10 Tips To Overcome Your Fear Of Selling

Ahh. Selling. Sometimes, this is a word that is dreaded and feared by all but the most intrepid business owners. It seems that, even though we all know we need to "sell" our products and services, many of us feel fearful or anxious about actually doing so.

These 10 tips are designed to help you shift out of your fear, and into excitement, about sharing your product or service.

1) Know the source of your fear. This tip reminds us that it is necessary, first, to know what we're afraid of. Most often, fears of selling come in several forms. Either we worry about not being liked, or being perceived as pushy, we (secretly) worry that our product or service might not perform as we say, or we struggle with the idea of rejection. Knowing the source of your fear (sometimes it can be a combination) is an important part of overcoming your fear of selling.

2) Take action to address the source. In this way, you are taking action to overcome your fear. In some cases, this might mean that you improve your product or service (you can use customer feedback for this), or you can find ways to share your product/service in a way that feels more authentic and natural to you. You can also find ways to "bounce back" after rejection which is easier to do, by the way, if you don't take "no" personally.

3) Find enthusiasm for what you offer. One of the best techniques I've ever used to overcome my fear of selling has been to tap into my passion and enthusiasm for what I'm offering. I make a list of all the really wonderful benefits and successful outcomes of past customers. I hang this list nearby where I can see it everyday. Try this for yourself - your confidence will skyrocket.

4) Shift your perspective. How would it feel to think of yourself as "sharing information" about what you do? Or "showing benefits" or "sharing your passion?" If you feel uncomfortable or anxious about "selling"- find a way to shift your perspective to one of sharing information rather than "convincing someone to buy."

5) Start small. Very often, people tend to tackle projects much larger than they can comfortably handle. When you want to overcome your fear of selling, start small. Maybe you will share your new business with a few trusted friends first and then gradually find ways to expand your sharing to include a larger circle. The most successful business people are those who interact with others in an authentic, passionate way so find a way that feels comfortable with you and stay with it.

6) Keep track of your successes. Keep a "wins" or success journal nearby and record your achievements in it each day. This will help you stay aware of just how much you do right. We sometimes forget this.

7) Have fun with it. Rather than approaching this from a heavy "have to", "doesn't feel good" perspective find a fun, interesting way to share your knowledge or passion. Some of my clients have thrown parties, offered free giveaways, donated products/services to charities - all of these were easy, fun, and income generating. What would be fun for you?

8) Stay focused on your desired outcome. Most people take actions and reach their goals because they stay focused on the benefits of doing so. Sometimes, reminding yourself what you want, why you're doing this can help you take the next action and the next.

9) Detach from how the outcome shows up. Very often, we get really attached to "making the sale" or having a situation turn out a certain way. Instead, why not focus on efforts "I will give a great, enthusiastic, and passionate presentation" rather than outcome: "They will buy X number of this." Very often, if you stay focused on the effort - doing a great job- the outcome turns out better than you ever imagined.

10) Keep practicing. Like any other business skill, "selling" gets easier the more you do it. So get out there, start small, and keep practicing.

About The Author

Dr. Rachna D. Jain is a sales and marketing coach and Director of Operations for SalesCoachTraining.com. Sign up for her free email newsletter, "Sales & Marketing Secrets" To learn more or to contact Dr. Jain directly, please visit http://www.SalesandMarketingCoach.com; coach@salesandmarketingcoach.com

RELATED ARTICLES

Grow Your Business By Increasing the Value of Each Sale - 29 Ideas to Spur Your Brain
There are 3 ways to grow any business:

Store Owners - Five Ideas to Increase Sales
1. Animate your window display.

9 Ways to Keep Clients Coming Back For More
A lot of effort is put into getting new clients. We all know our client base will change. Previous clients can move to a new area, sell their business, close down, or change their priorities. So finding new business is always important - but so is keeping your previous clients. Here are nine ways to keep previous clients coming back for more!

Dropped Jaw Syndrome, Your Fastest, Most Reliable Market Test
Business owners should be more like doctors.

The Email Blow-Off
This week's article is my response to a question by Lisa Boudreau of ePresence.

Selling To Women - Selling To Men - It Isnt the Same
Selling To Women - Selling To Men - It Isn't the Same

Restaurant Pressure Washing
Many pressure washing companies try to stay away from the restaurant pressure washing business, while other specialize in it. One reason some do not like it is due to the all the grease, which gets on their hoses and equipment, which in itself is difficult to clean off. Another reason is due to the difficulty in retaining the waste wash water. Sometimes the jobs can be tough as I remember one where in a Chinese Restaurant the owner finally leveled with us that the place had not been cleaned for 20-years. Needless to say we killed our share of cockroaches that night indeed.

Forgive All Ebay Sins!
And did so in this case. But it would have been customer friendlier for this seller to accept my retraction to be replaced with a bid. He would have gotten repeat business from me and my friends. His "Buy Now" price is 30% over the retail price for this item. Lesson learned by me again - that there are way too many sellers on Ebay out to grab a buck and the hell with fair practice.Lesson learned yet again." BobAnn End quote? The operative phrase here is "repeat business from me and my friends". There is no better endorsement of your product or service than word of mouth advertising. Lack of flexibility on the part of the seller, not only cost them one customer, but also destroyed the possibility for future business. Good news travels fast, but bad news travels faster! As an auction seller, (Ebay auction ID: LevelBest77) I would have accommodated her request right away. And while I have never had anyone use "Buy It Now" by accident, I have had several people over the years ask me to retract bids. The number of people who have made that request can be counted on one hand! Some, did not even understand the process, (bid retracting) and I was more than willing to guide them through it.

The Truth Behind Linear Selling: Why It Can Make Prospects Run The Other Way
Sean works for a major telecom company.

How To Get Your Mail Past The Gatekeeper And Into The Hands Of The Decision Maker GUARANTEED
There are several ways to get your information into the decision maker's hands.

Use Pain To Get Commitments
Whenever I speak with new salesreps and entrepreneurs, I hear a similar frustration:

Leads, Prospects, and the Huge Gap Between
The leads marketing delivers to the sales team never seem good enough. Either the leads are "bad" and are wastes of a salesperson's time, or there are just not enough "good" ones. If sales had more good prospects, the company would have more sales. Perhaps sales and marketing could work together more successfully if all agreed on what is a lead and what is a prospect.

Top Seven Ways to Write An Order-Pulling Sales Letter
Ready to put your Web pages up? Ready to sell a lot more products and services? If you're not getting the sales, you want you may want to think "makeover." Whether you're just starting or doing a web makeover, you need to Power Write your sales letters.

Throw Out Your Selling Language - Unlock Your Natural Voice
I was sitting at my desk last week when my phone rang. I picked it up and said, "This is Ari with Unlock The Game." The woman on the other end of the phone said, "Hi, my name is Julie Jackson, I'm with XYZ company and we are a...and we offer...". As she continued to speak, I stopped her in mid-sentence and said, "Hi, Julie."

Gic Number For Writing Sales Letters
When I write sales letters for my clients, one rule I always start with is The Rule of 7.

How To Write A Riveting Sales Letter That Closes Sales
How do you get people's attention and build their interest to take the time to read your sales letter? Let's face it. If you can't get the attention of prospects and keep their interest your sales letter will just fall flat on it's face and thus not make you much money.

Closing Sales Is Not A Problem, It?s A Process
In my opinion, the most overrated topic in sales training is the subject of closing. In year's past, it seems the object of most sales training courses was to fill the heads of participants with as many closing techniques as possible. The logic was simple, if the "Ben Franklin" close didn't work, you could rummage around in your head for the the "secondary question" technique, the "order-blank" method or the "forced choice" close to tie off your sale. Selling in the old school of training was basically learning 54 or 84 ways to close.

Book Yourself Solid
THE 7 KEYS TO GETTING MORE CLIENTS THAN YOU CAN HANDLE EVEN IF YOU HATE MARKETING AND SELLING

Whats the Secret to Repeat Business?
When you think about ways to gain repeat business from your customers, you probably turn your thoughts to marketing efforts such as advertising, public relations and other means that will allow you to repeatedly be seen. However, without one particular element included in your plan, your efforts to entice customers to buy over and over will fail. Even autoresponders - the "king" of repeat exposure - can't produce the type of loyalty needed to ensure your customers continually send their dollars your way.

Recommending Products Vs. Selling Them
Some of the best sales people I have ever met, were able to meet all of their sales goals without ever selling a thing. They simply recommended their products to their customers.

home | site map | www.1001topwords.com