銷售們總是擁有兩種絕佳的溝通技巧：說話以及等待他們能再次說話。

Sales professionals, an old joke goes, have two modes of communication: talking and waiting until they can talk again.

開始第一年的銷售生涯，很多時候我們會用“在學習目標和顧客需求前，熱情地學習產品和服務的相關信息“來定義自己。一個擁有20多年銷售經驗的老銷售人，Warner銷售藝術公司的創始人兼總裁瑪麗·華納(Marie Warner)說。

First-year sales reps in particular often personify this by “eagerly spouting all their newly learned product or service knowledge before learning the goals and needs of their customers,” says Marie Warner, president and founder of Warner Sales Architects and a 20-year sales veteran.

因此，如果在銷售領域你是個新手，你的第一年不僅要存活，還要蓬勃發展，你的耳朵要比嘴巴更靈敏。銷售的一切都源于聆聽客戶的觀點和需求，但一定不只是這樣。下面的Tips能祝你成功。

So if you’re a new sales professional and you’d like to not only survive your first year but thrive, your ears will come in handier than your mouth will. It all starts with listening to your prospective customers, but it certainly doesn’t end there. Heed these tips for sales success.

專注于“帶來變化”而不僅是銷售本身

最成功的銷售人員從來都不表現地像一個銷售人員，銷售行為專家、擁有25年銷售培訓經驗的霍華德·沃林(Howard Wallin)說。相反，他們會表現地像他們客戶的商業伙伴，聆聽他們真正的問題所在，并為他們提供準確的解決方案。

Focus on Making a Difference vs. Making a Sale

The most successful salespeople don’t behave like salespeople at all, says Howard Wallin, a sales performance expert who has 25 years of experience in sales training. Instead, they act like their customers’ business partners, listening for the real problems an organization is having and then offering targeted solutions.

沃林的客戶中有一個在美國的鞋子生產商。過去的幾年里，這個生產商幾乎只有秋季在全力生產，那時候客人們正在挑選過冬的鞋子，之后的幾個月里，這家廠商基本處于閑置狀態。兩年前，這個公司開始向澳洲和新西蘭開拓市場，推出他們的產品，這些地方的季節正好與美國相反。這意味著這家鞋子生產商能夠一年四季保持生產。

One of Wallin’s clients is a US-based snowshoe manufacturer. For years, its factory ran at or near full capacity through the fall, when consumers gear up for winter snowshoeing treks, but then sat idle for several months.

Two years ago, the company launched a marketing campaign targeting new customers in Australia and New Zealand, where the seasons are opposite the US. This meant its factory would be busy producing snowshoes year round.

“問題解決了”，沃林說，“巧妙之處在于，這個建議是銷售生產機器到這家鞋子生產商的公司提出的。”底線是：“沒有人在乎你的產品、服務或者方案。”銷售專家吉爾·康奈斯(Jill Konrath)說，他同時也是Selling to Big Companies這本書的作者，“他們在乎的只是你能為他們公司帶來的變化。“

“Problem solved,” says Wallin. “And here’s the kicker: The idea came from a salesperson who sells manufacturing equipment to the snowshoe company.” Bottom line: “Nobody cares about your product, service or solution,” says sales expert Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies. “All they care about is the difference you can make for their organization.”

學習他人的智慧

也許你在銷售領域是個新手，但你周圍應該充滿了頗具潛力的建議人或者你的公司里很可能有很多專業的同事和合作伙伴。可以充分向周圍的專家學習，無論何時，無論何地。

Tap Others’ Wisdom

You may be new to the sales field, but you’re probably surrounded by potential advisors and sounding boards, either in your own company or through professional associations. Take advantage of this expertise whenever and wherever you can.

“找一個導師，”某一銷售培訓公司的創始人納丁·凱勒(Nadine Keller)說，“我們在商業培訓項目時，我們都傾向于相信培訓師核心。我們漸漸發現，一個成功的銷售人員總會將他們的成功很大程度上歸功于剛進入行業的時候，身邊坐著或者時常聯系的是一個極為優秀的銷售人員。”

“Find a mentor,” stresses Nadine Keller, founding partner of Precision Sales Coaching. “While we’re in the training business and we’d like to believe that training is they key, we’ve found that successful salespeople typically credit their success to having the good fortune early in their careers to sit next to or call with a fabulous salesperson.”

在自己的產品和服務中推銷自己

如果你內心的聲音告訴自己：“我不是很相信我正在推銷的東西，”那么你會遇到大麻煩的。金融媒體Anthony Migyanka的總裁安東尼·米格雅卡(Anthony Migyanka)分析認為：“生活會很艱難，每個拒絕都像會在強化你所相信的——我所銷售的東西就是個垃圾。”

Sell Yourself on Your Own Product/Service

If your inner voice is telling you, “I don’t much believe in what I’m selling,” you’re in big trouble from day one, according to Anthony Migyanka, president of Anthony Migyanka Financial Media. “Life gets difficult,” Migyanka says. “Each rejection is an affirmation of what you already believe: That your product is junk.”

因此，在你開始打電話或者安排會議前，問問自己你究竟怎么看待你將要銷售的東西。如果你真的相信，那么人們總能感覺到你的那種真誠和信任，如果你也不相信，客戶就更不會相信了。

So before you start making cold calls or setting up meetings, ask yourself what you really think of what you’re selling. If you honestly believe in it, Migyanka says, “People will sense it in you and buy in droves.” If you don’t, they won’t.

意識到市場環境的重要性

可能你可以自我消化第一年做銷售時那些必不可少的拒絕，即使是在經濟最景氣的時候。但如果隨著時間流逝，情況依舊沒有大的改善，那么保持精神亢奮和樂觀心態就顯得比較困難。

Acknowledge Market Conditions Matter

It’s easy to take the inevitable rejections of your first year in sales personally, even in the best of economic climates. But when times are tougher, it can be that much more difficult to keep your spirits up and stay motivated.

這時候最重要的是意識到，在一個糟糕的經濟環境下，每個人都是很困難的。Wholesale Spa Source的創始人南希·斯普魯爾(Nancy Spruiell)說：“我通常會告訴我條線的擁有者我們的客戶可能會無法從他的經理那里獲得許可，或者可能他們的買進預算被凍結了，或者沒法和我們確認他們何時能夠獲得購買許可。我在說這些的時候，我身邊的一個女士忽然轉向我，說‘我正經歷著這些，沒人買東西了!’”

That’s when it’s most critical to acknowledge that it’s tough for anyone to sell in a bad economy. Sales rep Nancy Spruiell was reminded of that fact just recently at the airport. “I was telling the owner of one of the lines I represent that a buyer who wants to place an order cannot get approval from her management, and that they’re on a buying freeze and she can’t tell me when she might get approval,” says Spruiell, founder of Wholesale Spa Source. “The woman sitting next to me turned to me and started laughing and said, ‘I’m in the same situation -- no one is buying!’”

換句話說，南希認為，在這樣的情況下，對于銷售來說是非常困難的，“那些第一年的銷售人員們一定要記住，經濟對銷售績效的影響實在是太大了。”

In other words, Spruiell says, it’s rough out there in sales these days, “and a first-year professional in today’s economy probably needs to know that and remember that.”