Profit Hacking Weekly Issue #6: What I learned from the best salesmen in the world

The first time I became responsible for sales, I had no “sales” experience.

ZERO training…

But I knew my goal

I needed a person I'd never met to trust me with their most sensitive financial information.

Over the phone, in 30 minutes or less

And pay me to help them.

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Profit and Grow is a fractional CFO, bookkeeping, and tax planning firm helping professional service businesses earn and keep more money by maximize their PROFIT, minimize their TAXES, improving CASH FLOW, and making the wisest business DECISIONS.

If profitability and revenue are the most painful parts of your business, stopping you from focusing on what you do best, visit profitandgrow.com and book a call today.

We scale legacy-minded service businesses to $5m in gross revenue, profitably.

We were a fintech startup in San Francisco, offering bookkeeping and tax planning to freelancers. There were a ton of inbound leads coming in and I was the only one handling sales, so we needed a 1-call close.

The sales gurus on social media had some tips, but they weren’t the right fit for me. People didn't trust me.

Like my own unconventional background, I started looking for inspiration in unconventional places.

Who I found are the best sales professionals in the world.

People who are so good, you don't know they're selling to you.

No one haggles with them, argues with them, or price shops them.

I found them by asking:

Then it hit me.

I wasn’t running sales calls…

A sales call wasn’t what my prospective client needed.

They were hurting, they weren’t sure why, and they were desperate for a solution.

They needed a Doctor.

Or, at least the experience of a doctor visit.

Salesmen are for helping you choose between the red car or the blue car.

The LG vs Frigidaire appliances.

Extended car warranty. 🤦‍♂️ 

The people talking to me didn’t need a salesman, they needed an expert.

So, I broke down the steps of a visit to the doctor.

Step 1. Call and schedule an appointment

Step 2. Fill out the intake forms

Step 3. Show up to the office for the appointment

Step 4. The nurse takes your measurements - Height, weight, blood pressure, heart rate, etc.

Step 5. The Doctor comes in and asks:

“Where does it hurt?”

“How bad is the pain on a scale of 1-10?”

Step 6. He/She, diagnoses the problem based on your symptoms

Step 7. They prescribe a solution

Step 8. Then they Send you to the pharmacy to pick up said solution

When a doctor recommend a drug to solve your problems, how often do you say, ”Thanks Doc. but I’m going to need to check with my wife.”? Or, “hmmm, I don’t know, I was expecting to only pay $.”?

You take the prescription, say thank you, and go get your meds.

It’s fascinating. There are so many psychological effects happening when you interact with a doctor.

I needed to capture some of that.

Here’s what I did:

Step 1. Advertisement with a scheduling link

(Book the appointment)

Step 2. Sent a questionnaire to gather info and prequalify

(Intake forms)

Step 3. Get them to show up on Zoom, where I could control the environment. I had a professional office background, 4k camera, professional-grade microphone.

(Show up at the office)

Step 4. After the polite intro, I’d ask follow up questions based on the questionnaire.

"How long have you been in business?"

"How much revenue did you earn last year, how much do you expect to earn this year?"

"Have you worked with an accountant before?"

(Take the measurements)

Step 5. Ask:

“What are you looking for help with today?"

"What’s the most painful part of your business finances?”"

(Where does it hurt)

Step 6. Explain what they are experiencing.

“Your tax bill is so high because you don’t have the right tax plan”

“Your bank account doesn’t match the amount you’re paying taxes on because we have a cashflow issue.”

“You feel like you’re flying blind because we don’t have good bookkeeping practices in place, yet.”

(Diagnose)

Step 7. Offer a solution to the problem with clear next steps for onboarding.

(Prescribe)

Step 8. Collect payment and start onboarding

(Solve)

My close rate went through the roof!

No one compared us to the competition. Winced over the price. Or even stalled to speak with their spouse.

If we weren't the right fit and couldn’t help, they got ANGRY. Even though I told them I wasn’t the best professional for their situation and I referred them to someone else.

Most profound outcome of all…

People started offering to PAY FOR THE “SALES” CALL!

That was when I learned what consultative sales actually is.

Consultative Selling isn’t giving someone information to make a decision.

Consultative Selling is giving away the solution. Followed by an offer to solve the problem for them.

It’s valuable. People should WANT to pay you for the solution to their problems.

So...

How much would someone pay you for a sales call?

If you’re offering a professional service and paying for people to get on sales calls with you, you’re not offering enough value during the meeting.

Which means you’re also not building the trust and rapport needed for a lasting relationship.

Steal this. Make it your own. Get people to PAY you to SELL them.

Thanks for reading the fifth issue of the Profit Hacking Weekly newsletter. Past issues will be located on the blog section of profitandgrow.com.

If you need help with anything I talk about, like maximizing your profit, minimizing your taxes, understanding your cash flow, or making the best spending decisions, connect with me on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielt6/

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By: Daniel Talbott