If you want to get more comfortable about selling, it’s helpful to consider which of these three sales techniques you use and to assess how they’re working for you.

Describing

This is the most common way to sell—one you’ve likely experienced or used. Describing the specifications, features and benefits of our products and services is usually our default sales technique. We tell people what they get, how it works, what it does and how much it will cost.

Storytelling

There’s no doubt that customer success stories are a powerful way to explain the benefits of our offerings. Before and after case studies and testimonials help people to imagine what their future might look like or who they might become in the presence of our product.

Listening

By far the most overlooked and underutilised sales technique is to listen before pitching. It’s far easier to make something people want than it is to make people want something. We can only do this by understanding the stories, frustrations, challenges and goals of our prospective customers.

Empathy is underrated.

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