So you’re looking for sales skills to help take your sales career to the next level? I know you’ve probably thought of taking courses, reading books, or finding a mentor. It can be overwhelming!
But here is the truth: sales is a diverse field, and you can’t learn everything you need at once. It’s an ongoing process. Instead, you should narrow down and focus on sales skills that will help you close deals faster and in a sustainable way.
The million-dollar question, therefore, is: What are the must-have skills that’ll make you an A-list seller? We’re here to answer that.
Based on our years of experience in sales, we’ve compiled a list of the 12 most essential sales skills every salesperson must have to close more deals. As you read on, you’ll see why each skill here is paramount and how they complement one another.
Let’s dive in.
12 Must-Have Sales Skills in Today’s Competitive Climate
Let’s start with a caveat: There is no one-size-fits-all sales skill. Your strong suit may be another rep’s weakness, and vice versa. This means the sales skills in this post should be a guide to help you grow your sales career–not a one-size-fits-all checklist.
If you master most or all of the skills listed below, you’re poised for success in the cutthroat sales world. Let’s get into it.
1. How to Communicate Effectively
A salesperson who lacks effective communication skills is like waving at someone in the dark. To borrow Steuart Anderson Britt’s popular saying, “You know what you’re doing, but nobody else does.”
As a salesperson, you may have all the skills and knowledge you need to succeed, but without effective communication, how do you convey the value of your offer?
Here are a few ways to improve your communication.
- Speak your audience’s language: When speaking with a prospect or client, ensure you’re both on the same page. This simply means: try to balance the amount of technical language you use. Generally, avoid any ambiguous words or phrases.
- Watch your body language: Body language is a way of communicating, and it can say a lot about you. Research shows we only transmit 7 percent of information through verbal communication, while the rest is transmitted through how we speak and our body language. Interestingly, body language alone accounts for 55 percent of that. Hence, be mindful of how you talk, as your body language can reveal impactful traits, such as confidence, honesty, and so on.
- Be as clear as possible: Miscommunication happens when things aren’t as clear as you think they are, leaving room for confusion or misinterpretation. The goal is to be straightforward and informative, not flowery or technical. So, ask simple questions and provide unambiguous answers at all times.
2. Practice Active Listening
Active listening requires listening with an open mind, asking questions, and clarifying information to ensure mutual understanding. Pay full attention when a prospect is speaking and try to understand the message behind their words. It’s how you demonstrate to a prospect that you truly care and aren’t just in for a quick buck. This builds trust and connection.
Here are some tips to practice active listening:
- Maintain eye contact to show you are fully present in the conversation.
- Listen without interrupting to allow the speaker to express their thoughts fully.
- Repeat back what the speaker said to ensure that you understood their message correctly.
- Ask open-ended questions to encourage the speaker to share more information.
- Show empathy to acknowledge the speaker’s feelings and emotions.
- Avoid distractions such as checking your phone or looking away from the speaker.
- Use positive body language, such as nodding and smiling, to show you are engaged in the conversation.
- Avoid making assumptions and jumping to conclusions.
- Focus on the speaker’s message rather than preparing your response.
Active listening can be challenging to master, especially when you’re under pressure to close a deal, but it’s worth the effort.
Say a prospect expresses concerns about the price of your product.
Active listening response: “I understand that price is a significant concern for you. Can you tell me more about your budget and what features are essential for your needs? This will help me understand how we can provide you with the best value.”
This will move them one step closer to purchase and prevent losing a deal that’s otherwise on track.
3. Deep Product Knowledge
Without a thorough understanding of your product and its features and benefits, how can you tailor your pitch to your prospect’s needs? How can you explain how your product solves their problems and meets their specific requirements?
These days, customers have the luxury of independent research, and they expect you to know more than they do. If you don’t know your product inside and out, you’ll lose the customer’s trust and confidence. It also puts you at a serious disadvantage when your prospect raises an objection.
On the other hand, if you have extensive product knowledge, you’ll be able to answer any questions the customer might have, and this will position you as an authority in your niche and someone they can trust. Trust, you know, is the lifeblood of sales.
To develop product knowledge,
- Research your product thoroughly. Watch demos and read product specifications for deeper insights.
- Learn how it stacks up against the competition by reading third-party review blogs and researching how features and benefits differ.
- Read customer reviews to understand pain points and benefits from the customer’s point of view.
- Connect with a product manager or other team member to ensure you understand the intricacies of how your product or service works.
4. Build Trust and Rapport
“People buy from people,” as they say. If you’re in B2B sales, this is one of the most crucial skills you’ll need.
B2B buyers don’t do impulsive buying; it’s usually a long, complex process involving multiple stakeholders–and it can span up to 84 days. If you can’t inspire trust, you’ll lose the sale.
A 2021 survey found 80 percent of customers consider trust a deciding factor in buying decisions. That’s a big deal!
Building trust and rapport involves being personable, showing empathy, and demonstrating that you understand the customer’s pain points. Most importantly, be honest and transparent about your product or service, and always follow through on your commitments.
5. Effective Time Management
Without proper time management, you may struggle to complete your tasks, as a result, miss your targets. Here are some key time management strategies that can help you improve your productivity and results:
- Create and follow a process: If you want to be effective, have a routine. A standardized process helps you control the flow of your work and achieve goals a lot faster. Take inventory of your day-to-day activities, see how each task flows into the other, and group related tasks together. You can also use time management software to become more efficient.
- Stay organized: To stay organized, try using a cloud-based file management system. This lets you easily search for files, share them, or download them. Use a task management system and look for automation features in the tools you already use to keep you on track.
- Focus on the 20 percent: The Pareto principle (also known as the 80/20 rule) states that 80 percent of results come from 20 percent of work. Try to identify the most impactful tasks and focus on them. This will maximize your effectiveness.
- Automate repetitive tasks: Use CRM and sales automation tools to automate repetitive tasks so the same work doesn’t take too much of your time.
6. Overcome Sales Objections
In sales, you’ll encounter lots of objections. If you want to succeed, you must see them as part of the sales process and learn how to handle them.
Objections are concerns potential customers have about your product or service, and they can be major roadblocks in the sales process.
When a prospect raises an objection, it’s important to address it head-on and provide them with the information they need to make an informed decision.
By handling objections effectively, you can show your prospects that you understand their needs and are committed to helping them find the right solution.
Broadly, sales objections come in four forms:
- Price objections, i.e., “I don’t have the budget for this.”
- Product fit objections, i.e., “I’m not sure this product is the right fit for my needs.”
- Competitor objections, i.e., “I need to think about it.”
- Timing objections, i.e., “I need to think about it.”
Each of these objections requires a different approach, so it’s important to be prepared for any scenario.
You can handle objections by following the LAER framework:
- L-listen to the objection
- A-acknowledge the objection
- E-explore the objection
- R-respond to the objection
If you look at what’s happening here, you’ll understand how thorough product knowledge, mentioned earlier, can help you when dealing with objections.
7. Understanding Different Closing Techniques
A crucial aspect of sales is the ability to close deals effectively. Without the right techniques, even the most promising leads can slip through the cracks.
Different techniques work for different leads, but having a variety of closing techniques in your arsenal gives you a better chance of success. Here are some of the most effective closing techniques for sales:
- The assumptive close: This is where you assume the prospect is going to buy and begin to interact with them as if they’ve already decided. It helps shake up any hesitancy a prospect might be having and encourages them to buy. For example, you may ask them which payment options they prefer or present them with a choice between product options.
- The urgency close: You can motivate a prospect to buy by creating a sense of urgency. There are tested ways to do this, including highlighting a limited-time offer or emphasizing the potential consequences of delaying a decision. Be careful how you use this, though, so you don’t end up looking desperate.
- The options close: The options close is a technique where you give prospects more options to help them overcome hesitancy. For example, you can offer them lower pricing tiers or another product completely that might help them. It’s all about giving them control.
- The trial close: You can ask a prospect to sign up for a free trial or a cheaper option. This allows you to gauge their level of interest and determine if they’re trying to buy.
These are just a few of the many closing techniques you can use to increase your sales success. By understanding the different options available and tailoring your approach to the specific needs and preferences of each prospect, you can improve your closing rate and grow your bottom line.
8. Identifying Customer Pain Points
Understanding customer pain points is crucial in sales because it allows you to identify and address the specific challenges potential customers are facing. By identifying their pain points, you can tailor your solutions and value propositions to directly alleviate those challenges, increasing the chances of a successful sale.
To uncover customer pain points, you could ask questions such as:
- What are the biggest obstacles you’re currently facing?
- What keeps you up at night regarding your business?
- What inefficiencies or frustrations do you experience in your current processes?
- What is standing in the way of you getting a solution?
- What’s missing in your current stack of solutions?
- How do these challenges impact your overall goals and objectives?
These inquiries will help you gather valuable insights and demonstrate your commitment to understanding and solving customer problems.
9. Effective Cold Calling
Ah, cold calling! You might not be a fan. But the real question you should ask is: Does cold calling work?
Despite its low conversion rate, it’s not without benefits.
For one thing, it allows you to directly reach out to potential customers who may not have been aware of your product or service. This provides you with an opportunity to generate new leads and expand your customer base.
By being proactive and reaching out to potential customers, you can bypass traditional marketing channels and establish a direct connection with your target market.
Cold calling is also a good place to master your sales scripts. Since it’s arguably the most uncomfortable of all tasks, there is no better place to practice quick thinking, decision-making, objection handling, persuasion, and so on. If you can excel at cold calling, your chances of succeeding in other forms of sales techniques will increase.
10. Negotiation Skills
To be successful in sales, you’ll need to learn to negotiate as if your life depends on it. Of course, it doesn’t, but your livelihood does.
You might have succeeded in nurturing a prospect, managing their expectations, and even getting them to agree to make a purchase. However, things can soon become tense when they contact you back after you’ve sent them a contract, seeking to negotiate the specifics of the deal.
Ultimately, you want to have that discussion, win them over, and come out of it with a financially reasonable deal for your company. What helps you do this? Negotiation.
Don’t know where to start? Chris Voss’s Never Split the Difference is a good place to start.
11. Collaborative Skills
Research shows team selling helps salespeople close more deals.
If you want to close more deals, you’ll need to work closely with other team members.
You should be comfortable collaborating effectively with marketing, product development, and customer service teams. It’s an opportunity for you to learn from and share information, insights, and feedback with your colleagues, leading to better decision-making and improved customer experiences.
But that’s not all; collaboration skills can also help you build stronger relationships with customers. By working collaboratively with customers, you can gain a deeper understanding of their needs and preferences, leading to better product recommendations and more personalized solutions.
As a result, you’ll build rapport and gain their trust, leading to increased loyalty and repeat business.
Here are some critical skills you need to build a great collaboration culture:
- Communication: Effective communication involves actively listening to others, expressing ideas clearly and concisely, and providing constructive feedback. It lets you convey your thoughts, concerns, and questions while also being receptive to others’ perspectives.
- Active listening: This helps create an atmosphere of respect and empathy, encourages open dialogue, and fosters a deeper understanding of different perspectives.
- Conflict resolution: Collaborative environments may encounter disagreements and conflicts. Managing conflicts constructively by seeking win-win solutions, finding common ground can help you maintain a positive and respectful atmosphere. You can negotiate and compromise effectively to reach mutually beneficial outcomes.
- Flexibility and adaptability: You should be open to change, adaptable to new situations, and willing to consider alternative approaches. It’s also important to accommodate diverse perspectives and evolving circumstances, fostering a collaborative spirit even in challenging situations.
- Team building: It’s important to actively contribute to team cohesion by promoting trust, respect, and cooperation among team members. You should also encourage a supportive and inclusive environment that values diversity and encourages the contributions of all team members.
- Problem-solving: Collaborative skills require the ability to analyze problems, generate creative solutions, and make informed decisions collectively. You can also tap into the diverse strengths and expertise of team members to tackle complex challenges more effectively.
12. Build Your Sales Prospecting Skills
Prospecting is about tracking down sales opportunities and vetting leads to see if they meet the criteria for your ideal customer profile.
It’s a superpower that helps you save time by focusing on the leads who are most likely to do business with you.
Some of the abilities you’ll need for good prospecting have already been highlighted, such as rapport building, active listening, effective communication, and so on. You’ll also need to be an excellent researcher to find insights about their likelihood of making a purchase with you and what their pain points are.
All these will help you craft an effective message and create a good first impression when you finally reach out. When a sales rep who’s done her homework meets an in-market prospect, miracles happen.
More importantly, your CRM will be key, as it documents leads’ interactions with your company and can yield great insights into a prospect’s intent.
Improve Your Sales Skills + Grow Your Career
The most important sales skills are actually life skills. Learning how to practice active listening, building trust, and collaborating with colleagues won’t just help you grow your sales career–these skills will serve you well in every aspect of your life.
The key to closing more deals is a combination of persistence, adaptability, and employing the right techniques. Stay committed to continuous improvement and be open to learning new strategies. With dedication and the right mindset, you can master the art of closing sales and boosting your revenue.