Ask Them to “Tell You More”
Posted: Sat Apr 05, 2025 4:53 am
Three Silence is Golden Tips for Speaking Less and Listening More
Pause for Two Beats
Take a two-second pause after the buyer has spoken before responding or speaking again. In that short space (it will seem like an eternity) of mentally counting “One-one thousand, two one thousand”…the buyer will often share even more information.
An immediate response or reply can stall or short-change a conversation. This happens because one of the seller feels an immediate and overpowering need to fill any dead air.
Buyers are so used to being interrupted they seldom tell you the whole story. They’ll answer your question or provide some insight about where they are at in the sales cycle, but there’s usually more they’ll share if you prompt them.
After a buyer shares something important encourage them to tell you more.
Follow up questions can increase the likeliness of learning more. Some advertising database of my personal favorites are; “Why is that?” “And then what happened?” or “Can you tell me more about that?”
Never Interrupt
As obvious as this seems it still remains one of the most frequent transgressions in sales. In addition to being rude and putting you in a bad light it disrupts the buyer’s train of thought. Something important you need to know or learn will get missed.
Never forget the important lesson that my sales manager taught me: In sales, silence is golden.Misconceptions About Cold Calling
There is a prevailing myth that cold calling is dead.
Pause for Two Beats
Take a two-second pause after the buyer has spoken before responding or speaking again. In that short space (it will seem like an eternity) of mentally counting “One-one thousand, two one thousand”…the buyer will often share even more information.
An immediate response or reply can stall or short-change a conversation. This happens because one of the seller feels an immediate and overpowering need to fill any dead air.
Buyers are so used to being interrupted they seldom tell you the whole story. They’ll answer your question or provide some insight about where they are at in the sales cycle, but there’s usually more they’ll share if you prompt them.
After a buyer shares something important encourage them to tell you more.
Follow up questions can increase the likeliness of learning more. Some advertising database of my personal favorites are; “Why is that?” “And then what happened?” or “Can you tell me more about that?”
Never Interrupt
As obvious as this seems it still remains one of the most frequent transgressions in sales. In addition to being rude and putting you in a bad light it disrupts the buyer’s train of thought. Something important you need to know or learn will get missed.
Never forget the important lesson that my sales manager taught me: In sales, silence is golden.Misconceptions About Cold Calling
There is a prevailing myth that cold calling is dead.