Selling techniques are as varied as the people who practice them. There are, however, some proven selling techniques for IT Consultants just starting out. Here is a list:
Personal visit. This selling technique is going to get you the best results: Highest touch, most personal contact, most effective.
Personal phone call. When you use this selling technique you are still providing high touch and so it is quite effective. The trick to getting the most mileage out of your phone call is to send a follow-up note immediately after. This part of phone contact is often ignored and will set you apart from your competition.
Send a note or letter. This is not as personal or high touch but it is a popular selling technique nonetheless. Things you can do to improve the effectiveness of this selling technique are to send a handwritten note and customize the message to make it more personal.
Send an email. This is a low touch and minimally personal selling technique but many people feel comfortable with this type of communication. Make sure you spell check your message carefully and send only one email at a time. This selling technique will fall flat if the "To:" line is full of 100+ names.
Set Yourself a Quota. This selling technique provides discipline. Most new business owners will avoid personal selling if allowed. Make a commitment to contact at least 2 new people on your contact list per day until the list is exhausted. Then get networking and add more people to your contact list.
Ask for referrals only. When you are contacting people don't go for the sale. One of the smartest selling techniques is to ask for referrals rather than sales. There is no pressure when you ask for a referral and this gives you an opportunity to follow up by sending some stickers or business cards for the person to hand out.
Bottom Line on Selling Techniques
Selling techniques may not come naturally to you. This is not an excuse to forgo trying them. The selling techniques that are most effective are the ones that are high touch and highly personal. The message you send out is that each person is important. Try to use as many highly personal selling techniques as possible. Barring that, make the selling techniques you are using as personal as you can.
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