← The Art of Sales with Art Sobczak
The Art of Sales with Art Sobczak
324 Why Most Salespeople Hear But Don't Listen—and the 2-Second Fix
00:11:48
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A
You are listening to the Art of Sales. Everyone sells every day. And this is your source for conversational real world sales and prospecting methods that you are comfortable using and that get results. You'll help people buy instead of pushing them into being sold. Here's your host, Art Sobchak.
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All right, so I'd like you to try something right now that most people can't do. So think about your last sales call. Can you remember the exact words? Not the idea or story that you told yourself, but the actual words that your prospect used when they described their biggest problem? If he can't, you weren't really listening or you didn't find out their biggest problem. You were waiting to talk and thinking about what you're going to say next. And I know this because I've done it before. Okay, maybe a thousand times. We all have. But here's the thing. Your prospects can feel when you're not present. And it's costing you deals. So today I'm going to give you a real simple framework that will instantly change how you show up on calls. It takes two seconds, really. So let's go. All right, so here's what's really happening on most sales calls. The prospect's talking and you're thinking about your next question. You're mentally rehearsing what you're going to say. You're looking at your notes. You're formulating your response. Or you might be looking at the email that just came in. Oh, yeah, you hear the sound coming out of the mouth, but you're not really listening to what they mean. And here's why that kills deals. You miss buying signals. You miss emotional cues. You miss the things they almost said but didn't. You miss the real problem, hiding behind the surface problem? Studies show people remember only 25 to 50% of what they hear in a conversation. And I'm not even sure if it's that much. And in sales, that's not acceptable. That's deal killing. And I doubt it's even that high for most people. But most people think they're good listeners. Nobody raises their hand and says, oh, yeah, I suck at listening. Hey, you want a brutally honest assessment of yourself? Ask your spouse or your closest friend. So let me ask you this. How many times have you been on a call and at the end you realize you have no idea what to do next? Or you ask a question they already answered 10 minutes ago? That's not a strategy problem. That's a listening problem. But here's the good news. You can fix it. With what I call the two P's, and that's purpose and pause. So let's look at purpose. Before every call, and I mean every call, write down or think one sentence. My listening purpose is to find out. Blank. And of course you fill in the blank. That's it. One sentence. Not what you're going to say, what you need to hear. Here's an example. If it's a first meeting call, it could be. My listening purpose is to find out what's making them consider change right now. If it's a demo call, my listening purpose is to find out which specific results of my offer solves their most painful problem. If it's a closing call, my listening purpose is to find out what final concern is holding them back. And here's why this works. Your brain is a heat seeking missile, but it needs a target. If you don't give it one, it defaults to thinking about who. That's right, you. Your questions, your pitch, your next move. When you write your listening purpose down, you're programming your brain to hunt for specific information. You become an active listener instead of a passive one. Most salespeople write down what they want to say on a call. That's what you do, right? But that's backwards. Write down what you need to hear. Try this on your next call. You're going to be amazed at what you pick up. All right, let's. Now look at the pause. And that's the second P. And this is where the magic happens. The two second pause. I want you to pause in two places. First, after you ask a question. So ask your question. Then shut up. Count in your head 1000, 2000. Don't fill the silence, even if it feels awkward. Don't rephrase the question. Don't add. Does that make sense? Just wait. Silence is powerful. It lets them think. And most salespeople are terrified of it. So they talk right over it. Right here's the second place and this is the big one. Pause after they answer. So they finish their answer. Then you pause for two seconds. Here's what happens in that pause. They keep talking. And what they say after the pause, that's where the gold is. That's where they start giving you the reason behind what they said. First. Here are a couple, couple examples. So let's say I'm on a call with a cfo. I ask her about her current vendor and she says we're all set. And young me, well, I would have jumped right in with my next question. Okay, well, great. Well, let me tell you what we do. But now I pause, couple seconds. And then she continues. Well, actually their service has been slipping a bit lately and it's starting to cause issues with our month in close. That's the real answer. Their fine was the reflex. The pause gave her some space to tell me the truth. So what would I do next? How easy. Just react to what she just said. Oh, issues. Here's another example. Let's say I'm talking to a vp. I ask him what success looks like for this project. And he gives me the corporate answer. Yeah, well, we want to increase efficiency and reduce costs. And then I pause. He continues. Yeah, honestly, if this doesn't work, I'm probably looking for a new job. There's a lot writing on this. Now I have an opening to go deeper on the real problem. This isn't about efficiency. This is about his career. So you see what happened there. The first answer is what they're supposed to say. The second answer, the one that comes after the pause, is what they actually mean. So my next move would be to let him keep talking about it. Oh, wow. Tell me more about that. But most salespeople never hear it because they're already talking. Now, here's the thing about all of this. You already know you should listen better. Everybody does. So the issue is not knowledge, it's muscle memory. You need to practice this until it becomes automatic. Until you don't have to think about it anymore. So here's your assignment. Pick one call today or tomorrow. Just one. Before the call, write your listening purpose. One sentence. During the call, use the two second pause twice. Once after a question, once after the answer. That's it. Just try it and see what happens. I promise you, you're going to hear things that you've been missing for years. And oh, like most things we do in sales, this applies to all of your communication. Try it with your spouse, your kids, close friends. I'll bet you learn things that will surprise you and you'll learn something about yourself. Hey, and look, if you want help building this habit. Well, last week I launched the brand new smart calling sales and prospecting coaching and training app for B2B sales pros. And the reps who are already using it are telling me how it is already changing the way they prospect and sell. And their confidence and motivation has gone through the roof. Inside the app, among the many drills and exercises, there's a daily listening challenge that trains exactly what we just discussed today. It gives you a different listening focus each day. It reminds you to use the pause technique it holds you accountable. And this isn't about learning something new. Hey, you just learned it or were reminded of it. It's about doing it consistently until it becomes who you are. Most salespeople need that daily reminder until it clicks. That's what the challenge does. Oh, and I hate to use the word app to describe it because it's unlike anything else on your phone. This is a transformational coach in Your pocket, available 24 7. It's like having me as your personal trainer for sales and prospecting with you all the time. So to see everything that you're going to get, go to studio.com forward/art. Again, studio.com forward slash art. Okay, to recap, to listen, like the ultimate sales pro, you need to follow the two P's purpose and pause. And before every call, write your listening purpose down. What do you need to find out during the call? Count to two after you ask and after they answer. So do this on your next call and watch what happens. You're going to be present. You'll hear the real answers, and your prospects will feel the difference. All right. Hey, you know what time it is? That's right. It's time for the quote of the day. Today's quote comes from Stephen Covey. And Stephen said, most people do not listen with the intent to understand. They listen with the intent to. To reply. Except for you after today, right? All right, again, if you ever feel stuck, if you know you're capable of more, but you need some guidance and accountability and you need a little bit of help to get there, let me help you finally achieve what you deserve. Go to studio.com forward/art. Thank you so much for investing your valuable sales time with me today. Until next time, go out and make it your best sales day ever. I'm our subject.