The third class of the Sandler Sales training class focused on asking the questions needed to draw out your potential client in order to seal the deal and get the job. The idea is that if you ask the right questions you will not only find out what the problem is, you’ll also be able to establish trust with your potential client and make them feel understood—the cornerstone for getting the job.
You need to find out what brings the client to you—what isn’t working for them. If they’re coming to you, there is already a problem they’re trying to fix. So ask them why they’re not using the same person as before. You need to know what has changed for them and what pressures they’re under that makes them want to go in a different direction.
Use phrases like, “Help me understand…Tell me more…What are you trying to achieve?....Is this the first time you’ve done a project like this?...How long has this been an issue for you? These are ways to draw out the client and get them talking so that you can create an empathy connection with them. You aren’t trying to solve their problems right then and there (something I have to remember), you’re just wanting them to feel as if you care and understand them.
Bob talked to us about the “pattern interrupt,” where you want people to go from using their logical left brain to using their right brain emotionality. By doing something they don’t expect you can shift their thinking, and by doing that you have a way in to connect with them.
So you take an emotion (depression, fear, etc.), find out why they’re feeling that way (things aren’t going well, etc.), and connect it to what that means for them (I’ll have to get a real job, I’ll lose my studio.etc.). “People tell me they feel stuck because they’re afraid of change, but know they have to change which might be too expensive…”
This is where the “third-party stories” come in. Beginning with, “It’s not unusual for people who are doing this to tell me….” allows the person to feel as if you know where they are coming from. Using phrases like “typically” “almost all the time” and “usually”, or “the editors I talk to usually say….” Adds to that feeling of being understood.
Our objective as sales people (and that’s what we are) is to get people to tell us stuff. And by using key phrases to show you are on the same page with them you create trust which is the first step towards sealing the deal to work with them. Since all of this is learning how to tap into the emotional psychology of your potential client, using a “negative reverse” can really pull them in to you. By that I mean at the end of talking with them you say, “I don’t know if this is the case with you…” or “I’m not sure if this if affecting you..” You want them to come back to you with ‘yes.” That yes is an almost certain proof of commitment.
If you’re trying cold calls, this is the approach to use: “This is an awkward call for me because we don’t know each other, and we may not have a reason to talk. Can I take a couple of minutes to tell you why I called, and you can decide if it’s right? People I usually talk to tell me….because…..which means….I specialize in_______. Not everyone needs my services, but those who do tell me_____. I don’t know if this applies to you…..”
What you’re doing here is engaging them, letting them make the decision as to whether they will talk to you, and make the decision if they are the person you should be talking with. Then you’ve used words that show you understand them and know what they’re about.
I can’t wait for next week’s class. I’ve been trying to use what I’ve learned (and I have a LOT to learn, since this runs counter to what I’ve been doing), and I have to admit it’s really helping. It’s up to me to redirect myself in the way I approach clients in order to make the experience better for both of us. Stay tuned for more about the Sandler Training classes in the weeks to come.
And let me know what you think.
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The 2011 ASMP Fine Art Portfolio Review was a winner once again, and from where I sat, there were more people then I expected to see. With special thanks to Calumet Photographic for hosting the event, I’ve asked some of the reviewers to talk about what they saw that they liked. Here’s a sampling.
“I had the pleasure of meeting with 11 photographers, “said Kristina Feliciano who writes the StocklandMartell blog, SMart. “Among them:
• A woman who described herself as “emerging” because, although she’d been taking pictures all her life, she’d only recently become serious about photography. Her enthusiasm for her work was infectious, as was her complete lack of pretense. Her primary subjects are vast landscapes and animals, and she explained that she’d recently submitted 9 images to a benefit auction—and sold 7. We spoke about what her next steps might be, as well as how to edit her work.
• A man who produced a series of colorful, lyrical still lifes comprising objects he’d found on various beaches. The work was notable not just for its concept but also for its pristine execution. It seemed perfect for the pages of The New Yorker (perhaps to illustrate a short story), which is exactly what I told him.
• A woman who had once dreamed of becoming a truck driver and, having opted not to go that route (bad pun not intended), channeled her love for all things big rig into an ongoing series on truckers. It’s a great subject for a photo essay and even more compelling because of her personal interest in it—not a trace of irony, in other words. As we talked, I learned that she’d interviewed the people she photographed and could vividly tell their stories. So we talked about how that material and her skill as an engaging ambassador for her work could be put to use.
• A man who has a budding career as a fashion shooter, specifically backstage. Interestingly, he got his first fashion assignment from a landscape shot. That bit of good fortune notwithstanding, we talked about creating a separate book for his landscapes, a book for an ongoing series of fashion portraits, and another for his backstage work. We also talked about writing. He introduced himself by saying that he was not very good at talking about his work, but as we chatted, he made solid, salient points about the images. It seemed he’d assumed that any text he placed with his work had to be formal. We talked about why that isn’t necessarily the case, and how his honest, easygoing way of describing his work was a nice contrast with the sophistication of the images themselves.”
Alison Zavos, the publisher of Feature Shoot along with Hans Neleman of WIN-Initiative and consultant Louisa Curtis enjoyed Christopher Lane’s senior beauty pageant work. As Louisa says, "I've been a fan of his for ages. Brilliant!"
George Del Barrio of The Vanderbilt Republic named Carey Kirkella’s “Beauty Recital”, Alexander Berg’s “One Shot” and Noguchi Katsuya's Lighting Tokyo aerials of Japan. Katsuya's work impressed several people, myself included. As George said, “If printed big, I could see these being mind blowing!”
For Jeffrey Teuton, the Associate Director of Jen Beckman Gallery, “Sheri Lynn Behr and David Kressler were both standouts to me. Both showed projects that were in progress but there was a great open dialogue and I feel both projects will evolve. I look forward to seeing the end results.”
Hans Neleman and curator, book designer and blogger Elizabeth Avedon both liked the work of Maynard Switzer, and Chrissy Reilly, also of WIN-Initiative, chose Salem Krieger, “because I enjoy the hyper reality of his images, the odd juxtapositions... how they seem like surreal landscapes "finding" themselves in conventional every day life situations. I was very impressed with his work.”
For David J. Carol, what stood out was, “Carey Kirkella-great photos and social commentary-very good photographer!
Ashok Sinha-interesting and compelling composition of photos, and also fun. Talented and original.
Amy Lombard-I see the early stages of a very good photographer, If she keeps it up she could be very interesting to see in a few years.”
Consultant Louisa Curtis said, "I'd say that the two I remember the most and liked a lot were the very specific "series"....
Norman Borden's "Thanks for Smoking" I thought was brilliant - how something once so "in" is now so terribly "out" and his photos are of the smoking outcasts who still dare to puff on a cigarette! And David Joseph's series of "cups" - all found in New York City - coffee cups that take on their own personalities as well as the personality of the person who drank from it - very cool (or hot!)
I also loved Leslie Jean-Bart's latest sand & surf images that are now with bolder colors and introducing shadows of people."
Elizabeth Avedon spoke of Inga Moren's "Presence" images, Barry Rosenthal's new black and white images reminiscent of Karl Blossfeldt's botanicals,
Swedish photographer, Kristofer Dan Bergman's "Space" installation on Vimeo, Evan Miller's ephemeral "Euphilia" series, Michelle Kawka's portraits of Sikhs at a Temple in Queens, New York, Robert Herman's book, "The New Yorkers."
Elizabeth also cited Cynthia Matthews Bird Dog series and Rita Nannini's birth photographs as standouts.
Avedon talked about meeting former advertising and portrait photographer Dwight Carter, "whose career began as an assistant to Richard Avedon in his first studio on 58th Street, as well as assisting Hiro, Bert Stern and Helmut Newton. His collection of African-American great's include Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Leontyne Price, Oprah Winfrey and Mae Jamison, the first black female astronaut. I'll be posting a few of the photographers work I viewed on my photo blog in the future," she said.
For me the standouts were also Barry Rosenthal, whose found object series I also enjoyed, Sheri Lynn Behr's series, "No Safe Distance",Raymond Adams project "New York at Dawn" and Louisa Marie Summer, whose project, "Jennifer's Family" is strong documentary work.
There were also several mentions of Gabriela Herman's Blogger series that continues to impress. All in and all a Review of quantity and quality, and something I think we're all looking forward to again next year.
All photos copyright Viviane Moos.4View comments
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