Harden Yourself for Sales Rejection

Harden yourself as a retailer for the inevitable “no’s” you’ll encounter in your business. A current Bloomberg Businessweek article profiles Jia Jiang whose rejection therapy consists of making one request each day to which he expects to be told no. He’s asked university instructors to let him lecture in their classes, a flight attendant if Mr. Jiang could give the on-board safety announcement, and a pet groomer at PetSmart to give him a haircut. He asked Bloomberg Businessweek to let him write an article for publication, but then to help ensure he’d get a no, he revealed that he’d never before written for a magazine, plus he had no idea what he’d write about.
     Mr. Jiang’s objective is to harden himself as he seeks financing for his business. If you watch his progression of self-imposed challenges, you’ll see that he’s becoming more confident in his requests and is getting some yes’s rather than no’s. It’s easier when you make a sale a slice at a time.
     The first objective is getting the customer to say yes. In a wide variety of studies, it's been found that once the prospect says yes, they're more likely to continue saying yes. Even getting the shopper to nod seems to help, as long as a nod means yes in that person's culture.
     When possible, present the customer items which can be purchased in pieces or can be augmented later. Researchers at London Business School, Harvard Business School, and Duke University found that people are more comfortable when downgraded versions of products are available for sale. This might mean having a barebones version of the product or service, a smaller package or a sample to try out to start, or showing upgrades on the shelves or easily available via special order.
     Please realize that this doesn't mean the customer ends up purchasing the barebones, downgraded model. It is the availability of downgrades and upgrades which relaxes the shopper's fear of buying the whole pie at once. Again, once the customer says yes to the slice, they're more likely to end up wanting the whole thing at some point.
     Making the sale a slice at a time is a technique Mr. Jiang could do well to refine if he wants to be more hopeful in getting his business financed. He also might benefit from changing the proposed name for his business. It’s currently called Hooplus.

Click below for more: 
Make the Sale a Slice at a Time 
Teach “I Don’t” In Place of “I Can’t” 
Ease Customer Anger at Delivery Delays