Seller? No longer: the role of the sales consultant.

The economic and social scene changes quickly, as do company roles and the way of approaching internal and external relations.

The change.

What are the areas in which companies are currently changing?

The expectations.

What do the next three years have in store for organisations?

One of the roles most effected by the changes currently taking place is that is salespeople, so much so as to even revisit their title: those previously identified as salesmen are now called sales consultants.

The reason is simple: their role has changed as a result of the change of the approach of consumers, which has changed completely in the latest years due to the information present online and social company communications.

Starting from the belief that everyone needs your product is an obsolete approach: it is necessary to change the center of gravity towards the consumer, the only one able to describe his needs and requirements in a complete and precise way.

Focus.

Approaching the job of sales consultant at the present time requires focus on some best practices

1. Know the “why”.
Simon Sinek spoke clearly in his TED talk, “How great leaders inspire action”: sales leaders are those who have understood the “why” at the base of the products and services offered by a company.

2. Put yourself in the clients’ shoes.
The question to ask oneself when approaching a potential client isn’t “How can I sell them my product?”, but rather “What does he need?”.

3. Listen before speaking.
When in front of a client, ask the right questions and listen carefully to the replies to understand his needs, both expressed and implied. Once you’ve understood where you can intervene, the moment will come to make your pitch and be (almost) successful.

4. Put the client at the center.
Fine tune your presentation based on who you’re in front of, without standardising the sales pitch or offering; put yourself at your client’s disposition being careful not to make him feel like a simple route to a commission; always ask for feedback and stay in constant contact with the client, putting him in a position of equal importance with you.