How to Sell Authentically Online (3 Changes to Make Today)

Business Tips and ToolsVisibility

Feb 21

Written By brandmerry

How to Sell Authentically Online
(3 Changes to Make Today)

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

Do you sell products or services online and notice that every time you have to have the “conversation” you feel gross or freeze? No worries, we’ve all been there, however, if you’re not selling you’re not making money so let’s fix this belief! Read …

I’m really passionate about the topic of selling because I see so many entrepreneurs struggling with the idea of selling their products and their services.

Many of the clients that I work with, especially in those beginning stages, are really worried about sounding sleazy or sounding pushy or being aggressive with their audience in any way. And, and a lot of that really comes from the way that they look at selling.

I’ll give you an example...I call her Susie.

Susie as the girl in the Facebook group who sees that you're also in the Facebook group, maybe her Facebook group maybe not. About one day after joining the group you receive a message that says, “Hey, I'm also in this Facebook group [inserts Facebook group] and I'm just wondering, do you build sales funnels?” She then proceeds to pitch her mini-course she just created or her freebie or her masterclass or whatever.

And of course, you’re like, “Ok, but I don’t know you and you don’t know me!”

It's these types of strategies that people are using that we're on the receiving end of that give us this bad taste in our mouth when it comes to selling or promoting our services.

But at the end of the day, if you want to create a revenue-generating business, a profitable business, you have to sell, right? You have to talk about your products and your services.

So how do we do that? How do we do that in a way that feels authentic to us and that is focused on our community and as a result leads to what I think is a more reputable, a more energetic, a more attractive brand overall.

I promise there is another way to sell online that doesn’t feel gross to you or your audience and increases your conversions and we’re going to dive deep into that today.

YOUR MINDSET AROUND SELLING ONLINE

We all know that strategy is so important when it comes to building a profitable business, but if your head is not in the right space, those strategies don't work.

The biggest block that I see entrepreneurs have when it comes to selling is their view or belief about selling.

The sooner that you change your mindset from selling in terms of pitching and you focus more on the connection, the easier all of this will become.

When you’re focused on connection, over selling, you’re focused on your audience.

When you’re focused on selling, you’re focused on the product or the service. If in your mind you're like, I'm going to sell this person. I'm going to get this person into my program because then I'll hit my number. Or then I'll hit my monthly goal. You're just focused on the product and the service.

But things start to really shift when you decide that you’re going to show up and you’re going to listen to this person tell you their pain, their struggle, their problem, then you’re going to offer up what you have as a solution to that problem and they have a choice to take it or not take it.

When you can switch your mindset in this way, I am telling you it changes everything, not just for your audience, but also for you because the process doesn’t feel inauthentic.

This simple change in your own mindset, your own belief on what selling really is will have a big impact on your conversion rate and the success that you experience from selling your products and your services.

YOUR MARKETING IS THE SALES PROCESS

When you think about online marketing and sales, it’s crazy. We are asking people we’ve never met before to invest in our product or service, often sight unseen. And the reality is there are a lot of people offering the same thing, so not only are you asking them to do this but to also make the decision to choose you.

And that’s really what it’s about...the brand as a whole.

This is where your marketing comes in; more specifically relationships and human marketing.

The selling is happening long before the pitch or sales conversation. All of the branding, content and interactions that are part of your marketing strategy are meant to lead people closer to buying your product or service.

Zig Ziglar says, “If people like you they’ll listen to you, but if they trust you they’ll do business with you!”

The foundation of every sale you make comes from the consumer trusting you over another brand, and that trust happens long before you make an offer, send a link or have a phone call.

IT’S NOT A SALES CALL, BUT A SALES CONVERSATION

Look, I no longer have sales calls - I have sales conversations.

This small shift in my mindset and in my actions changed my conversion rate from not so great, to 90%.

Let’s break this idea down.

When you’re getting ready for a Sales Call, you’re prepping for that call. You’re mapping out how and why they should buy from you, what you need to say in order to close the sale and once again all of your focus is on the service or product.

When you switch to having a conversation you actually listen!

When you frame the conversation to listen more, it is no longer about you and your product, it’s about your audience and your problem.

It’s no longer about what my product offers, but what about my ideal customer specifically needed.

When you’re listening to your ideal customer, it’s important to listen for a few key points (p.s. This counts for email communication as well).

What are they struggling with?
What do they want?
What obstacles are standing in their way?

And because you’ve listened to these three main points, you’re able to frame the offer specifically for them.

If you’ve ever struggled with what to say in a sales conversation, try listening and you’ll discover they will tell you everything you need to know.

5 SALES OBJECTIONS

Zig Ziglar states that there are 5 core sales objections, and I’ve got to admit I believe him 100%.

No need
No money
No hurry
No desire
No trust

Why is this important? Because not only can you address these objections in your relationship marketing leading up to the sale, but you can also use this knowledge to pinpoint where your ideal client is on a sales conversation.

When you have this information you’ll become a better marketer and you guessed it...sales queen!

CONCLUSION

When you look at the info above, you’ll notice it comes down to three core areas; mindset, relationships and sales conversations. It’s important that you identify the area you feel you need to put the most energy in your business to start seeing better results and feel more aligned with the process.

Selling is so important, because without there’s no money! That’s why in my signature group program Roadmap to Freedom, we dedicate an entire phase to the Art of Selling. I know how important it is to not only work on confidence around selling but also how to prepare for sales conversations, how to handle objections and so much more.

To learn more about Roadmap to Freedom visit brandmerry.com/freedom.