Selling Under the Microscope

Home » Selling Under the Microscope
team finalizing a sale

Recently I booked a business coaching session with Wendy Hue of The Delfi Group; she’s a long term Chamber and community volunteer, and a good friend. So she knows me and also knows her business, backwards.

Our focus was on the art of persuasion in business. You know… selling. So much depends on who you are and who your prospect is, not just the merits of the offering.  If you can’t dance with your partner, the ball is over.

I took a short assessment called, Everything DiSC Sales®, for the four basic personality traits: dominance, influencing, conscientiousness and steadiness. We’re all a mix of these but it matters who you are mixing with and how.

I learned that I, for example, am a DC – a blend of dominant and conscientious, with bits of the others. At my best, I am competent, results oriented and quality conscious. From the assessment results and our debriefing, I could see that (and am not ashamed of it!). But what happens when I’m in full sales mode with my opposite or a customer with other different traits. Am I aware of that and how it works or doesn’t? Have I, from experience, learned how to make a better fit, create a better chemistry for successful dialogue? Not in every case, it turns out.

The assessment showed me in detail how I might respond to prospects who are similar to me and may seem competitive and strong willed – I might try being no- nonsense and prepared to answer tough questions. For those who are a mix of steadiness and conscientiousness (SC) and more cautious but tending to friendliness – I could avoid pressure and too much analysis while working the small talk towards their business needs.

Not surprisingly the Everything DiSC Sales ® process takes study, self-analysis and practice. But just being more aware of the sales dynamic interface was helpful in itself and provides me with a new tool for improving my track record. And that’s always welcome in this competitive environment.

Eric Doubt

Eric Doubt

Co-Founder, Business Development Director

Share: