.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 10px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} Don’t you wish you had a crystal ball when you prepare for a big sales call? Even more when you are in a big sales presentation?

GREAT NEWS: A sales crystal ball is nothing more than taking a look at information derived from reading existing stuff and then asking powerful questions about it. Information that will predict the future.

Predicting the future is actually pretty easy, when you’re armed with these 3.5 things:

1. Information about the prospect and his or her business.

2. The right questions.

3. An idea or two that helps the prospect.

3.5. The ability to see and understand the customer’s big picture.

There are two places to find crystal-ball information: the past and the present. Just look at how the past and present affected the prospects and their use of your product and/or service and presto, you create your own ability to predict the future. Cool.

Here is the information you need:

Study the past. Success and failure have their roots in what has already happened. Your job is to gather the historical information so you can understand the best way to communicate your ability to help in the future.

• Study the customers’ original needs.

• Study how and why they bought before.

• Study all the players and their emotional ebbs.

• Study how the decision was made.

• Study the problems that surfaced and how they were resolved.

The key word is study.

Be Present in the Present. The present is fleeting. No one has time to do much more than put out fires and deal with the day-to-day. If you are able to get your prospect to see you as important, you can get him away from what he perceives as urgent. Urgent is his situation – important is your ability to communicate help.

• Collect information about what’s working and not working from the customer’s point of view. Share your company’s perception of these issues.

• Collect information about the changes that have taken place in the customer’s company, how they have affected the decision makers your company has worked with in the past, and how that relates to their present situation.

• Study the customer’s Web site.

• Read all company literature, newsletters, annual reports and its industry’s trade magazines.

• Determine what past problems still exist and may be preventing present success.

• Share recent changes in the industry with the customer, and what the impact of those changes will be on the prospect’s business.

• Share the changes that your company is going through, and the impact of those changes on the customer.

• Share your big picture in a way that creates a leadership image.

• Talk about and ask about the future. People love to talk about their plans and dreams. If you can get them going, they may see (and verbalize) how you fit in.

• Ask about the company’s specific future plans and needs. See if you are able to help the company achieve them, even if they don’t directly deal with your product or service.

• Ask the customers about future industry trends and what impact they will have. Ask how these changes will affect their business.

• When appropriate, share your industry trends that will affect how your company will do business in the future, and how those trends will impact your business.

• Share some of your company’s plans. Show how that will establish (or maintain) a leadership position.

Free GitBit. Want a list of powerful questions you can modify for your sales presentations? Go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the words POWER QUESTIONS in the GitBit box.

Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by phone at (704) 333-1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com. © 2007 Jeffrey H. Gitomer