Communication: The Foundation of Sales

Communication and Sales, especially B2B sales, go hand in hand. Very few decisions in the business-to-business landscape are made without some kind of human engagement. Effective communication between salespeople and buyers is crucial. In the process of communicating with prospects, talented salespeople focus their prospecting efforts on properly qualifying, utilizing Effective probing questions, and setting up sales opportunities that have a true “reason to meet”. Let’s dive into more technical concepts about communication. 

The verbal communication process is built on four main components: encoding, medium of transmission, decoding and feedback. Encoding is the translation of thoughts. From a salesperson’s point of view, it is taking a larger, more abstract picture and breaking it down into simple terms for the buyer to easily understand. In order to enhance the encoding stage, the salesperson should focus on two things: their choice of words and tone. Using short words and phrases can keep the salesperson from rambling and losing the prospect’s interest. Having specific answers to the prospect’s questions will provide a level of transparency, ultimately leading to a more trusting prospect. The salesperson’s tone of voice should match the level of the prospect’s energy level. If the prospect seems quieter, having a loud and aggressive approach may just turn off the prospect for the rest of the conversation.  

 Once the salesperson has gone through the encoding stage, they determine the medium of transmission. The medium of transmission is simply the vehicle the encoded message takes to the receiver, for example written or verbal. After the encoded message has been received, the buyer is actively decoding this message. As the message is being decoded in the prospect’s mind, reactions and unique thoughts are being formed. This leads into the third component, feedback. Feedback is simply the response from the reactions and thoughts to the message that was just decoded.  

When going through these four components, the salesperson must remember the 80:20 rule. This rule is explained by Betty Garret: 80% of the time the salesperson should be listening while the other 20% of the time they should be speaking. This rule provides a baseline for how salespeople should be communicating with the prospect. The point of this ratio is to allow more time for the prospect to answer open ended questions which can ultimately lead to more valuable information received. The other 80% of the time, the salesperson should engage in active listening. Active listening includes: 

• Ignoring outside factors  
• Putting own thoughts on hold  
• Providing appropriate feedback (without interrupting) 
• Asking questions  
• Paraphrasing back to the prospect what they have said to ensure the salesperson has the full story 

 It is important for salespeople to understand the 80:20 rule does not just apply to one part of the sales journey, rather it stands as a benchmark for the whole sales process. Depending on the prospect and the stage of the sale, the ratio of listening to speaking may change as more speaking may be required by the salesperson. 

Communication does not have to be just verbal as there is non-verbal Communication. The non-verbal communication process is just as important, if not most important for a salesperson to understand when they are conducting in-person sales. Prospects can give off information that they are not verbally communicating from their body language. Forbes explains how to read and interpret body language: 

• Eye contact 

• Maintaining eye contact means prospect is engaged in the conversation 

• Glances around the room can be interpreted as distracted, bored or disinterested 

• Open-hand gestures  

• Arms are displayed in an open manner showing the salesperson the prospect is receptive to ideas as it physically tells the speaker they are open to conversation 
• Crossed arms is a que that the prospect is either uncomfortable or annoyed 

• Shoulders and torso  

• When the prospect leans forward or their torso is pointed towards you, they are agreeing or interested in the conversation 

A salesperson should be aware of these signals for their own benefit, but they should also be aware of what signals they are giving off to the prospect. As mentioned earlier, the salesperson should be listening 80% of the time. During this time, it is important to ensure the prospect sees you are engaged and interested in what they are saying. Having crossed arms or not making eye contact can make the prospect feel as though the salesperson is just trying to close the deal without taking the prospect’s needs into consideration.  

At MarketReach we pride ourselves on quality sales meetings provided to clients. Obtaining quality leads takes time and a thorough understanding of proper communication. MarketReach conducts continuous training, even with seasoned sales reps, to ensure that the leads are valid and worth the client’s time. Sales roleplays are one of the most used methods during a MarketReach training session. This technique helps employees practice their communication skills such as encoding messages properly and exercising their active listening skills.