Got Sales? Attacks the "Sacred Cows" of Selling

(PRWeb) March 29, 2007 -- Most people think they know what to say when they're selling, but they're operating off stereotypes, out-of-date advice, and what has worked for them in the past… and wondering why they don't have more success today.

"Selling has evolved beyond overcoming objections, making sales presentations and uttering a few magic words to close the deal," says Lenann McGookey Gardner, sales and marketing consultant and author of Got Sales? The Complete Guide to Today's Proven Methods for Selling Services (Jarndyce & Jarndyce, an imprint of Cincinnati Book Publishing).

Selling today is listening, not talking. Got Sales? shows how to apply The 90-10-90 Rule: when one is selling, the buyer should be speaking 90% of the time, and of the 10% of the time the salesperson is speaking, 90% of that 10% should be spent asking questions. The exception is that the salesperson may talk as long as is necessary to answer the buyer's questions.

Beating a buyer's objections to death will kill the sale. Got Sales? says to thank the buyer for pointing out why he's not doing business with you. Once you don't have to guess about objections and can satisfactorily address those specific issues, you may turn that prospect into a buyer.

"When selling, one should have a sincere desire to see the buyer get where he wants to go, whether or not it involves buying from you or your firm," says Gardner. "This attitude transforms the selling and purchasing experience into something much more positive, productive, even pleasant."

Got Sales? is the one guidebook to the latest research and data on what works in contemporary selling, complete with a workbook of sales dialogues and exercises that make the theory come alive.

Gardner, who has a Harvard MBA and was the #1 sales rep at Xerox, offers keynote speeches on state-of-the-art selling and closing skills and executive and sales coaching for business success. She won the American Marketing Association's Professional Services "Marketer of the Year" award for her state.

As president of Lenann McGookey Gardner Management Consulting, Inc., she works with clients throughout the U.S. and in Canada, Britain, Western Europe, Central Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South America to help them grow sales profitably. More information is available at http://www.YouCanSell.com.

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