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Book Review

Back to Basics Key to Sales Success

The Back to Basics Book of Selling: A Guide to a Successful Sales Career by John R. Ingrisano. $19.94, Lulu Books.

Successful selling is not about the gift of gab or being quick with a joke. Nor is it even about being charming or unctuously patronizing. Most of all, it is not about modeling the latest, slickest, gimmicky sales idea that some wanna-be sales guru is peddling this week.

Long-term success in selling, as we are reminded in the 25th Anniversary Edition of Marketing and Sales Strategist John R. Ingrisano’s The Back to Basics Book of Selling: A Guide to a Successful Sales Career, is about learning, mastering and then practicing the fundamentals, the basics that have been discovered, refined and perfected over the years.

“Anybody can become fundamentally effective at selling,” says Ingrisano, who has been teaching, training, writing about and engaging in selling since 1977. “The basics are so simple, it’s almost frightening.”

“I published Back to Basics originally back in 1983,” he explains. “After going through two reasonably successful editions, I let it go out of print as I moved on to other projects. Then I re-read in last year and realized that the basic skills for successful selling were just as on target in 2008 as they were 25 years ago.”

What are those basics that Ingrisano writes about? Besides knowing and believing in your product, “they include knowing how to identify, locate and approach the right prospects, those that are most likely and financially able to buy your product or service,” says Ingrisano.

Of course, then there is the five-step sales process, he adds. When you meet with prospects, the five steps to closing a sale are:

1. Sell yourself (make sure prospects know you and your credentials, why they should do business with you, and, most of all, that you are a person they would like to do business with).
2. Sell the need or problem (help prospects to understand that they are in a situation that is not ideal and that they may even be at risk).
3. Sell the solution (help prospects understand how you – your service or product – can meet their needs).
4. Sell the sale (help prospects do more than just agree with you, but actually make a buying decision).
5. Obtain referrals (give your new clients – whether or not a sale has been closed – the opportunity to recommend you to other potential clients).

Perhaps the greatest benefit of Back to Basics is that Ingrisano goes far beyond just telling readers what they should do. He provides lots of “how to,” in many instances actually providing the words to help respond to concerns, including a sampling of commonly raised objections and how to respond to them. (Example: “I’m not interested.” Response: “Could you be a bit more specific? Could you tell me exactly what it is about this idea that leaves you feeling that way?”)

The Back to Basics Book of Selling: A Guide to a Successful Sales Career is loaded with stories from the author’s experiences and examples that illustrate the many points he covers. This 25th anniversary edition has been updated and revised while the core message has remained unchanged. Like fine wine, the message of Ingrisano’s Back to Basics has improved with age.

The Back to Basics Book of Selling: A Guide to a Successful Sales Career is available online at LuLu for $19.94. Signed copies are available directly from the author. For details, contact John R. Ingrisano at john@TheFreestyleEntrepreneur.com. Quantity discounts are also available.

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