Curiosity Trumps Persuasion
Lots of discussion here about sales lessons learned, so here’s one from a couple of decades in the mix:
Curiosity is more valuable than persuasion.
Most sales training focuses on what to say, how to pitch, overcome objections, create urgency, close and so on. All that is definitely important stuff.
But I think the forgotten (and perhaps most important) skill is learning how to be genuinely curious about the person sitting across from you.
What are they trying to accomplish? What’s getting in the way? Why does it matter? What have they already tried?
If I understand those things, I can usually figure out whether what I’m selling can actually help.
If I don’t understand them, being more persuasive about solving a problem they don’t have probably isn’t going to get me very far.
So I’m curious what other salespeople think:
Which matters more in your actual selling — curiosity or persuasion?