The Principled Selling Approach

Selling ethically, with integrity and a conscience

More and more people NEED to sell, to develop business, to win new customers or clients, to hold on to and develop new lines of business. It’s often not something they’re comfortable with. The stereotypical salesperson exists and most people don’t want to be like them – most buyers don’t want to listen to them! For most non-sales people there is rarely training – in the economic downturn they have been told to ‘get out there and sell’.

Inevitably, under pressure they resort to what they think selling is, based too often on the very worst sales practices. This presents three problems:

  1. Most non-sales people don’t want to be described as sales people – not when selling means to them being like the stereotypical seller. Their motivation to get out there and sell is near to zero, sometimes there is genuine fear that because they don’t have the right ‘personality’ they will fail and this might mean they ultimately lose their jobs (the human brain can rehearse scenarios and generate an emotional response about things that haven’t happens yet). They assume they will fail and this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy (the Pygmalion effect).
  2. They give selling a go and put into practice what they think sales people do – so often this is bad practice and they fail to win business.
  3. Customers and clients do not like to be ‘sold’ to – they spot the stereotypical salesperson a mile away. Most buyers are wise to sales techniques.

Something has changed

To compound these issues, if you’re in business development, you’ll have noticed that’s something has shifted. Techniques that used to be effective just don’t work like they once did. Buyer behaviour is changing fast: trust is at an all time low; referrals via social media are preferred to any traditional sales approach.

The world has moved on. It’s time to change the way you sell.

There’s a better, more comfortable way to sell

The Principled Selling approach dispels the myths around what it takes to be a successful sales person. At its heart is a deep understanding of how to motivate a customer to want to do business with you, never resorting to pressure, manipulation or using ‘closing’ to win business.

Principled Selling is a comfortable, creative experience for the buyer and for the seller. There is a time when it is right to show our enthusiasm for our product and services, there is a time when it is right to ‘pitch’ or present a solution. Most people do this long before they have earned the right to be heard.

There are five essential elements to principled selling:

  1. Selling is about motivation not manipulation
  2. Profitable relationships require investment
  3. There must be congruency throughout the business development process
  4. Long term relationships depend on being authentic
  5. Be human!

Find out more:

You can find out about the Principled Selling approach in the articles on this site but if you’re curious to know how it could work for your organisation, email David Tovey on david@principledselling.co.uk, or get in touch by phone 07823 322568.