The One Minute Sales Person suggest a focus on the customer, not numbers
By PAULA PARISOT
4/27/2005

Loan originators can become better salespeople by first visualizing an error-free mortgage process, as stated in one popular book, then focusing on what the customer wants.

The first ingredient to a successful sales career is to remember, "Behind every sale is a person," as stated in the best selling book The One Minute Sales Person. The book suggests that financial gain and enjoyment will be more easily attained when a salesperson stops trying to get what they themselves want, and begins to focus on helping others get what they want.

For example, an originator should focus only on how he or she can help applicants get the loan they want instead of on how much money will be made on the deal or how much closer this loan will get them to their monthly goal.

Once this is realized, best-selling author Spencer Johnson says, a salesperson will begin to "Sell On Purpose." Johnson explains the two levels of this idea, "First, Selling on Purpose means that I am usually conscious of what I am doing. I am not unconsciously repeating a memorized sales routine. On each sales call I am doing what I am doing consciously -- on purpose."

The second level of "Selling on Purpose" Johnson adds, is to make sales a purpose in life, a way to help people achieve what they want, instead of a "goal" for personal gain. He includes the following mantra: "MY SELLING PURPOSE is to help people get the good feelings they want about what they bought and about themselves."

One of the techniques discussed in The One Minute Sales Person is called the "One Minute Rehearsal." The book describes this technique as the visualization of a successful sales meeting.

For example, before meeting with an applicant, an originator might take 60 seconds to run a "commercial" through his mind imagining only the best of outcomes. There are three parts to the "commercial" the book says; the first is seeing through the buyer's eyes, what does the applicant expect during this meeting? The second part is determining how to best fit the service to the buyers needs, and the third is "The Happy Ending"-- a smile, a handshake and ultimately a hassle-free closing.

The book points out that most sales people aren't aware that negative thoughts can result in a negative meeting; and by focusing on "seeing" a success before it happens can increase one's odds of achieving a successful sales career.

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