The potential client is sitting in front of you.
You’ve done some uncomfortable work to get the person here. You’ve asked a client how you can help his or her friends. Or you’ve been sending texts and emails and double dialing to urge a person to show up for an appointment. Or maybe you’ve spent $100 on Facebook ads just to get a good lead. Whatever the situation, there’s a lot on the line.
Now what do you say?
That depends on the client. As you’re about to read, no secret sales script, no memorized lines and no “gotcha!” close will solve all your problems.
There is a proven process—we teach it in the Incubator—and great ways to overcome objections to price and schedule. Those are also in the Incubator. But the real truth we teach—the best way to sell anything—is this:
– Make someone comfortable.
– Ask what the person wants to achieve. Get a clear picture of his or her vision of success.
– Using your expertise, show a clear path to success.
– If you can, give the person the first step right away.
– State the price.
– Ask how the person would like to pay.
We teach this in a “tree” format: If the person gives X objection, ask Y question next, etc. But the core of a good sales process is care: If you care about the person, you’ll be curious enough to ask the next question.
The process should feel normal, not rehearsed. So the real secret isn’t a script: It’s reps.
The Real Game Breaker
In fall 2019, we tracked sales conversions in Two-Brain gyms. A few dozen did a “specialist” call with one of our mentors to focus solely on sales. And while every call showed a good return for a month, conversions actually dipped back to baseline after two or three months.
But why? The gym owners had the knowledge forever; they didn’t magically forget the questions to ask or how often to follow up with their leads.
I was happy to see the short-term improvements in conversions, but I wasn’t satisfied. So I started digging deeper. What I found was that it’s not really the script that matters in the long term. It’s not the knowledge of how to overcome objections. It’s the reps.
When we assigned Two-Brain gym owners more reps at selling, their conversion numbers came up—and stayed up. If they stopped practicing, their conversion numbers dipped again.
Like a tennis backhand, if you don’t practice your sales process, you get rusty.
To be effective at sales, you have to be comfortable selling.
Practice—Then Practice Some More
In 2008, when every client who came in the door at Catalyst represented money I desperately needed, I had a pretty poor close rate—maybe 70 percent. Keep in mind that these folks were sold on my service until I talked to them. Facepalm.
By 2018, I was so comfortable with selling that many new clients would say something like this while handing me a credit card: “Thank you! I was worried this was going to be a sales pitch!” The sales process felt completely natural to me by then because I’d done it 1,000 times.
The fastest way to increase your conversion rate is to practice doing conversions. That means getting your reps in.
We now prescribe practice reps to gym owners in our Incubator and Growth programs. We make it fun—we have a scenario card deck so people can “play” at sales. Here are five sample scenarios from our deck of over 50.
We also make gym owners practice sales before we teach them how to run ads because we don’t want them to waste money. On the Two-Brain Growth ToolKit, we guide gym owners through everything in the correct order. For example, they have to reach Level 7 in Sales before they start Level 1 in Paid Lead Generation. That means reps.
Just like there’s no secret program or diet, there’s no secret sales script. Just reps.
Other Media in This Series
The Dark Side of Your Business
The Real Barrier to Entry
Sales Secrets: Handling Objections, Building Value and Role Playing With Joe Marcoux
