Financial and Insurance Advisors: How to Build Sales Without Being Too ‘Salesy’ Part 1

Often people think of salespeople as being pushy or aggressive. We have all experienced the pushy salesman that hasn’t stopped talking to listen and leaves you feeling as though you were forced to say ‘’yes’’. Many salespeople don’t think about whether they are being perceived as pushy and don’t realize that their style may be actually losing the prospect.

There are certainly opportunities to be successful as a Financial and Insurance Advisor without the use of overbearing or pushy methods. The key is building trust and listening. Professional selling today is about presenting your services in an organized matter –  without being pushy, tricky or manipulating. It’s all about having a good conversation coupled with asking the right questions about what’s important to your prospects.

So, how can you develop your financial services practice without coming across like a pushy salesperson? Below, is a list of tips that Advisors can consider when trying to engage prospects.

1. Build rapport and trust first.

There is a lot more then building rapport and trust in selling but making a good connection with someone and making them feel comfortable is a really good start. If you build rapport, they will start to feel comfortable sharing with you their goals, objectives and afflictions, all things you need to know to be successful as an Advisor.

2. Ask the right questions.

The best method for uncovering your prospects needs and wants is to ask the right questions. We need to learn about our prospects before we can provide the best solutions and services to them. Ask your prospect what they are looking for and probe for more detail, if necessary. Understand what really matters to your prospects. It is important to discover their goals and challenges and what they are hoping the outcome to be.

3. Be a Problem Solver.

If you are going to deliver value to your prospects, then you need to solve their problems.   If you can’t put your finger on what their problem or challenge is, then you won’t be successful in solving their problem. This is why asking the right questions is so important.   Help the prospect to visualize a more desirable situation and devise a way for them to move from the way things are to the way they would like them to be. Asking the right questions can also lead to Advisors solving other problems that the client did not even know they had.

4. Educate, instead of pitch. 

To win prospects over you need to educate them, instead of pitch to them.  The key is giving them information and options. The aim is to build understanding and identify whether there is a potential useful fit between what you can offer and what the prospect might need. Help your prospect understand their problem through education and solve their problem through your services.

Some of these might seem obvious to the seasoned sales professional but can often be overlooked and under utilized. Check out part 2 of this series, where we continue to look at some tips for building sales without being too ‘’salesy’’.

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What are the biggest challenges you face regularly in the sales cycle? What tips and tricks have worked for your practise? Share your comments below.