How to sell like a pro? Now I am a no-pro, but then that’s exactly why I am writing this right? 
. After reading quite a few books, going to quite a few seminars, did quite a few selling – I think the best way I can summarise what any salespeople or anybody who attempts to sell anything to anyone should do is; to sell themselves first.
Now what does that mean? Selling myself? Hey, I am not up for sale you know!
Selling yourselves simply means, you have to make sure that before even looking at your product/your service, your customer already likes you. They are sold by your personality, your charisma, your honesty, your friendliness, and all the good qualities that you possess.
Don’t we love to buy from the people we like? Didn’t we prefer the smiling cashier rather than the scowling ones? The friendly rather than the obnoxious one? The helpful rather than the aloof ones?
Now I know there are many ‘tactics’ and strategy to win over customers, some are drenched with pretense and acting that requires a training from a performing art schools! And I don’t believe in this kind of tactics. Anything that of pretense, will not normally last. Cliche as it is, honesty IS the best policy. Because you know why, there’s only so much lying, cheating, and pretending that you can do before all of it comes chasing after you. If you want to live a happy peaceful life – well, you know what NOT to do.
I say, first build on your own personality. Your own character. Be a genuinely nice person. A person of integrity. And yes, surprise, surprise – these needs practise too! Even you think you are already a decent person, there’s always more than you can work on to make you an even better person!
At the same time, also work on soft skills like presentation skills and communication skills.
Do you know that the tone of voice can repel people? So if you want to make people more comfortable and open to you, use a lower tone/pitch in your voice. If you don’t understand – think of Janice in Friends (those Friend’s fans can relate to this very well), her shrieking high pitch voice drove everybody mad. The higher your voice is, the more chances are people be turned off by you. Also, that’s why the romantic dashing heroes in movies spoke with low whispering tone and girls go wild! Exactly, it works both ways – male and female. Also, lower voice pitch/tone also depitcs a more professional image.
Hand gestures, dont flap your hands wildly when talking. (this is my weakness- I have very dramatic hand gestures). If you are like me, you need to control it. But this doesn’t mean hanging your hand limp by your side.
Eye contact. Since Malaysia is very much influenced with the Western business customs – please do look people in the eye when talking. If you don’t, some people might think you are hiding something. But, how to look in the eye without making them feel like they are in some kind of staring contest? Tricky business huh.
But these are only applicable if I am face-to-face salesperson. What if I am selling from my home, in my pyjamas, via laptop?
Now I am firm believer in blogging. And so I say, the trick is to blog. Even the biggest corporate companies and politicians are turning into blogs. Do you know why? Because people wants to know them. Why do they want to know them? To check out whether they like them enough or not to buy from them!
I see blogging as another aspect of ’selling yourself via the written words’. So, I always say this, if you want to start anything – start a blog first. It’s free, it’s easy, and it’s the closest thing to talking to that person itself.
For practical tips on how/where to learn to sell:
1. Join an MLM/Unit trust/Insurance company and do some selling. Good thing these companies are always looking for more people . But a word of warning, choose only good companies, with good agencies and good people. 3 keys – good company, good agency, good people. If not, you are just wasting your time. So do your research first. No, I don’t suggest you to change your career and be an MLM agent, the purpose is to learn selling from them. So do it part-time. If you like it so much, then maybe you can consider it seriously.
2. If you are just so tired and busy and do not have the time and energy to join any, I will give you a short-cut. Go to their seminars/training and talk to the salespeople. Observe and learn what they are saying/doing. Observe and learn your own reaction to what they are saying. You might learn a valuable lesson or two. But nothing beats actually doing the real selling.
Now I know and I understand that it can be quite challenging to just simply join these companies, (especially if you have had bad experience with them before). But I say give them a second chance, not for them – but for you. You owe it to yourself these knowledge that all these people know and keep using against you! Don’t you want to know, even if to not to be a salespeople, but at least a better consumer?
Because there’s a saying – ‘that you can’t sell to a salesperson’. Salesperson knows all the tricks in the book to not get themselves tricked into buying things they don’t need.
I also understand the feeling of ‘malu’ or ’segan’, it’s normal to have these feelings. especially since it is so alien and far from our usual routines. So, to make yourself feel better at selling, treat it like a game. Like when you are a child and playing games. Instead of ‘main masak-masak’ or ‘gaduh-gaduh’, we play ‘jual-jual’. 
Make it fun for you. Who knows it might be the best game you ever played .
Copyright © Naziehah 2008
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Image 1 from here
Image 2 from here
). She also took amazing photographs. I tried to upload her pics here, (obviously unsuccessfully), so you gotta go to her blog 
