"I'm Not Interested."

Posted on August 12, 2008 by Ari Galper

  If you’ve been in any type of sales in almost any industry, you’ve probably heard the dreaded three words: “I’m not interested.”

  Those are the words that prospects use to abruptly end a sales call – a sales call typically initiated by those who are still influenced by the old “sales pitch” sales gurus.

  Why is it that good-hearted people feel the need to shut down a call from someone who is genuinely trying to help them?

  Why is it that so many people who use the phone to sell have their heart in the right place, but still default to an approach that triggers rejection-filled responses?

  The answer to that is a deep psychological one.

   But I’m going to give you some simple answers that, if taken seriously, could make the difference between living with rejection and ending it permanently.

   This, from one of our Unlock The Game members, will bring us closer to the answer as to why those who still sell the old way constantly get rejected with, “I’m not interested,” and those who are members of our Inner Circle don’t:

  “Before I was exposed to the Inner Circle program the words, ‘I’m Not Interested’ were very painful. They were painful because some of the Sales Gurus said if your prospect says the words "Not Interested" it means they are not INTERESTED in YOU. It was as if to say the caller was boring. To compensate for that one would have to develop an INTERESTING personality. Right? Well that is what the Sales Gurus would say. The Sales Gurus tout that the best sales people in the world are very funny and have a lot of charisma and charm. People just love to hang out with these people.

  “I thought this is the way I had to be (Funny-Charming). I found myself in a sales position where one could be very successful and the whole time I was thinking - so and so - should be doing this job instead of me. They are naturally outgoing and I’m not. They know what to say to make someone laugh and I do not. They know how to refute in a charming way and I do not. I so desperately wanted to be like the people I knew who had an outstanding sense of humor and flair to their communication style that I myself felt blocked. The funny thing is I’m a great communicator. How would I ever take those talents to the phone? I guess you could say I was experiencing a form of ‘hopeium’ with my communication style.”

  Ah, the truth emerges from the words of someone who’s been there.

  You see, what we have discovered is the more “outgoing” you are on the phone to a stranger who doesn’t know you, the more YOU trigger “I’m not interested”.

  The more inauthentic you are with the prospect you are calling, the more you trigger, “I’m not interested.”

  Now here’s the biggie: If all you do when you start a conversation with a new prospect is start with a sales pitch about you or your solution, then you’re just asking for personal rejection.

  Rejection is painful and guess what? IT DOESN”T HAVE TO HAPPEN TO YOU EVER AGAIN.

  If, and only if, you’re open-minded, willing to shift to a new sales mindset and are humble enough to “let go” of how you’ve been influenced to sell in the past, will you experience peacefulness and more sales over the phone.

  Sound too good to be true?

  Only if you let your skepticism block your ability to stay open-minded.

   Hundreds of our Inner Circle members are at the top of their industry because they do the OPPOSITE of what the sales gurus teach.

   1. Their Mindset is focused on the goal of getting to the TRUTH rather than the SALE. Ironically, that makes more sales.

   2. They enter the call with a soft and humble tone, in respect to the other person who doesn’t know them yet. No hype allowed.

   3. They focus on a 2-way dialogue and not a one-way pitch.

   4. They create natural dialogue by replacing typical sales words like “interested”, “explore”, “next steps”, “follow-up”, etc.

   5. They don’t have or want a sales pitch; they use a “problem-statement” that their Unlock The Game coach customizes to their specific industry.

   Combine all of the above and “I’m Not Interested” disappears almost immediately.

   We are the only community of like-minded business people doing the opposite of what the “sales gurus” teach. That’s why our members sleep better at night and add more to their bank accounts.

   There’s no reason why you can’t experience the same.

   Take a look at the support you'll get when you're ready to join our Inner Circle.

   We won't leave you to fend for yourself.

   An open mind + willingness to “let go” of the old way of selling = Long term sales success

  To your success,

     

  P.S. Details of the Unlock The Game Inner Circle here. Your comments welcomed below. 

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How To Sell in a Down Economy

Posted on July 8, 2008 by Ari Galper

  Before the 4th of July holiday, our Inner Circle members got to hear me “pick the brains” of one of our successful members who is well on his way to mastering the Mindset.

   He’s doing the exact OPPOSITE of what all the sales gurus taught him over the years – and he’s getting stellar results to show for it.

  And he’s sleeping better at night.

   He's in one of the hardest-hit industries affected by the downturn in the economy: Real Estate.

  Now please don’t let your self-talk say: "Oh, but I'm in a different industry so this wouldn't apply to me.”

   One thing you’ll learn as you get more involved with our way of thinking is: It's not about WHAT you are selling that's going to make the difference for you, it's about HOW you're selling that's going to give you the breakthrough you're looking for.

  Derrick Ruiz, our “Mindset Expert of the Month,” knows this well.

  First thing he did when he become an Inner Circle member was listen to all the Industry Recordings in the members site that were NOT related to his industry. (Smart man)

  He picked up a lot of little secrets that aren't readily apparent from those calls incorporated them into his approach.

  He's even come up with his own method for validating his voice delivery and tone so that he knows he's coming across in a genuine and relaxed way to his prospect.

  That recorded interview also includes him walking our members, step-by-step, through a couple of calls he recently made using Unlock The Game. These calls ultimately turned into over $40,000 in commissions. (Not bad for his monthly membership of $77)

   Want to hear that recording?

    If you’ve been trained to sell the OLD traditional way, then what you’re about to hear in this interview will make your head spin.

    Here’s the recording, if it resonates with you, then join our Inner Circle membership and you’ll no longer have to participate in the “down” economy.  

Mastermind Success Call - June 2008
Ari Interviews Inner Circle Member: Derrick Ruiz

  Oh, and if you join our Inner Circle within the next few days, you'll get to listen to a "LIVE"  cold call that Derrick recorded exclusively for our Inner Circle members to listen to and study from.

   To your success,

     

  P.S. Your comments are always welcome below.

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10 Keys to Shifting Your Sales Mindset – Aikido and Unlock The Game

Posted on June 10, 2008 by Ari Galper

  In the past few weeks, I've started to take my two sons Toby and Nathan to Aikido classes.

  Aikido is a Japanese martial art based on diverting an attacker's energy to resolve conflict.  

  You see, if you're selling the old way "going for the close" and "playing the numbers game", you can't help but to be create conflict with the very people you are hoping to sell too.

  Sales pressure and the reaction to it, rejection, is triggered by the person initiating the sales relationship.

 The more you use old-school sales techniques and sales thinking, the faster your prospect's guard goes up, and then you hit what I call "the wall". It's a painful place to be.

  And if that's the only way you've been trained to sell, then it's not your fault.

  Because all you know, is what you know.

  That's why shifting your mindset to a place of being centered, where you care more about the person you're helping than the commission you're after, is the center of the calm.

  It's the center of power and trust.

  When your prospect feels genuinely understood by you, and that you truly care about solving their problems, then you are much closer to making a sale.

  The more you enter a conversation thinking from your point of view, and talking about what you have to offer, the more sales you lose.

  Good news is, if you're truly an open-minded person, you can make the shift. If you're not, you'll have no choice but to continue believing there is only one way of selling.
 
   I'm going to share with you what I call the "10 Keys to Making The Mindset Shift".

These 10 principles are the core behind the Unlock The Game Mindset.

  1. Shift your mindset away from 'making the sale' towards whether the fit exists or not. Look for what the other person is thinking and whether there is actually a real possibility of a fit. Do not assume they should buy what you have. Aim to connect, not force or persuade.

  2. Be a helper not a "pitcher". Help your prospect solve their problem, instead of referring to your features and benefits - this centers the conversation on the other person.

  3. Focus on the beginning - not the end. Be sensitive to the early interaction with your prospect - keep your mindset stay in the present moment and avoid pushing forward (where you want to go - which you can only guess at best).

  4. Avoid chasing prospects - behave with dignity. Create a pressure-free atmosphere - set a tone of equality and mutual respect - strive to be regarded as a helpful human being instead of a typical sales person.

  5. Connect with your prospects rather than work through a list. Focus on how to make a true connection with each prospect - this naturally helps build trust - think about and discuss their issues, not yours.

  6. Creating trust with your prospect is your primary goal - not making the sale. Creating genuine trust is the essence of building real relationships -- real relationships turn into more sales.

  7. Diffuse any pressure that you sense in the sales process. By diffusing the tension and pressure in the sales process between you and your prospects, you bring both of you closer to an honest and truthful conversation.

  8. Change your languaging away from 'sales speak' to natural languaging that connects with people. By using phrases like 'would you be open to' instead of 'would you be interested in', you immediately set yourself apart as someone who is patient, open minded and willing to listen.

  9. Understand your prospect's problems deeply so that they feel 'understood' by you. By having a deep understanding of the problems that your prospects experience everyday, the easier it will be for you to really feel that you know and care about their situation.

  10. Use the Unlock The Game Mindset - both in your business and personal life because relationships are the same in both worlds. By also applying these principles in your personal life, with people you care about, you'll begin to see a deeper trust being built that can strengthen your relationships for the long term.

  If these keys resonate with you and your values, then join our Inner Circle of active Unlock The Game members. We are the only sales community that believes and practices on a daily basis the principles of creating trust to make sales happen.

  To your success,

     

  P.S. Feel free to add your comments below.

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The Dog and Pony Show -- Reinvented

Posted on June 3, 2008 by Ari Galper

  If you’ve been exposed to the sales world in one form or the other, you’ve probably heard of the infamous “Dog and Pony Show”.

  That’s where you’re invited to come to your prospect’s office and make a presentation in the hopes you’ll persuade them to buy what you have.

  Of course, that’s the plan, but not usually the reality.

  If you’ve been one of those sales people, laptop and PowerPoint in tow, pitching your solution as you click from slide to slide, you know how it feels when at the end you hear: “That was a great presentation, thanks for coming in, we’ll let you know.”

  You pack up your gear, your ego stroked, and then the “hopeium” drug (as I call it) kicks in.

   “Hopeium” is that rush of fleeting feelings throughout your body, fueled by how proud you felt you did – by pitching your solution and hoping for the best.

  If you’ve been there, then you know the highs and you definitely know the lows.

  You can’t help but to end up chasing your prospect to get to the truth of where they stand, only to get blocked by voicemail and zero responses to your numerous emails.

  There’s certainly nothing wrong with being invited to meet your prospect face-to-face.

  But if you’ve only been trained to think of selling in a linear-fashion – a step-by-step process driven by how good your sales pitch is – then life aint going to be much fun much longer.

  Selling has changed.

  Prospects aren’t going to trust you enough to tell you where you stand, if all you’re doing is trying to persuade them to buy your solution.
 
  If you’re willing to be open minded and shift your mindset away from focusing on “closing” to one of problem-solving, you might find your results and how you feel about yourself -- change for the better.

  Read on as I share with you the approach our Unlock The Game Inner Circle members have adopted when they “present” to their prospects.

1. Before Your Meeting  

 Next time you're asked by your prospect to meet and make a presentation, ask this first:

  "Hi John... you know, I had a thought...it might make sense if we came up with maybe 2 or 3 core issues that you feel you'd like to have addressed at our meeting. The last thing you'd probably want, would be a generic presentation that isn't customized to your specific issues, and that, I don't think would be helpful to you...does that make sense?

   The point of this pre-meeting conversation is to gather their major problems that you can help them solve BEFORE you show up.

  Why is that important?

   Because you want your entire discussion (not presentation) to be driven around how your solution can solve THEIR problems.

   You want to walk into that meeting listing out and discussing their issues. Not walking them through a linear sales process wrapped around how great your solution is.

  So how does that work you ask?

  What To bring To The Meeting

  First, when you meet with them for the first time, leave your laptop and Powerpoint presentation in your car!

  Carry nothing with you in your hands.

  Ok, yes, you can have a small notepad and pen in your pocket or purse. But other than that, nothing is best.

  Why? Because it's disarming and sends the message you're there to have a discussion and not a one-way presentation.

During The Meeting

  When you sit down face-to-face, you want to begin by letting them know your selling philosophy so they feel safe sharing the truth of their situation:

  "I just wanted to mention that we don't believe in pressuring people or assuming they need what we have. We believe in operating as problem-solvers, not as people focusing on just trying to close the sale. I hope you're comfortable with that."

  Open up the dialogue around their issues:

   "During my talks with John, we zeroed in on a couple of key issues that you're concerned about. I wanted to get your comments on these and maybe bring out more issues around them, if that makes sense to you."
  
   Our members are reporting wonderful success with this unconventional approach. Mostly because it puts you both at an equal level, you come across as someone who cares about them first and your solution second -- and because it's the most natural way for two people or groups of people to get to know each other and open up to see if there's a fit or not.

   If you can learn to stop "selling" the old way, and join a philosophy and mindset that treats others with dignity and respect, you can be who you are, without having to "perform" in ways that feel awkward and unnatural for you.

  If this approach resonates with you and old school selling feels like something you need to break away from (for better results and your own sanity), then join our community of successful Inner Circle members.

  To your success,

     

  P.S. I'd love to hear your comments below.

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Breaking The Voicemail Barrier

Posted on May 19, 2008 by Ari Galper

  It happens to me all the time.

  “Ari, can you please give me the magic words and phrases (for free) to use on the phone to get the appointment or to make the sale...please, please”.

  It’s amazing how many times I’ve been asked that over the years.

  And my answer is always the same, “Giving you a few words or phrases to use, that you’ll plug back into your traditional way of selling, without first integrating the Unlock The Game Mindset, is futile.”

  You see, creating another “sales script” that comes across inauthentic and “salesy”, completely defeats the purpose of what myself and hundreds of our Inner Circle members practice each day.

  We know that the secret to sales success in this day and age is building authentic trust through natural conversation – not using a “one-liner” to hook the prospect so we can instantly “close” them.

  With that said, some of our members have been sharing with each other a really sincere phrase that they’ve been leaving on voicemails that has gotten a tremendous response.

  I’m willing to share that with you, if you promise that when your prospect calls you back, you don’t use sales pressure, make a sales pitch, or ask them endless questions that make you sound like you’re just “fishing” for the sale.

  Is that fair?

  With all the key words and phrases that we create as part of our Mindset – which are only accessible to our Inner Circle members -- we are very sensitive that we don’t use them as “bait” to put the prospect in an awkward situation where they are forced to listen to a sales pitch.

  What all of our members practice daily, is sharpening what we call a “problem-statement” as the opening key phrase when calling a new prospect – or calling back an inbound lead.

  Now the “problem-statement” is not a pitch about what you have to offer and it’s not an open-ended question that triggers them to tell you their problems.

  It’s about entering the conversation with a prospect ALREADY KNOWING and ARTICULATING what their core issues are – and seeing if they’re open to conversing about how to solve them.

  How do you know their issues before you call them you ask?

  You do your homework -- by asking you're clients what three core issues disappeared after they bought your solution.

  Once you have those issues, in their words, you then convert them into one of your problem-statements.

  This is a whole new way of thinking for most people who have only been exposed to old-school sales thinking.

  And as I share with you this new simple, yet powerful phrase to leave on your prospect’s voicemail, I’ll just ask that you not take advantage of them when they return your call by “pitching” them.

  Here’s the phrase to leave on your prospect’s voicemail, that in most cases, will increase your likelihood of getting a return call:

    “My name is ________, and I have a few questions that I’m hoping you can help me out with. It's related to issues around (enter your problem-statement here). My number is ______, thank you.”

  Simple, no sales pitch, honest.

  But remember, no “fishing” questions or sales pitch. 

  Only a "problem-statement" that connects with their issues, so they can feel free to respond to you.

  If you’d like to us to help you create your own industry-specific “problem-statement” that you can use for the rest of your career, then join our Unlock The Game Inner Circle membership program.

  We’ll assign you your own private coach who has been personally trained by me -- to help you master the Mindset and help you create your own “tool bag” of words and phrases that create trust with your prospects that you can use in any sales scenario you encounter.

  Old-school selling and thinking is fading fast.

  It get's harder to make the shift, the longer you wait.

  To your success,

      

  P.S. Leave me a comment below with your thoughts.

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A Bucket Full of Holes

Posted on May 1, 2008 by Ari Galper

  From time to time, my live chat staff passes me intriguing messages from visitors on our website.
 
  This is one came in from John last week:

   “I have a role play interview coming up on Tuesday. During the role play, I'm expected to make an appointment as a result of a cold call on the phone. My problem is, how do I let go of the agenda of making the appointment, when without one, I'll be out of the interview without an offer. I understand that uncovering the truth is important, but since this is an ARTIFICIAL situation, I was hoping you could help me with a few suggestions.”

  I don’t respond to most of the random messages that come through my website because hundreds come in every week. I spend most of my time with private Unlock The Game clients.

  But this message was interesting. As I read it, it hit me that there was an underlying mindset conflict that needed to be addressed head on.

  So I analyzed it carefully and came up with some insights.

  I hope John reads this email before his Tuesday interview.

  I’ll tell you why in a moment.
 
 This poor guy is being asked to pretend he’s making a real call in front of a sales manager. This manager is probably looking for typical “salesperson” characteristics like:

  - A strong one-way sales pitch

  - A “take-no-prisoners” attitude

  - A strong aggressive voice

  - A relentless pursuit of the sale

  Oooh, that makes me cringe.

  The only way John is going to get the job is if he demonstrates what his interviewer expects.
 
  To his credit, he’s obviously studied some of the free material on my site.

  His intuition is telling him that getting to the truth of whether or not there’s a fit makes more sense than just trying to “close” a prospect.

  But he doesn’t see the profound clash between his interviewer’s expectations and what his gut is telling him to do.

  If he gets this job, he’ll probably be forced to behave in ways which conflict with his new beliefs about approaching people over the phone.

  He’ll probably end up chasing prospects and playing the “numbers game”.

  He’ll end up having to swallow rejection.

  I’ve seen this happened to thousands of well-intentioned sales people.

  Let’s look at John’s viewpoint and uncover the issues he’s struggling with.
 
   By asking me for a “few suggestions” John thinks he can put some Unlock The Game “patches” on old school selling and somehow make the combination work.

   That kind of thinking is like trying to fill up a bucket full of holes by pouring water into it.

   Trying to change conventional sales thinking, with a few “tips or suggestions” just won’t work. To make a fundamental shift in mindset, a person needs to be open-minded and willing to “let go” of entrenched sales habits.

  A supportive environment and community of like-minded people who are open to change is needed to make that transformation.

What John Can Do

   He could join the crowd and continue clinging to old school sales guru thinking. That’s what most people do.

  Alternatively, he could totally root out his old school attitudes and behaviors.

   He could be true to himself. If he believes that focusing on the prospect’s truth makes more sense than railroading people into a “yes”, he needs to commit to developing the necessary skills to do just that.

  John has to make a living, like the rest of us. I respect that.

  If he wants to, he can “play the game” with his interviewer to get the job. Once he’s working, he could use the Unlock the Game approach with his prospects over the phone.

  He’d probably have to do it quietly at first. Later on, after he gains more sales traction and proves that what he’s doing is working, he can let his manager and peers know what he’s been doing.

  Some people might think I’m suggesting that he be a “phony” on his new job by “going covert” in this new work setting.

  It’s just the opposite.

  The truth is that “going covert” would allow him to clear a little private space for himself.

  Then he could cultivate his new skills in peace. Sooner or later, he’d be ready to play an open hand.

  If John wants to master this new approach, he’ll need support.

  And we’ll be here to help him.

  He would be welcome to get that support as a member of the Unlock The Game Inner Circle.

  Thousands of sales people have successfully “come out on the other side” by choosing this path -- and their results and peace of mind is proof of that.

 To your success,

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