A discussion about sales, sales tips and advice, and about those who land the deal

I've followed Art Sobczak's advice for years, and I really like his training.  His business, www.businessbyphone.com, teaches sales professionals how to sell over the phone.

Read about this great tip on how to get full price for your sales deals...it works whether you sell over the phone, or in person:

What you say and do on sales calls can sabotage your best efforts to get your full price. Find out what you may be doing wrong, and what to do about it, in this week's article by telesales expert Art Sobczak.

A sales rep called me the other day. I asked the price of what he had (before he was ready to give it). He hemmed and hawed, then said, "Well, it's normally ..." which begged the question from me, "Ok, how much lower are you going to give it to me for?"

Perfect. Now I had him in a price-dropping mode. Saying, "We normally charge ..." or, "The list price is..." implies you don't usually get that price, or you're very open to begin negotiating.

Instead, confidently and smoothly state the price. Work from a position of strength. Give the impression from the start that you don't negotiate. Then you might not have to.

Don't say anything early that tips a prospect off that you would negotiate. When asked your price, again, answer clearly and confidently, "The price is ..."

After giving your price, clam up. Don't say a word after giving your price.

Some reps become uneasy at this point and blow it by adding, "... if that's OK with you," or, "Do you have a problem with that?" or, "I might be able to do better than that.".

While you're silent it might seem like forever, but sit still and quiet. Sure, the prospect might respond, "Is that negotiable?" or, "Can you do better than that?"

Then, reply with some version of "no." Try, "That is the price." Quite often I say, "Well, what can we take out?"

Perhaps you are able to use this option: "We do have a lower price at a higher quantity if you'd like to do that."

Often, you might be surprised to hear the satisfying, "OK, I just had to ask."

When you're on a sales call, the price question may come too soon. In that event, reply with, "I want to give you the best price for the package that best fits your situation. Let me ask you more questions to do that ..."

The first step in dealing with price is ensuring you personally are first sold on the fact that you deliver value far exceeding your price. Since I would assume that you now have customers, it's safe to say you do give such value. But again, you must be sold on that.

Remember, every dollar you give away by dropping price comes from pure profit.