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Positioning . . . A Key Ingredient in Understanding Needs
If you dissect the consultative selling model, shown in Figure 10.1, you can see that there are two key components: the diverging part and the converging part.)
Figure 10.1 Consultative Selling Model
The diverging component focuses on positioning the meeting and analyzing the client's situation. The diverging part is all about the client, since they do most of the talking. After all, it's hard to learn about your clients if you are the one dominating the conversation.
The converging part is devoted to your explaining what you can do to address the client's needs and opportunities. When you make your presentation, resolve the client's issues and conclude with a commitment—the focus is on you. Of course all this is done in a client centered way, but if the diverging part is more about them, the converging part is more about you.
What surprises many people is that the way you begin your sales interactions—what happens in those first few minutes—usually has a major impact on your ability to truly understand your client's situation. But before we get too specific, let's look at why it's so hard to determine needs and what you can do early to enhance that process.
You can't do it all at once
Many organizations today use a two- or even three-call approach. The initial call is devoted primarily to learning as much about the ...
