Success for sales is usually gauged in terms of closing deals, and the business world has a lot of fancy lingo as to ways and strategies to do that. But, for a lot of folks, the sense that someone else is trying to persuade them of something is often met with a high degree of mistrust. One word you don't hear thrown around business seminars a lot is empathy. But what exactly do we mean here when we use the word empathy?
Empathy Means Seeing Things From Another's Perspective
How can we, as insurance agents, persuade our customers that we're not simply salespersons trying to sell them a product while simultaneously being salespersons that are trying to sell them a product? The idea is this: the best sales techniques aren't necessarily the ones that actively engage in selling.
Consider the issue like this. If you're an individual that's attempting to find an insurance plan for your family home, what exactly do you want to hear from the salesperson? You want to know what you're options are regarding plans. For example, you will likely intuit that the more expensive the plan is, the more it's going to cover. But what does that mean, precisely? What exactly are you paying for, and why is it worth it?
Distrust of Sales People is Very Common
Independent agents are part of the same community as their clients and can build trust with them.
You're going to want to engage every single person you're dealing with as if you're in a position to have to earn their trust. Salespeople often assume a level of familiarity between themselves and the customer that can come across as unseemly. Confidence is important, but it's also overrated. If you were the one on the receiving end of a sales pitch, what would make you feel good about the interaction? What would work for you? Too often salespersons assume that they can simply manipulate the customer into buying their product. But even when that works, it backfires. How long will you keep that customer, and what will they be saying about your agency to their friends and acquaintances? Consider that, because it's more important than closing a deal that isn't going to last.
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