Sales Stuck? Try Sticking to a Script

In my last column (BusinessWeek.com, 3/26/08) I reviewed the concept of high probability selling from the timeless book by Jacques Werth and Nicholas Ruben, and explained how to go about disqualifying bad leads quickly to avoid pursuing people who really aren't prospects. Now let's take this advice to the next level. When setting out to sell, we all know how important targeting clients, building lists, and perfecting scripts are. Here are three rules to keep in mind to make the most of your efforts, and a sample script you can borrow.

1. People buy because they trust and respect you. Sure, they perceive a need for the product or service you sell, but why choose you over the competition? Trust and respect. The majority of your best customers show you with the same trust and respect that you show them, Werth and Ruben write. They cite studies that show customers' buying decisions have a lot to do with five factors, ranked in this order: trust, respect, brand recognition, quality, and price. How much someone "liked" the salesperson ranked much lower. So drop the schmoozing and start building rapport.