Stop Selling. Start Solving!

Far too often, sales representatives and even CEO's get caught selling all the features of their products and leave the "what's in it for me" portion of the pitch until the end. We've all done it. Sure, you may have a long list of all the benefits of your product and all the problems it solves, but the prospect doesn't care about half of them. Instead, find out what problem the prospect wants to solve  and find out up-front. This way you can frame your product's value in the context of the prospect's needs. 

The Trap: What Not to Do
"Thanks for taking the time to learn more about my product. Here's what our product does. Yada, yada, yada  (Have I hit on something you're interested in yet? No?) Yada, yada, yada. Oh, and, yada, yada, yada..."

A Better Approach
"Thanks for taking the time to meet with me. Before I tell you about our product, I would like to learn more about you and your practice. (Ask some probing questions until you find a pain point.) What are some of the challenges you face when treating patients with (disease/condition you specialize in)? 

Once you get some answers, you can position your pitch on how you solve his/her problem.That way you're not wasting his/her time with information overload. If you want to pepper-in a few additional benefits at the end, that's fine. But don't weigh your pitch down with information that may be irrelevant to the person you are in front of today. 

Selling solutions to problems vs. selling products also strengthens your relationship with the prospect. By listening and helping him/her solve a problem, you become strategically important and a trusted colleague. 

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