A book recommendation from Dan Beaulieu:
Ultimate Sales Tool Kit: The versatile 15-piece skill set that every professional needs
By William “Skip” Miller
Copyright 2014Amacom
Price $19.95
Pages: 229 with Index
A true sales classic
Truth be known I first read this book a couple of years ago when it first came out but I find myself going back to it again and again as it is one of the most useful books about sales that I own,
If you are just starting out in sales or need a refresher course every so often like I do this is the perfect book for you.
There is nothing fancy here, just the facts ma’am just the basics and I mean the basics. The fundamentals on everything from how to make a sales pitch to how to leave an effective voice mail message to how to close a deal it is all here in 15 vital steps.
This is the book you want to give your sales people knowing that you’ll see an amazing ROI.
The chapters each focus on one aspect of selling like say the one on “Rephrasing” which is basically rewording the customer’s statements so that she will understand that you completely get what she’s telling you and thus demonstrate that you understand her needs.
To the chapter on “I Date” where the author talks about setting dates, setting deadlines that are actually milestones down the path to the sales.
To the chapter called “Value Star” which shows the reader how to demonstrate the value of your product in terms that the customer will understand. Sounds simple enough but it takes practice which is why this chapter and all the other chapters end with VEAs or Value Exercise Areas where you get to actual practice what you have just learned. If you do these exercise as the author advises you will get so much more out of this book than if you just read it.
Throughout the book Skip Miller shows the reader how to “walk in the customers” shoes so that you will have a complete understanding of what the customer needs. Not what you want to sell him but what he needs. What it really gets down to is if you work with the customer, if you listen to him carefully, if you do your homework you will know exactly what the customer needs and how to provide it to him.
This is a very important book…don’t leave home without it.
