What You Can Learn From The Movie Business

Maybe everything you need to know you can learn from the movies. A friend of mine is a screenwriter in Los Angeles. Over a glass of wine, we were discussing his business and the nature of the beast in Hollywood. He's a boy from Canada who gave up his much-loved Honda, his life savings, and his broadcasting career to move to Los Angeles to attend the American Film Institute. Not an easy feat in your mid-30s. After 8 years of hard work he is now becoming the new discovery of LA. He said the most difficult thing to adjust to was all the talking.

Collin slouches into his chair. "Everyone lies in this business. It's all big Cheshire cat smiles ? but essentially people have the 'Enough about you ? more about me' mentality." After our conversation I thought about his last statement.

Are You On A Blind Date With Your Customer?

We tend to love what we do. So we get all excited about it and then proceed to tell everything about ourselves to the potential customer. It just reminds me of a really bad date! A one-sided conversation becomes tired pretty quickly. Customers feel like they are on a bad blind date with you if there isn't a connection to what they need.

Minus the cynicism, our clients are also thinking like the Hollywood set, "ENOUGH ABOUT YOU blabbing about all the wonderful things about your company, your product, your requirements. MORE ABOUT ME ? and what I need to survive and thrive!"

The Helium Test

Are you talking your face off when you are speaking with your client? When they ask you on the phone what you have to offer ? do they hear a massive intake of air and then you giving your best "I just sucked in helium and can talk really fast" act?

If so ? you aren't making a connection with your customer. You sound like everyone else, you act like everyone else and you aren't positioning yourself as someone who can help. Because at the end of the day ?what you really do is HELP PEOPLE. The only way this is accomplished is by discovering what your customer needs and researching other areas of need ? areas your customer may not even have thought of yet!

Questions Are The Answer!

Sounds like a paradox doesn't it? In order to help your customer you first find out what they need. Or THINK they need. Carrie Fisher, the actress who played Princess Leah in Star Wars said "Instant gratification doesn't come fast enough. " Now for a girl with cinnamon buns attached to the side of her head this is a pretty profound statement.

Your customers are demanding instant gratification. They want their needs met. In most cases, it just isn't happening. The first thing out of your mouth should be "May I ask you a few questions?"

Remember W5?

Who, What, When, Where, Why and How are the foundation of selling. Customers buy when they feel an emotion NOT when they've had information dumped on them. How do you do this? By asking questions! Our customers become engaged when they feel curiosity?NOT boredom.

Our customer contact should be handled with this premise ? Create Curiosity With Questions.

Would the Academy Want You?

Create your own Academy award winning sales success by talking less and listening more. As Collin says, the best agents ask a multitude of relevant questions. Then they listen to the answers and make it happen. Are you acting like a star with your clients or are you being an agent? Your success lies in the answer.

Copyright© 2005

Sales Diva, Kim Duke of The Sales Divas helps women biz owners and entrepreneurs attract amazing clients and customers, effortlessly! To learn more about increasing YOUR sales - and to read her FREE how-to-articles, visit her website http://www.salesdivas.com

---

How One Simple Concept Can Increase Your Sales

We all want to belong. As humans we feel the... Read More

Make More Sales By Airing Your Dirty Laundry

There's an old saying, "Don't air your dirty laundry".If you're... Read More

Sales Skills are Life Skills

I love the art of selling. LOVE IT. When I... Read More

Reaching Goals in Direct Sales

From surveys and experience, we've noticed many setting excellent goals... Read More

Separating Yourself from the Crowd (Part One of Two)

Warren Buffet says that insurance is a commodity and price... Read More

Sales Prospects Avoiding You?

This issue's topic on sales prospects comes in response to... Read More

Assumptions ? The Hidden Sales Killer

Assumptions can kill a sale. In my sales training workshops,... Read More

Dont Read This Issue: Why Saying No Can Make Your Sales Rate Soar!

Yes, it's true. Saying "No" is a great way of... Read More

Prep Your Customer

When I first moved to Seattle, I worked for 9... Read More

How to Boost Your Sales Letter Conversion Rate

Emotion and reason mix very well together to make excellent... Read More

How To Give Your Sales Job A Strategic Tune-up

In happens every year in June.Six months down and six... Read More

Dont Close Your Eyes Or Let Deaf Ears Fall Upon You

To listen to your customer is important, and to hear... Read More

How A Dancing Horse Can Increase Your Sales

"Yeah right!" I thought to myself as I started to... Read More

Boost Your Selling Power With Your Call-To-Action Phrases

Look at your marketing material. Now, is there something missing?... Read More

Customers Want You to Ask for the Money

Many years ago, I was the one starting a small... Read More

Equal Chance of Winning The Sale? Bah!

Are you going to win this deal? With just less... Read More

How to Use Humor to Increase Sales

Using cartoons can help brand your marketing and drive home... Read More

Multiply Your Sales

When Thomas Edison's light bulb finally burned for 45 straight... Read More

The First Step to Stress-Free Selling (TM)

Step 1: Get Ready - Create a foundation you can... Read More

As They Approcah the Finish Line... The Winner Is?

Recently, right before I was about to deliver a motivational... Read More

Body Language, Five Key Ingredients

When making your living in the sales industry, and working... Read More

How to Make Training and Development a Power Agent for Change

Does this sound familiar? With high expectations, you sent your... Read More

How a Best Buy Sales Clerk Taught Me the Simple 6 Step Formula to Close ANY Sale!

Follow this story...I went to Best Buy today to get... Read More

Emotions That Sell, Part 2

In the last article, we looked at three emotions (besides... Read More

Sell Without Feeling Like A Used Car Salesman

Many business owners and professionals are appalled at the thought... Read More

Simple Technique for Isolating Objections

To isolate any objection quickly you can use this effective... Read More

Jump Start Your Sales In 10 Quick Steps

1. Combine a product and service together in a package... Read More

Spend More Time Selling

On average a sales person spends less than two hours... Read More

Turning Sales Techniques Into Sales Success!

The goal of all sales training is not just to... Read More

7 Ways to Cut Loose from Old Sales Thinking

Sooner or later, we all backslide into old ways of... Read More

Successful Sales Strategies: Winning the Close Ones

The "Three Cs" in building customer relationships are a key... Read More

Are You Missing Out On Sales Through Fear of Pain? Improve the Persuasive Power of Your Words!

Education plus Motivation is a powerful formula. But how do... Read More

7 Safety Tips Every Realtor and Door-to-Door Sales Professional Need to Practice

These are the top 7 safety tips that criminals don't... Read More