As a speaker, trainer or salesperson, one challenge you may face is: How do you effectively promote what you’re offering when your audience senses you are biased?

The answer: By using testimonials.

There are many ways to effectively use testimonials in a sales presentation. The two I recommend are live or written.

How to use LIVE testimonials effectively:

There’s nothing more persuasive than hearing a third party—who has nothing to gain—share from the heart about the benefits received from your product or service. You can’t buy that kind of press!

The only caveat is that human beings are unpredictable and you may not know what they will say, so I recommend using live testimonials with caution.

It’s typically difficult for people to share their success stories without including details that can confuse an audience, consume a lot of time and potentially give away some of your trade secrets in a way that may sound strange without the proper context.

Here are my secrets to making the best of live testimonials - for those of you who like to live on the wild side!

Two Important Practices for Using Live Testimonials:

1. Call on people you know and trust who you’ve heard share before.
2. Make sure to frame the question so you get what you’re looking for.

Call on people you know

In many cases, a happy client will come up to you in the beginning of the event and share something amazing… something you would love for the whole audience to hear.

It’s completely appropriate to say to that person, “Wow, Michelle. It would make such a difference for the people in attendance tonight to hear what you just shared with me. Later this evening, would you be willing to share again how in only two weeks, you tripled your income and feel more energy than you have in 15 years? And, if you’re comfortable, please share the specifics about having tripled your earnings from $1,000 to $3,000 a week.”

Frame the question

Now for the critical part.

Make sure you frame the question so you get the answer you’re looking for and so the person speaking stays on track.

For example, prior to Michelle’s testimonial you would say, “Speaking of tripling your income, as I walked in this evening a recent graduate of our program shared something exciting with me. Where is Michelle? Michelle, I don’t mean to put you on the spot, but would you be willing to share what you told me in the hall about how much your income has increased in the last two weeks and about the increase in energy you’ve been experiencing?”

The key is to remind Michelle what she is supposed to share so she stays on track. It really works and it helps the person sharing to feel more directed and comfortable. They want to help you and are happy to help in the way you request.

To learn more about Lisa, her products and consulting services, visit www.theinvisibleclose.com.

Ever find yourself in a situation where you’ve been asked by an interested prospect for a price quote, a bid or simply for your rates? You quote them and then you don’t hear from them for a while?

Isn’t it crazy making, trying to figure out when and if you should follow up? And if you’ve already followed up, how long should you wait until you call again?

It reminds me of the awkwardness that comes along with dating in college!

So, how do you avoid this cycle of pursuit as a salesperson?

Here’s a success story from a recent client who discovered the beauty of presenting clients with ‘a small window of opportunity.’

Sarah’s Sales Success:

Sarah works for an HR outsourcing company, which is an external Human Resources department that small companies can use to handle their HR functions.

When I met Sarah, she would make an initial sales call to an interested prospect, work with them to obtain the detailed information she needed to present them with a bid, then give them the bid and proceed to follow up with them until she got a signed contract or became convinced they were blowing her off.

She was always in pursuer mode, constantly wondering when to make the next follow-up call or send the next e-mail. It was exhausting and not good for her morale.

With each bid she presented, she had the ability to discount an initial set-up fee of a few thousand dollars in order to close deals. After a few weeks of receiving no response from a prospect, she would call or email them with a reduced set-up fee and then go back to the waiting game that the pursuer plays.

To shift Sarah from Pursuer to Partner, we created the following approach, which she now uses very successfully:

Sarah began to present the initial bid with the full priced set-up fee and then would tell the prospect, “Because our underwriting department is running very efficiently right now, I have a small window of opportunity to offer you a substantial savings off your set-up fee. Are you interested?”

Of course, they say, “Yes.”

Then she would say, “If you are in a position to move forward today, I can get your underwriting done very quickly and save you $1,500 on your set-up fee. If today doesn’t work for you, but you can move forward by Friday, I can save you $900 on your set-up fee. What I need from you if you’d like to take advantage of this is your signature on page 1 and 3 of the Getting Started Contract and a scheduled appointment time for our New Client Orientation Meeting. Remember, there is no pressure to do this, it’s just an opportunity that came across my desk this morning and I wanted to pass it on to you. The total bid price I gave you is still very competitive and good for 30 days. What do you think will work best for you?”

Keys to moving from pursuer to partner:

• Use the words, “I have a small window of opportunity”
• Share an authentic and convincing reason that you have this window to offer them savings
• Establish a timeframe
• Communicate “What I need from you”
• Identify the next action· Apply no pressure
• The ball is in their court.

You can also use this approach for bids you have already placed and would like to close.

Call up your prospect and say, “Hi, Mr. Roberts. This is Lisa from XYZ Company. I gave you an HR outsourcing bid a few weeks ago. I have a small window of opportunity to offer you substantial savings on your project, but I need to hear back from you by tomorrow at 3:00 pm. Please give me a call at xxx-xxx-xxxx if you’re interested in the details. In your case, it could mean thousands of dollars.”

To learn more about Lisa, her products and consulting services, visit www.theinvisibleclose.com.

And remember to Save the Date on September 11th. I’ve got something great in store for you!