Are You a Professional Visitor or a Professional Salesperson?

A businessman walked into my office the other day - snappy dresser, nice briefcase, fancy business card. You know, he looked the part. Then the bottom fell out. It became quite obvious that this guy is nothing more than a well dressed, professional visitor. You could tell his one and only goal was to get an appointment. To him, that was a victory; there was nothing about him that demonstrated he really could help me or even intended to.

At about the 30 minute mark when my patience was wearing thin and I was beginning to go over in my head what I was going to have for lunch that day, Wally Weak Closer gets around to asking me, "So what do I have to do to earn your business?" "What business," I asked. He had done all the talking. We really hadn't agreed on anything. He knew nothing about me or my problems, and he sure did not lead me to believe that he had any understanding of how he was going to help me or how he was going to help me overcome my business challenges. Was he here to save me money, help me avoid cost, help me increase revenue, or help me with a personal frustration? Nothing so far convinced me of that. It made me want to hold up a flashing billboard in front of him that read, "Stop being a professional visitor, stop wasting my time, and get down to business." Talk to me about my issues, my concerns, my problems, and how you could possibly help me in some area that would interest me.

There are only two issues you really must understand in a sales call.

1. I've got problems, and we determine through our conversation that you have solutions that can help me.
2. I don't have problems or issues you can help me with, and you shouldn't waste your time or become a free consultant to make yourself feel good.

Are you a professional visitor or a professional problem solver?