The one big mistake being made in digital sales training

Don’t forget this key ingredient

Selling in a digital sales format is one of the challenges that is often presented to me by clients and potential clients. Trying to sell a product in a digital world— the world of e-commerce, the world of Internet selling, the world of social media—seems to be a little difficult. But it doesn’t have to be. Most sales professionals are making it harder on themselves by making one big mistake. Look, just because you create a product and put it up for sale doesn’t mean someone’s going to buy it. Just because the product and service is important to you doesn’t mean your prospects going to buy it. Just because you’ve put hard work into it doesn’t mean someone’s going to pay you what you think it’s worth. Yet that mindset is causing sales professionals to make a big mistake. They go for the sale too early in the relationship.

Let’s think of digital selling like we do face-to-face selling. Would you ever walk into a presentation, immediately show your product and then just say “hey do you want to buy this?” Of course not. That doesn’t work. Yet that is essentially what is happening in digital format. For example, let’s say you’re trying to sell a digital course. The very first time I hear your name, it shouldn’t be you directing me to your website where you’re pushing your product down my throat. In doing that, you’re trying to force a sale without building trust. You’re walking into the room and immediately asking for the sale. That’s a problem. Selling without building trust is incredibly difficult.

The importance of building trust

Selling once you’re viewed as trusted, it is a little easier. Don’t skip the trust building step in a digital selling situation. One of my mentors told me, focus your product and your brand on audience maximization first, then revenue. Now, that is backwards thinking to the catapulting commissions philosophy. I get that those of us who teach sales, sales training, sales leadership, focus on growing and generating commission dollars. But, I would rather sell a coaching package that’s $15,000-$30,000, than one that is $29, $39 or $49. A lot of gurus say ‘get that credit card number. push something small.’ But that’s such a transaction-based philosophy. You can’t click on a website without someone trying to sell you something.

Give away your best stuff

Building trust is an essential ingredient to selling in the digital age. Those who are successful at selling something digitally, whether it’s a $9.99 ebook or a $99,000 mastermind course, are successful because they have built trust among an audience. You will find that with some of the most successful online sales professionals, you can follow them week-to-week and learn so much. They build trust by constantly providing value. They’re constantly providing value on social media, podcasts, and any other outlet they can find, and they’re giving it away for free. They provide value by getting in front of a camera, sharing their knowledge, giving insight, giving the best information they have for free. They then build such a massive following that when they do release a product, and it’s a low-entry product, meaning the price isn’t too high, they have a big turnout because they have earned their audience’s trust.

Your prospects, your customers, they’re not paying you for your information. Let’s be honest. There’s a million people just like you. There’s a million ways to learn the information you are teaching. But there’s only one of you that can teach your customers how to apply it the same way you do. That’s what makes selling take place online. People will pay for the application of your knowledge, they will not pay for your knowledge. So if you want to increase your online presence in your online selling ability, give the best stuff you have for free. Share some incredible value with people and cultivate and nurture those relationships through comments, responding to DMS, outreaching to people, not just to buy stuff. No one’s interested in your 999 ebook. No one’s interested in your twenty nine ninety nine course, build a relationship first. Yes have your offering, but let them get to know you who you are first. Give away your best stuff free, and you watch your commissions rise.

I’d love to hear feedback on this one. Is product being pushed at you too soon or do you want a relationship to develop before you buy from somebody you’ve never met before?

https://youtu.be/xtTXE3vrTXc