I’m not going to lie. For the first year or so in my business, selling felt HARD. I’d jump on a call with a potential client, chat for 25 minutes (recognising that they would really benefit from working with me) but in the last 5 minutes, I’d squirm around and struggle to know how to find the words to actually make the sale.
It went on for waaaay too long. In fact, it got to the point where I knew that I was missing out on business because I wasn’t brave enough to say those scary words, ‘um..so would you like to work with me ?’.
Sales felt icky to me. I’d told myself that in order to sell something, I’d have to turn into one of those sleazy people who pushed their product or service at every available opportunity. And so I just kinda shrank in those moments when I was supposed to be selling.
But guess what…. a business with no sales has a pretty short lifespan. I knew I needed to change my mindset, but more importantly, I needed to find a way to sell that felt good.
So I channelled my inner geek and read everything I could about sales. I watched webinars, I read books and I checked out how other people were selling and how their sales pitches made me feel. I realised that what I needed was clarity. Clarity on who I was selling to. Clarity on the problem I was solving for them. Clarity on why my solution was different.
Once I figured these things out, my sales process changed dramatically. Mainly because the clarity I had around my brand & my messaging meant that I only ended up talking to people who were the perfect fit for my work. They were ready. They wanted what I had to offer.
Think about it like this. Let’s say you’re hungry. You know you really want to eat something healthy. You look online for somewhere nearby that sells good, fresh food. You walk down the street, get to the cafe and stand at the counter to make your order. You buy your lunch, thank the guy who made it, and walk out, stoked.
You had a problem: You were hungry and you needed something to eat, but you wanted to make sure whatever you ate was fresh & healthy.
The cafe solved the problem for you, and you were more than happy to pay for the solution. In fact, there was no sales pitch involved. No persuading. No sleazy tactics. Just one person helping another.
And that’s all it comes down to. Once you know who you are selling to, and the problem you are solving for them, sales become simple.
Brand clarity enables this process. It not only gives you the tools to sell effortlessly, it gives you the confidence to do it. And that’s what makes the difference.