Mentoring and sales are more intertwined than you might think. Mentoring is a lot more than just “advice over coffee.” Warren Whitlock, social media maven and consultant, defines mentoring as helping other people solve problems and get what they want. The sales game is about the same thing.
In our interview video below, Warren shares stories from the sales world to drive this lesson home.
The Power of Storytelling
Life in the sales world is about two things:
1) Who we connect and build relationships with
2) The stories that we share with them
Warren tripled his sales when he started asking prospects to share stories about challenges and business concerns that they were facing, instead of leading with a sales pitch.
People are wired for storytelling; everyone has stories that they want to share. Let them share with you and listen for ways that your product or service might be able to help them, and offer to help when the opportunity arises.
When that opportunity arises, share your solution as a story. Facts and figures aren’t enough; building an emotional connection will shorten your sales cycle and build rapport faster.
Build First, Ask Later
People want to do business with people they know, like, and trust. Trust is built by authentically connecting with someone, and helping people is a powerful way to connect. When you let them share their concerns and then help them solve problems, they will actually want to do business with you and refer their friends.
When your product or service helps them with a concern, they will seek out your products or services. Inadvertently, you’ll experience more sales success.
Leveraging Nimble
Getting to know people can take a lot of time and energy. Rather than trying to collect information from different sources, Warren leverages Nimble’s Chrome extension. Nimble brings all the information you need to learn about someone in one place, including all their social media streams.
During the interview, Warren shares one of his favorite quotes that sums up his ideology perfectly:
“You can have everything in life you want; if you will just help other people get what they want.”
