It's Not About Being Aggressive

When we believe fully in what we are offering our clients and have seen the results, it's natural to assume that potential customers in our target market would want to buy. It's risky, though, to make any assumption about whether we offer the right solution until we've done our due diligence with the prospect and have mutually agreed that we are a good fit together.

Aggressiveness is a major negative for prospects and it takes hold immediately when you assume that you have a solution for every potential client you speak with. Your tone of voice and language gives them that message long before they've even had a chance to agree that they have a problem you might be able to help them solve. A better method is to find the middle ground of not assuming anything while also communicating in a low-key manner. You'll discover a whole new effectiveness you've never imagined.

Prospects can easily sense when too much is being taken for granted. We've been conditioned to present or talk about our solution as a way to engage and have prospects reveal their problems to us. That logic, however, is flawed. When you launch into your solution before gaining the person's trust, you immediately look and sound like a stereotyped "salesperson."

Instead, start by focusing 100 percent on generating discussions around the prospects' problems, rather than pitching your solution the second you hear an opening.

Second, learn to begin those conversations by converting the benefits of your solution into problems they can solve.

Third, after you and your prospects have identified a problem or problems, you can then engage in a discussion about whether fixing those problems is a priority.

It's only at that point that prospects have finally given you implicit permission to share your solution with them. Jumping in with solutions prematurely will only land you back in the trap of being perceived as "aggressive." And that's not a perception you want to keep. Take the time to really listen to what the prospect is saying, and gain their confidence and trust before sharing what you have to offer them. Even if your solution isn't what they're looking for, you've probably made a new friend along the way.