Join NAAAP-Seattle on Wed, May 11, 6:30-8pm at the Wing Luke Museum (719 South King Street) for a fun, interactive workshop on how to sell. The event is open to the public and refreshments will be served. Free admission for NAAAP-Seattle members, $5 for non-members.
The workshop will feature three experienced sales people who will share their secrets, including Terry Terrell of AXA Advisors and Judiet Dere and Lawrence Whitley of State Farm Insurance.
To preview the event, Whitley answered some questions for NAAAP-Seattle on selling.
What was your hardest sales situation?
There’s not one, single most difficult sales situation, but more general (and longer lasting). Before becoming an agent, I had never sold anything. In my training period and at the beginning of my sales career, I felt like I had to know ‘everything about everything before I could sell anything’ … I was uncomfortable with what I didn’t know. I quickly learned that, if I wanted to succeed, I would have to get out of my own way. Also, I had to learn that it was not about me or the product/service, it was about the customer.
Why do you think it's important to know how to sell?
If you don’t understand what it takes to be successful in sales (and your particular sales career), you are highly likely to work harder than you might otherwise have to … which could easily lead to frustration and burn-out … which could easily lead to desperation and pushy sales tactics … which can become a vicious cycle until you decide to quit.
Sales is about helping other people. Our job is to educate and effectively get our customers to consider why they need our product or service, and why they need it from us. We must also understand that not everyone will do business with us … maybe not today, next week, next month, next year or ever. That’s okay. If we did what we could to help a particular person and gave them a remarkable experience in the process, we have a great chance to either get their business in the future OR have them become a referral source for other potential customers … but we have to ask.
If you have any questions about the workshop, please contact NAAAP-Seattle Professional Development Chair Michael Okimura: michael.okimura@naaapseattle.org
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