Let me reiterate why you are here: the only thing important for salespeople is to listen to their customers. I firmly believe any prospect can become a customer at some point in time, given that they feel heard. Before one can sell a product, one must understand the nuances of what the customer is experiencing by asking questions like what challenges are the prospect(s) facing or, what are the industry drivers in the customer's perspective.

Actively listening to customers is like the corner piece of a puzzle: while it may be distant and insignificant at the end of the puzzle (or sale in this case), it creates the guide work for a good buyer-seller relationship.

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There are 3 elements to active listening in sales: 1) Mutual understanding of needs 2) Clarification of needs and 3) Application of needs.

• Mutual understanding of needs: this fundamentally means acknowledging the fact that, sales aside, your client has a very real need. Before you even segway into how can my product address this client's needs, think of the position the prospect is in. Only with that immersion, can you move on to the next step

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• Clarification of needs: Now, open-heartedly and candidly give a summary of your understanding. The podium still goes back to the client, however, so wane away from putting words in their mouth. Let the chat be prospect-led, not seller-led, so allow them to handle any miscommunications in a fashion best suited to the issues they convey

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• Application of needs: Articulate a question of the next step empathetically. The first goal in selling isn’t even necessarily garnering a win, it's establishing a trusting relationship almost like a friendship. Let the buyer open up to you and ask how they believe they can solve their problem. From there, find remedies in the direction of your product

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Let’s be honest: active listening can be hard. Especially when trying to juggle the process of listening, with the innate desire to be a salesperson and fulfill your job of representing your product. Tools like Flyte AI simplify this process, as the integrated competitive insights, customer sentiments along with sales battlecards capture the critical elements of the conversation while coaching you as a salesperson on how the conversation and listening component could have gone better.

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Wish to beat competition and coach your sales reps? Book a demo today at FlyteAI.com https://www.flyteai.com/

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Keywords: sales calls, listening, questions, customers, challenges, prospects, client needs

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