Many practice professionals, consultants and SME owners hate the idea of having ‘to sell’.  

Even the mention of the word is sometimes too much to bear so instead they prefer to use ‘business development’ or ‘account management’ or ‘client relationships’ –  anything but ‘selling’.

However pause for a moment and consider this. The more senior you become the less relevant your expertise and technical skills are – what becomes more valuable when you’re a partner or a director is your ability is to ‘sell’ to ‘feed the little fishes’ that make up your firm.

Here are the next 3 further reasons (of 9 so check it for Part 3) why professionals, consultants and SME owners hate the idea of ‘selling’ and how to love to sell.

1.     They Take Objections Personally.

Objections are not rejections.

Neither are they the next worst thing – indifference. If a prospective client indicates indifference to your offering, just pack up and leave. The world is an abundant place (particularly now that we can sell services and products anywhere into the digital market place) and we do not have to work with indifferent people. We are professionals after all, we value ourselves.

If we make an extra effort – reduce fees, offer more – to challenging clients then they usually are the ones who cause us the most grief. They will constantly want more for less. If you have those clients – it’s because you never really sold them on your value – just a discount. Sack one of them a month and make space for better clients.

Some people for whatever reason don’t choose to work or connect with me. There may be lots of reasons for that but I don’t lose sleep over it. I work with the best for me because they have demonstrated that they can make decisions and choose to work with me. Those clients (and many subsequent friends) I help to be the best at what they do.  

Objections however are usually the prospective client pushing back because they haven’t yet understood the value of your offer. If you want to learn how to handle those objections – even when they say ‘No’ check out this YouTube video.

Welcome objections, project value and every one dealt with is a step closer to the win.

2.     They Are Not Extroverts.

Many professionals and consultants in accounting, finance, tech, engineering, compliance and so forth seldom identify as extroverts – people who thrive on projecting themselves and their energies out into the environment around them. Rather they see themselves as introverts – quieter, less ‘noisy’, more reflective.

If so, that’s great. You have the perfect personality to be a High Trust Advisor. Extroverts make the worst sales people and networkers. Why? Because they are only interested in talking about themselves. In a world of even greater distraction – nobody cares! Selling is no longer about ‘pitching’ – it’s about listening.

Introverts listen. Ask. Clarify. Guide.  If you’re an introvert – once you learn the right strategies and skills such as those in the High Trust Advisor program – you are guaranteed success in sales and client relationships. Clients would rather hear themselves speak anyway!

3.     They Lead with Logic and Expertise.

It’s not your fault. That’s what you’ve been thought all your professional life. How to do the job and that involves logic, sequence and rationale. However it’s no longer enough.

In a world where AI (artificial intelligence) is already replacing transactional and process based work, professionals need to focus on the interpersonal and emotional intelligence skills in order to retain their position and relevance to their firms and clients.

Those who fail to do so will be replaced.

In the near future it is human advisors who can display empathy, understanding, build high trust, rapport, demonstrate creativity and innovative thinking and who can coach others to do the same that are the people who will survive and thrive . The ‘bots’ haven’t cracked emotion – yet.

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