Speaker:So once I was able to figure that out and really
Speaker:look at selling in a different way,
Speaker:my results just completely skyrocketed.
Speaker:I almost think we should change the whole word because selling
Speaker:reminds me of that.
Speaker:And I was in sales for most of my corporate life.
Speaker:And I think you're always in sales.
Speaker:If you're in business,
Speaker:you're always in sales to some level,
Speaker:but the old fashioned word of sales is exactly what you're
Speaker:talking about.
Speaker:Like the car salesman or just that I don't even care
Speaker:if you need it,
Speaker:but you're going to buy it from me type attitude.
Speaker:Exactly. And like I said,
Speaker:I wish there was a whole different word because the approach
Speaker:to having someone purchase what you have for their benefit,
Speaker:doesn't equate to that old image of sales at all.
Speaker:Exactly. And that's the only way I can sell.
Speaker:I don't want to sell you something that you do not
Speaker:have a need for.
Speaker:So that's my approach.
Speaker:And so one of the things that I try to impress
Speaker:upon my students is that the way you think about sales
Speaker:is really going to completely affect the way you talk to
Speaker:your clients the way they feel when they're talking to you
Speaker:and how they respond to you.
Speaker:So my feeling is you are,
Speaker:and after a long,
Speaker:long time in sales,
Speaker:I've been at so many different scenarios.
Speaker:So I've seen it from so many different perspectives,
Speaker:but the best thing for me is really to look at
Speaker:it from the perspective of I'm your advocate,
Speaker:I'm your consultant.
Speaker:I'm somebody that wants the best for you,
Speaker:even if that means that you're going to hire somebody else.
Speaker:That's okay.
Speaker:I want you to make an informed decision and make the
Speaker:best decision for you.
Speaker:So I want to give you the information you need to
Speaker:make a decision one way or the other.
Speaker:Another way to spin it is if a friend comes up
Speaker:to you and says,
Speaker:Hey, a lot of my clients are in the wedding industry.
Speaker:So what I tell them is if a friend comes to
Speaker:you and says,
Speaker:let's say you're a wedding planner and your friend comes to
Speaker:you and says,
Speaker:Hey, I'm getting married,
Speaker:but I can't use you as my planner because let's say
Speaker:you're out of the country,
Speaker:for example.
Speaker:So what advice would you give me in selecting a wedding
Speaker:planner? So when you look at it from that perspective,
Speaker:as you're consulting your friend,
Speaker:how to pick a wedding planner and what questions to ask
Speaker:and what the differences are between different types of wedding planners
Speaker:and why some are priced at this price point and why
Speaker:some are priced at this price point,
Speaker:that's higher.
Speaker:That's the way you should look at it,
Speaker:because then it helps you change your whole dynamic and your
Speaker:perspective. And just the approach that you take when you're talking
Speaker:to somebody and you don't feel like you're selling.
Speaker:And that's my goal.
Speaker:I don't want you to feel like you're selling.
Speaker:I want you to feel like you're just a better version
Speaker:of you and just more articulately explaining how you can help
Speaker:someone. Yes.
Speaker:And I think for that to happen,
Speaker:you have to have a very clear understanding yourself of what
Speaker:it is you offer and who is right for your product
Speaker:or services and who isn't necessarily right for your product services.
Speaker:In other words,
Speaker:that you would want to then send them on to somebody
Speaker:else. Exactly.
Speaker:So for gift biz listeners,
Speaker:that's one of the things that we talk about is making
Speaker:sure that you really understand who your product best serves and
Speaker:have that grounded,
Speaker:which then falls right into what Maria's talking about.
Speaker:I love when you're saying talk like you're talking to a
Speaker:friend and again,
Speaker:I'm going to just say this as women.
Speaker:I think we do.
Speaker:We really want the best for the people that we're talking
Speaker:to. We're not looking necessarily at making quotas or that type
Speaker:of thing,
Speaker:but before you can have that friendship,
Speaker:you have to have developed some level of trust.
Speaker:Exactly. How do people go about doing that?
Speaker:How do they build trust with someone that they just met?
Speaker:Yeah. I think there's a lot of aspects to that.
Speaker:So there's the things that you can do before they even
Speaker:talk to you that can build trust.
Speaker:So to your point,
Speaker:if you know who your ideal customer or client is the
Speaker:way you talk to that client on your website,
Speaker:because that's usually going to be the first touch point that
Speaker:they have,
Speaker:make sure that you talk to them to that specific person
Speaker:that will help them feel like,
Speaker:Oh, she gets me,
Speaker:like, she really understands what I'm struggling with and what I
Speaker:desire and what I want in my life.
Speaker:So that's like the first touch point and then building it
Speaker:throughout your entire process.
Speaker:That's one of my philosophies is one way to not be
Speaker:salesy, not be pushy,
Speaker:not be a used car salesman is really to structure your
Speaker:process from beginning to end so that all of it reinforces
Speaker:your end result,
Speaker:which is to get them to a decision,
Speaker:whether that's yes or no.
Speaker:So giving them everything that they need to make a decision
Speaker:and make them feel like you understand them,
Speaker:whether that be the questions that you ask them,
Speaker:the process that you take them through,
Speaker:if you are offering services,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:there's usually some automation tools that you're going to need to
Speaker:make that process be smooth and come across very professionally.
Speaker:So all of those little pieces go into building trust.
Speaker:And then some of the just really easy things are a
Speaker:fast response times following through on what you say you're going
Speaker:to do.
Speaker:Like if you're a business owner that has to give somebody
Speaker:a quote,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:don't say you're going to give it to them in an
Speaker:hour and give it to them.
Speaker:Three days later,
Speaker:simple things like that.
Speaker:You can do where most people think,
Speaker:Oh, they have to go through hoops and do something extraordinary.
Speaker:My experience shows me that a lot of people aren't doing
Speaker:even the basic things,
Speaker:right? So if you do those right,
Speaker:you're going to stand out just by doing what you say
Speaker:you're going to do.
Speaker:Oh my gosh.
Speaker:So true.
Speaker:And it seems so obvious if you say you're going to
Speaker:do something,
Speaker:then just follow through and actually do it.
Speaker:Exactly. I think the other thing is consistency.
Speaker:When we were talking about your online presence and you're talking
Speaker:about when they get to the website,
Speaker:make sure that you are speaking to them so that they
Speaker:really feel like you understand your customer,
Speaker:but also you should be doing that across all of your
Speaker:online sites.
Speaker:So if it's on social media,
Speaker:if you're doing live presentations,
Speaker:everything you want to keep consistent.
Speaker:Cause that also develops a level of trust because you're showing
Speaker:up somewhere and you're the same everywhere you show up.
Speaker:You're exactly right.
Speaker:Absolutely. And I think that when you try to be consistent
Speaker:across all platforms and you try to show them what your
Speaker:personality and your philosophy is like,
Speaker:then when they talk to you on the phone or interact
Speaker:with you,
Speaker:you're portraying the same person.
Speaker:There's no disconnect there.
Speaker:Right? So I think that,
Speaker:especially for me,
Speaker:I look at what do I want to portray?
Speaker:What do I want people to know about me in my
Speaker:social media,
Speaker:whether I say it overtly or whether it's just the undertone
Speaker:of what's the tone of what I'm putting out there.
Speaker:So I want people to know that I'm approachable.
Speaker:I want them to know that I am somebody that will
Speaker:encourage you because I think that that's half the battle.
Speaker:And that's my personal philosophy that you should aim for the
Speaker:stars. And I always want to encourage people because they can
Speaker:do so much more than they think Maria is talking about
Speaker:how she is approaching her customers.
Speaker:And she provides the services,
Speaker:the sales coaching,
Speaker:et cetera.
Speaker:If you're an artist with a tangible product,
Speaker:you are still the face behind your whole company because you're
Speaker:the creator of the product.
Speaker:Even if you now have that product produced by others at
Speaker:this point,
Speaker:because you've grown.
Speaker:I think Maria,
Speaker:the interesting thing that you were just talking about now is
Speaker:also the hardest thing for so many people to do in
Speaker:terms of consistency,
Speaker:especially when you're in person,
Speaker:because the real story is to be consistent.
Speaker:You just need to be yourself.
Speaker:And that's also the scariest thing to do.
Speaker:Absolutely. Sometimes we're afraid to be ourselves because we're not sure
Speaker:if people are going to like that or if it's going
Speaker:to resonate with them.
Speaker:But to me it's the best way honesty is in all
Speaker:aspects is the easiest thing,
Speaker:because you don't have to ever remember what you did.
Speaker:You just be yourself and you'll always be consistent.
Speaker:Right. Which brings us to your yes or no.
Speaker:You were just mentioning that you're looking for that end result
Speaker:and the end result should be a yes or no.
Speaker:The worst result is a maybe someone who drags you on.
Speaker:Absolutely. In fact,
Speaker:sometimes it helps to look at it like from a dating
Speaker:perspective. Sales to me is a lot like dating.
Speaker:In fact,
Speaker:I remember a client a long time ago,
Speaker:she posted in our Facebook group.
Speaker:She says,
Speaker:by the way,
Speaker:I've been using your strategies very effectively in my dating life.
Speaker:Oh, no kidding.
Speaker:Yeah, because there's so many parallels.
Speaker:And I found that if you approach a sales situation,
Speaker:like, and I was there,
Speaker:so I get it.
Speaker:I've been on both sides of it.
Speaker:I was that scared salesperson that didn't want to be pushy
Speaker:and always just wanted to sell somebody and was afraid that
Speaker:if I did the wrong thing,
Speaker:they wouldn't buy it,
Speaker:et cetera.
Speaker:So I get that.
Speaker:But once I was able to look at it from the
Speaker:perspective of it's a two way street,
Speaker:I want them to like me,
Speaker:but I want to like them too.
Speaker:I want to make sure it's a good mutual fit.
Speaker:And so I use that terminology a lot with my clients
Speaker:and I have them use it with their clients to help
Speaker:show their clients that this has to be a mutual fit.
Speaker:I'm not here just to take your money.
Speaker:I might love you,
Speaker:but you may not love me.
Speaker:And it needs to be a two-way street.
Speaker:So when you look at it from that perspective,
Speaker:it really helps kind of relax you and helps you remember
Speaker:that. It's not just you,
Speaker:that's on display here and that you have to give a
Speaker:show or some magic spiel and then they'll hire you.
Speaker:It's really a conversation.
Speaker:It's really more of a friendship,
Speaker:so to speak and it has to be a two-way street.
Speaker:And that tends to relax both sides so that you can
Speaker:have a much more intimate conversation and get to the heart
Speaker:of what they're looking for.
Speaker:Right. So we've talked about the switch in mindset that we
Speaker:should have about sales.
Speaker:We've also talked about how the conversation continues on after you've
Speaker:gotten that initial contact,
Speaker:developing trust,
Speaker:and then you're talking with a friend and just being honest,
Speaker:seeing if it's a fit from both sides,
Speaker:let's back up a little bit and talk about how do
Speaker:you get that first connection point?
Speaker:Do you have any thoughts on that With a potential client
Speaker:that comes to you that inquires?
Speaker:Sure. When someone inquires with you,
Speaker:I think that's a really critical point.
Speaker:And in my sales background,
Speaker:there's different strategies that you use to,
Speaker:I guess,
Speaker:test out the client to see how serious they are.
Speaker:The rule of thumb is in the beginning.
Speaker:You want to make it super easy for people to contact
Speaker:you. So the first step is really looking at,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:if the best way for them to contact you as your
Speaker:website, or maybe you have an Etsy site or something like
Speaker:that, make sure that you have your contact information or the
Speaker:way that you want them to contact you,
Speaker:whether that's your phone,
Speaker:email, or a contact form,
Speaker:make sure that readily accessible,
Speaker:make sure they don't have to click 14 times to get
Speaker:to it or to search and find it.
Speaker:So that's first step is make it super easy for them
Speaker:just to make that first step to reach out.
Speaker:You don't want to give them too many hurdles in the
Speaker:beginning because you don't want to keep them and prevent them
Speaker:from reaching out to you.
Speaker:So it makes sense makes total sense.
Speaker:And I see that as contact numbers on your website,
Speaker:contact forms like you're talking about,
Speaker:it seems so obvious,
Speaker:but if you go and look around,
Speaker:you'll see a lot of people miss this step.
Speaker:So yes,
Speaker:it's super important.
Speaker:I agree with you,
Speaker:Right? Especially if you have a physical location that should be
Speaker:front and center on your website.
Speaker:So don't make people hunt for that and your location should
Speaker:be on every page.
Speaker:In my opinion,
Speaker:just make it super easy because people might come to you
Speaker:in different ways,
Speaker:not necessarily your main page.
Speaker:So that's the most important thing.
Speaker:Next, we're going to move into an important conversation about selling
Speaker:to corporations.
Speaker:But before we do a quick word from our sponsor,
Speaker:this podcast is made possible.
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Speaker:visit the ribbon print company.com
Speaker:for more information.
Speaker:And I want to just make a point to our listeners
Speaker:here too.
Speaker:I'm thinking of this more in the vein you guys have
Speaker:when you're going after corporate business,
Speaker:because people who are coming in as a customer just right
Speaker:into the store are going to be able to look at
Speaker:your products,
Speaker:talk with you a little bit pretty easily.
Speaker:Yes, no.
Speaker:I think this conversation and selling in particular,
Speaker:we all kind of freeze when we're looking at larger accounts,
Speaker:larger business,
Speaker:either getting your product or your service into corporate or else
Speaker:going the wholesale route,
Speaker:where you want to get products and such into whole foods
Speaker:or other types of locations.
Speaker:So think of this as we continue talking with that in
Speaker:the back of your mind,
Speaker:That's a really good point.
Speaker:And also if you're going after corporate accounts,
Speaker:then it's going to become really important for you to have
Speaker:a tight process and automation systems and things that will alert
Speaker:you as soon as an inquiry comes in.
Speaker:So that those things are handled in a consistent and timely
Speaker:manner because especially with corporate accounts,
Speaker:time is of the essence because they have higher expectations of
Speaker:response times than usually the general public does.
Speaker:So that's going to be really critical to show that you
Speaker:are professional,
Speaker:that you've got the systems in place that you know,
Speaker:your stuff.
Speaker:You know what I mean?
Speaker:Like if you come across as just some independent contractor type
Speaker:of a person that doesn't have any automation,
Speaker:it's not going to come across as professionally,
Speaker:as somebody that has a system down Really,
Speaker:really good point.
Speaker:I think there's a couple of keys we're going to be
Speaker:bringing out here when dealing with corporate,
Speaker:but a thought that you just triggered in my mind also
Speaker:is especially people who have never,
Speaker:maybe worked in corporate before.
Speaker:Couple of things to think about number one,
Speaker:you're probably dealing with a marketing department,
Speaker:a purchasing department,
Speaker:and they are on the line for providing success to their
Speaker:business. There's a lot for them riding on you.
Speaker:If they're going to use your product or your services.
Speaker:So you need to instill,
Speaker:we were talking about trust earlier,
Speaker:but the confidence that what you say you're going to do
Speaker:can actually be done and that you will do.
Speaker:The other thing about corporate is I'll be interested in your
Speaker:thoughts about this.
Speaker:Maria is you don't want to wait for them to tell
Speaker:you how to proceed.
Speaker:You want to have a process.
Speaker:So you want to be guiding a potential corporate customer from,
Speaker:okay, the initial meeting,
Speaker:this is what we're going to talk about.
Speaker:This is what we'll do,
Speaker:gathering information,
Speaker:whatever it is.
Speaker:And then you having the next step so that you are
Speaker:controlling, not in an aggressive way,
Speaker:but where you are very confident.
Speaker:You know what the next steps are,
Speaker:whether it's contracts,
Speaker:whether it's samples,
Speaker:whatever, because if you leave it up to the other person
Speaker:it'll possibly just fall flat.
Speaker:That's a really,
Speaker:really good point.
Speaker:And that's,
Speaker:I think important no matter who you're selling to.
Speaker:It's one of the things that we talk about to my
Speaker:clients in terms of,
Speaker:in order for you to show that you know what you're
Speaker:doing. I mean,
Speaker:part of the reason why people hire you,
Speaker:whether it's corporate or otherwise is that you're the expert.
Speaker:You have something they don't have and that they want.
Speaker:So one of the things that's going to convince them is
Speaker:they want to feel confident that you're competent.
Speaker:They want to know that for you.
Speaker:This is no problem,
Speaker:no brainer.
Speaker:We can do this.
Speaker:We've done this all day long.
Speaker:We can handle this,
Speaker:not a problem.
Speaker:So one of the ways to do that is by gently
Speaker:leading them down your process.
Speaker:The fact that even have a process shows that you're a
Speaker:professional. It shows that you have experienced because people that are
Speaker:brand new,
Speaker:that haven't had a lot of clients under their belt.
Speaker:They're not going to have a process because they're not going
Speaker:to have done it enough.
Speaker:So by virtue of the fact that you actually have a
Speaker:process that shows that you're a professional number one,
Speaker:but number two,
Speaker:to your point,
Speaker:it gently leads them down that path because your goal is
Speaker:to get them to the end point for them to become
Speaker:a client.
Speaker:So you want to know what that process is and be
Speaker:able to gently guide them.
Speaker:Because I even find this myself when I'm talking to somebody,
Speaker:even if it's the smallest thing that I want to hire
Speaker:somebody for or buy from somebody,
Speaker:if they're not asking me the questions,
Speaker:or if they're not framing the conversation and gently leading me
Speaker:down a path,
Speaker:I'll just take over naturally.
Speaker:And that's what happens when you hear that.
Speaker:If you're with a client and the client starts throwing questions
Speaker:at you and starts sort of in the middle,
Speaker:and then you get flustered.
Speaker:The reason why that typically happens is because you're not leading
Speaker:the process.
Speaker:If you frame the call,
Speaker:if you frame the meeting,
Speaker:if you frame whatever that interaction is like,
Speaker:the purpose of this is X.
Speaker:And at the end of it,
Speaker:this is what we hope to get out of it.
Speaker:Then it's going to help you go down that process faster
Speaker:and more smoothly.
Speaker:Perfect. Yes.
Speaker:I love that.
Speaker:And I love that talking a little bit deeper in terms
Speaker:of the process.
Speaker:So people who have absolutely no idea what we're talking about,
Speaker:let's share a little bit about what we think should be
Speaker:certain elements of a process.
Speaker:I know it's different for every single business clearly,
Speaker:but what types of things do you feel would be part
Speaker:of a process?
Speaker:The very first part needs to be the information gathering.
Speaker:So qualifying is another name for that,
Speaker:but it's really arming you with the information you need to
Speaker:determine even the most basic things like can I serve this
Speaker:client, but do I have a solution for them?
Speaker:Are they a good fit for me?
Speaker:And what information do I need to know to be able
Speaker:to determine that?
Speaker:And then depending on what you do for a living and
Speaker:what your area is,
Speaker:then you obviously want to ask more specific questions that will
Speaker:help you do your job better.
Speaker:But in my mind,
Speaker:the most important thing is qualifying them mutually.
Speaker:So being able to get the information you need to see
Speaker:if they're a good fit for you,
Speaker:but then also taking that information and being able to frame
Speaker:for them,
Speaker:what you can do for them.
Speaker:So sales to me is not just you learning a spiel
Speaker:that you just throw stuff at the wall to see what
Speaker:sticks. It's more about listening to a client and finding out
Speaker:what is it that they truly need.
Speaker:And part of that includes asking really smart questions,
Speaker:which in the very beginning,
Speaker:you probably won't know what those questions are,
Speaker:but as you get more of those conversations under your belt,
Speaker:you'll be able to frame and determine what some of those
Speaker:open-ended questions should be like,
Speaker:what is it that you're looking for?
Speaker:Why are you looking for this?
Speaker:What do you think it will do for you?
Speaker:Questions along those veins will help uncover what their ultimate desires
Speaker:are and their needs are.
Speaker:As I'm thinking about people who are listening to when they
Speaker:have a specific product,
Speaker:some of the other questions could be who is your end
Speaker:customer? What of my product line do you think they would
Speaker:be the most interested in?
Speaker:How quickly do you need us to turn inventory?
Speaker:What type of volume are you looking at?
Speaker:Do you want fewer items,
Speaker:but a lot of them,
Speaker:or lots of various items so that you understand what the
Speaker:expectations would be.
Speaker:It's not just,
Speaker:Oh, you come in,
Speaker:do you want to buy my product?
Speaker:And that way,
Speaker:by asking these types of questions and then how it applies
Speaker:to your product,
Speaker:then you can come back with a really custom proposal.
Speaker:That's exactly fitting what they're needing.
Speaker:Yeah. And I think also to stand out,
Speaker:a lot of my clients will tell me that they're standing
Speaker:out because of merely the questions that they're asking,
Speaker:because now I'm giving them additional questions to ask that no
Speaker:one else is asking them.
Speaker:So when you are asking somebody questions that no one else
Speaker:is asking,
Speaker:you're going to stand out and you're going to make them
Speaker:think about things in a different way.
Speaker:So think about,
Speaker:depending on what you do for a living,
Speaker:try to figure out some deeper questions to ask.
Speaker:Maybe those questions could be,
Speaker:what is it that your clients truly want need?
Speaker:What do they aspire to?
Speaker:Or what are they so challenged with?
Speaker:What solution would you give them?
Speaker:If you could wave a magic wand,
Speaker:help them understand their client better so that you can tailor
Speaker:a solution that not just addresses physical needs.
Speaker:Like I can give you X amount of product in this
Speaker:timeframe. Those are all sort of just facts.
Speaker:What I want to help people do is really get to
Speaker:the bottom of what that end customer truly needs,
Speaker:because that's what they're paying for.
Speaker:They're not paying for a pen or a widget or whatever
Speaker:they're paying for what that will do for them.
Speaker:So the more that you understand what their clients want deep
Speaker:down, the better,
Speaker:you're going to be able to communicate that.
Speaker:And that's when the value of your products and services increases.
Speaker:Absolutely. And that separates you from somebody who sells whatever your
Speaker:product is versus anybody else who's coming in.
Speaker:Exactly. Because those people are order takers.
Speaker:You're not an order taker.
Speaker:Exactly. Maria.
Speaker:I could not agree with you more.
Speaker:So we talk about the fact that you're really trying to
Speaker:get a customer from yes to no,
Speaker:and I think no tells you a lot also,
Speaker:you know,
Speaker:it tells you that they're not going to buy from you
Speaker:now, but what do you think someone should do if they
Speaker:hear a no,
Speaker:That's a great question.
Speaker:And in fact,
Speaker:I just tested this on my own clients and it's really
Speaker:a great thing to do.
Speaker:And there's lots of different ways that you can do this.
Speaker:But first of all,
Speaker:realize that no doesn't mean no forever.
Speaker:No, it could be just not right now.
Speaker:No could be not today.
Speaker:Maybe tomorrow.
Speaker:No might be not in the way that you're presenting it
Speaker:to me,
Speaker:but maybe in a different form.
Speaker:So I try to dig into that and I'll ask a
Speaker:client that I thought might be a great prospective client for
Speaker:me that didn't,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:enroll in one of my programs,
Speaker:I'll ask them,
Speaker:what could we have done better?
Speaker:Is there any advice that you can give us for the
Speaker:next time we offer this program to better meet your needs
Speaker:and open it up to questions and ask and solicit their
Speaker:feedback, because you'd be surprised at what you get back.
Speaker:And I'm just a big proponent and having that open communication
Speaker:with clients and potential clients and finding out and asking those
Speaker:questions, because sometimes it's just the way you're packaging something.
Speaker:Maybe it could be the fact that maybe you just need
Speaker:to offer a payment plan that you didn't offer before,
Speaker:or it might be something that's doable for you now.
Speaker:It may not be.
Speaker:And that's okay.
Speaker:You need to understand that that's still good information and knowledge
Speaker:for you,
Speaker:but if you don't ask the question,
Speaker:you'll never know.
Speaker:So I think the best way is literally the direct approach
Speaker:and ask them,
Speaker:what could we have done better?
Speaker:Or what do you recommend we do for the next time?
Speaker:What could we do to make you say,
Speaker:Oh my God,
Speaker:yes, I want to work with you or yes,
Speaker:I want to buy your product.
Speaker:And the best advice I've gotten over the years has been
Speaker:from my clients.
Speaker:So I will ask them all the time for feedback,
Speaker:ideas, comments,
Speaker:because that's the only way to get better.
Speaker:And that's the only way that sometimes the very quickest way
Speaker:and best way to get some really creative ideas.
Speaker:I just did that this morning.
Speaker:In fact,
Speaker:with one of my clients,
Speaker:I asked her about what she thought would be a great
Speaker:solution for our new clients.
Speaker:And she gave me some awesome ideas that I never would've
Speaker:thought of myself.
Speaker:Well. And honestly,
Speaker:it's always a process.
Speaker:You're one point you get better.
Speaker:You go through actions and you learn more and then you
Speaker:adjust what you're doing and then you're better the next time.
Speaker:And it just keeps growing.
Speaker:I mean,
Speaker:it really never ends.
Speaker:Absolutely. If you have a feedback loop,
Speaker:then you'll always be getting that feedback and you'll always be
Speaker:refining what you have and be able to continuously make it
Speaker:better. Right.
Speaker:And I think when you get the,
Speaker:no, you have the feedback,
Speaker:you get all that information.
Speaker:And then sometimes you really know it is a no probably
Speaker:forever, but it might only be a no for six months.
Speaker:Maybe they don't have the budget.
Speaker:Exactly. Maybe there's something underlying that you're not aware of that
Speaker:they're not willing to share.
Speaker:So I think another thing after a no could be,
Speaker:would it be all right if I touch base with you
Speaker:again in six months or so just to see how you're
Speaker:doing or check in on yours.
Speaker:Yeah. I love that.
Speaker:And the other thing to remember,
Speaker:and so many of my clients and just people I know
Speaker:have done this,
Speaker:and it's been super successful.
Speaker:Don't forget that when someone tells you no,
Speaker:if you give them a great experience and you're gracious about
Speaker:it and you leave that door open for them to come
Speaker:back so often they will send referrals to you.
Speaker:Because just because you're not a great fit for them,
Speaker:for whatever reason,
Speaker:if they love the experience of working with you and you
Speaker:were nice about it,
Speaker:they will almost always refer other people to you.
Speaker:I am so glad you said that that is a really,
Speaker:really great point.
Speaker:So one other thing that I'm thinking our listeners might say
Speaker:is, Oh my gosh,
Speaker:am I being too nosy?
Speaker:You're asking me to go in and ask this corporate client
Speaker:all about their company.
Speaker:And that makes me nervous because I'm going to be asking
Speaker:them some in-depth questions potentially.
Speaker:And then also at another point,
Speaker:when they say no,
Speaker:you're asking me to go back and then also make myself
Speaker:vulnerable and ask them all these questions.
Speaker:Are they even going to talk to me about these things?
Speaker:Sure. I think part of it is really just helping them
Speaker:understand why you want to know it.
Speaker:So if you're asking what might seem like a too personal
Speaker:question or too in depth questions,
Speaker:tell them why.
Speaker:Tell them this really helps us understand your client better so
Speaker:that we can come up with better solutions for you.
Speaker:And if you have an example of that,
Speaker:that's even better because your clients don't know what they don't
Speaker:know either.
Speaker:So it helps for you to explain why you want to
Speaker:know that.
Speaker:And then the other part that you were asking,
Speaker:what was the second part of your question?
Speaker:I was asking about how uncomfortable they would be asking those
Speaker:questions both for initially.
Speaker:And then if you said no to understand why the why
Speaker:of the note.
Speaker:I have a great for that.
Speaker:So when Someone says,
Speaker:no, one of the great ways to get feedback back from
Speaker:them is to have someone else in your company,
Speaker:reach out to them.
Speaker:So people just by nature will want to temper what they
Speaker:tell you,
Speaker:because they don't want to hurt your feelings.
Speaker:Especially we,
Speaker:as women do this.
Speaker:But if they're talking to a buffer,
Speaker:in other words,
Speaker:somebody else,
Speaker:that's not you because you're the one that's giving the product
Speaker:or service,
Speaker:they will be much more forthcoming with that other person than
Speaker:they will be for you.
Speaker:Yeah. That's good.
Speaker:That's one of your little side tricks or something.
Speaker:Yeah. It's just one of the things,
Speaker:because one of the things that I want my clients to
Speaker:do is to maximize every client.
Speaker:So even if they lose that client,
Speaker:I want them to maximize it.
Speaker:So find out why and see if there's any way that
Speaker:you can win them back.
Speaker:And sometimes they do.
Speaker:So there's strategies there for that as well.
Speaker:But you need to really maximize all that information because it's
Speaker:all good information for you to know helps make you better
Speaker:the next time.
Speaker:Absolutely. I totally agree.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So I want to spin this a little bit.
Speaker:You have been talking about resources and things that you should
Speaker:have in place,
Speaker:automation tools,
Speaker:all of that.
Speaker:Can you share with us some of the tools that you
Speaker:think on more of a general basis,
Speaker:given that our audience can be a little different here that
Speaker:you would suggest,
Speaker:or that you're using in your business are referencing for your
Speaker:clients? Sure.
Speaker:My favorite tool is acuity for scheduling and that has saved
Speaker:my life.
Speaker:Any business owner that has to schedule anything with anyone,
Speaker:whether it's team members or it's clients or potential clients.
Speaker:It not only makes you look professional,
Speaker:but acuity is so easy to use and has so many
Speaker:great features.
Speaker:You can set up different types of appointments with different types
Speaker:of questions that you ask,
Speaker:for example.
Speaker:So there's so much power in it.
Speaker:It's super affordable.
Speaker:They have a free version.
Speaker:And when I started implementing it,
Speaker:it made all the difference in my time and going back
Speaker:and forth with people.
Speaker:And today,
Speaker:really, I think consumers expect that level of automation.
Speaker:So you really should have a calendar where people can just
Speaker:go and click and reserve a time with you.
Speaker:If that's something that you want them to be able to
Speaker:do, but you can integrate it into your website.
Speaker:You can just send them the link.
Speaker:You can integrate it into Facebook.
Speaker:There's so many ways that you can use it,
Speaker:but that's a great tool for that.
Speaker:And I know other people use Calendly.
Speaker:So that's another tool that's very similar.
Speaker:I just personally use acuity myself Schedule once,
Speaker:same type of thing.
Speaker:Exactly. There are many out there,
Speaker:but you're recommending this one gift biz listeners.
Speaker:I'm going to put this in the show notes.
Speaker:As you know,
Speaker:there'll be a page connected up with Maria's interview that will
Speaker:give you all of the information.
Speaker:So acuity will be there for sure.
Speaker:Let's talk about sales a little bit more in terms of
Speaker:where your reaching out,
Speaker:either giving or getting more information to continue to grow and
Speaker:perfect. Your in terms of sales consulting,
Speaker:are there any podcasts you listen to conferences you go to,
Speaker:to stay up to date or to mingle within your industry
Speaker:Question. I personally read a lot of books.
Speaker:That's one of my personal favorite things to do,
Speaker:but I also have different masterminds that I belong to for
Speaker:different purposes.
Speaker:So for example,
Speaker:I have one where it's a bunch of educators.
Speaker:So people like myself that are teaching other business owners,
Speaker:whatever the subject may be.
Speaker:So we get together on a regular basis online and talk.
Speaker:We have our own Facebook group.
Speaker:So to me,
Speaker:having those types of groups of experts that you can go
Speaker:to are so helpful,
Speaker:especially as business owners,
Speaker:because so many of us work by ourselves or in very
Speaker:small teams and you really don't have access to a lot
Speaker:of outside people like you do in a corporation,
Speaker:you can go to your manager or to a different department,
Speaker:and you're constantly learning.
Speaker:But as business owners,
Speaker:you have to take control of that yourself.
Speaker:So for me,
Speaker:one of my favorite ways is to have a mastermind that
Speaker:I can go to,
Speaker:that I can lean on them.
Speaker:I can be honest with them,
Speaker:open with them,
Speaker:transparent, and really talk about how to do something or maybe
Speaker:something isn't going well,
Speaker:what have you done that works?
Speaker:What could I be doing wrong?
Speaker:That sort of conversation you need that comradery.
Speaker:Number one,
Speaker:but you also need that advice.
Speaker:It's sort of like your board of directors.
Speaker:That's the way I look at it.
Speaker:It's sort of like my higher level people that I go
Speaker:to to help me vet out some of the ideas that
Speaker:I'm thinking of for my business and the direction I'm thinking
Speaker:of taking it.
Speaker:And they're not all local.
Speaker:No, they're all over the country.
Speaker:So gift is listeners.
Speaker:One way that you could do this.
Speaker:If you're don't have access or don't know how to put
Speaker:together, a mastermind is go into some of your industry,
Speaker:specific Facebook groups,
Speaker:some of those private groups that you're in and see if
Speaker:there are a few people that you really resonate with that
Speaker:you're sharing information,
Speaker:that's helpful to them,
Speaker:vice versa.
Speaker:And you may even be able to build yourself a small
Speaker:group, just like Maria is talking about within your industry.
Speaker:That would be one way to do it.
Speaker:Another way would be locally.
Speaker:If you want to get different types of functions in like,
Speaker:you may want some accounting people,
Speaker:if you're a product person,
Speaker:whatever the different genres are and get a group of people
Speaker:together. But masterminding is a fabulous way to get new ideas
Speaker:about your business because you're getting new eyes on your business
Speaker:with us as business owners.
Speaker:It's so easy to get so zeroed in that you don't
Speaker:really see your business as well as you could.
Speaker:If you are taking a little bit of a higher level,
Speaker:I guess I'd say,
Speaker:all right.
Speaker:So Maria,
Speaker:at this point,
Speaker:I would like to invite you to dare to dream.
Speaker:I'd like to present you with a virtual gift.
Speaker:It's a magical box containing unlimited possibilities for your future.
Speaker:So this is your dream or your goal of almost unreachable
Speaker:Heights that you would wish to obtain.
Speaker:Please accept this gift and open it in our presence.
Speaker:What is inside your box?
Speaker:Well, thank you for the gift.
Speaker:First of all,
Speaker:you're What am I giving you?
Speaker:You're giving me this most fabulous gift.
Speaker:That's wrapped beautifully,
Speaker:by the way.
Speaker:It's a gift of being independently wealthy of living life on
Speaker:my terms,
Speaker:meaning being able to make the decisions I want to make.
Speaker:And if I want to get up and get out an
Speaker:airplane with my husband,
Speaker:we can do that.
Speaker:I've always felt like I want to travel more and see
Speaker:more of the world.
Speaker:And I've been so busy working most of my life that
Speaker:I really want to explore that because I feel travel gives
Speaker:you so much insight and expands your mind,
Speaker:like nothing else in the world on a business level.
Speaker:I want to have a thriving business where I'm really impacting
Speaker:the most business owners I can because I feel like we
Speaker:really need to change the conversation.
Speaker:And we're at a really important juncture in our world.
Speaker:And I think women are poised to make amazing leaps right
Speaker:now. And I'd like to help them do that and really
Speaker:change the face of what it means to not just sell,
Speaker:but interact with other people on a personal and professional level
Speaker:and really change the conversation and how people interact with one
Speaker:another and how people sell to one another.
Speaker:And I think we can really change the game and empower
Speaker:people. And so I'd love to do that and also be
Speaker:a motivational speaker for the younger generation so that we can
Speaker:instill in them at a really young age that they can
Speaker:do anything and they can be,
Speaker:do, and have whatever they want.
Speaker:And they just have to believe it.
Speaker:And that's part of the first thing that they need to
Speaker:do. And if we do that,
Speaker:when they're young,
Speaker:they'll grow up believing it and not have to struggle as
Speaker:much as we've had.
Speaker:Oh, that's beautiful.
Speaker:You don't see me over here,
Speaker:but I'm smiling about that.
Speaker:Just beautiful.
Speaker:How can our listeners get in touch with you or see
Speaker:what's going on with irresistible Sally or whatever else you'd like
Speaker:to share.
Speaker:Awesome. Thank you.
Speaker:So I have a Facebook group for creative business owners,
Speaker:so they can join me there.
Speaker:It's called learn,
Speaker:collaborate flourish.
Speaker:So you could just search on that term in Facebook and
Speaker:I'd love for you to join us if you join,
Speaker:introduce yourself.
Speaker:So I know who you are and that you came from
Speaker:here. So I can give you a special shout out.
Speaker:But for those of you that are interested in my irresistible
Speaker:selling program,
Speaker:you can go to,
Speaker:and I'll give you a Bitly link and I'm sure you'll
Speaker:put it in the show notes,
Speaker:but it's Bitly forward slash irresistible selling all lower case.
Speaker:And if you want free sales tips delivered right to your
Speaker:inbox, you can just go to Maria bayer.com
Speaker:and just give me your email address and you'll get free
Speaker:sales tips.
Speaker:That is really great because I think that everybody listening here
Speaker:is like,
Speaker:okay, so what Maria is saying,
Speaker:doesn't sound so hard.
Speaker:This is something that I could do.
Speaker:I can reframe my mindset.
Speaker:I could actually do this,
Speaker:but you know what happens later this afternoon or tomorrow,
Speaker:or when they get in a position of selling,
Speaker:then it goes back to being freaked out about it and
Speaker:nervous and anxious.
Speaker:Again, I encourage all of you to sign up and get
Speaker:these tips.
Speaker:Maria, thank you so much.
Speaker:I really appreciate you taking the time.
Speaker:You've shared some great tips,
Speaker:leveled out this whole scary thing about Saleen for us.
Speaker:I think it empowers us as women now to go out.
Speaker:Cause we can talk to anybody as a friend and we
Speaker:can definitely do this.
Speaker:And this is a way to get more business,
Speaker:grow your business in a much more comfortable way.
Speaker:So for sharing all of that,
Speaker:Marie, I thank you so much.
Speaker:I absolutely loved your dare to dream answer.
Speaker:And our wish for you of course,
Speaker:is that your candle in terms of empowering and all of
Speaker:that, not playing small,
Speaker:that your candle always burns bright.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:That's so sweet.
Speaker:And it's been my pleasure to be here.
Speaker:Thanks so much for having me.
Speaker:This episode is all wrapped up,
Speaker:but fortunately,
Speaker:your gift biz journey continues.
Speaker:Are you eager to learn more?
Speaker:Our gift biz gal has a free download just for you.
Speaker:Head over to gift biz,
Speaker:unwrapped.com/twelve steps to get your copy of the 12 steps to
Speaker:starting a profitable gift biz don't delay,
Speaker:head over to gift biz on wrapped.com/twelve
Speaker:steps today,
