The New Model of Selling

1. Redefine selling: Focus on solving problems, not pushing products

Selling is the art of finding and solving problems by asking skilled questions and listening for the answers.

Shift your mindset. The New Model of Selling redefines the sales process as a collaborative effort to uncover and solve problems, rather than a push to close deals. This approach aligns with human behavior and builds trust with prospects.

Become a problem solver. Instead of focusing on product features and benefits, salespeople should aim to:

• Identify prospects' challenges and pain points
• Understand the root causes of these problems
• Explore how these issues affect the prospect personally and professionally
• Present solutions that directly address the uncovered problems

By adopting this problem-solving mindset, salespeople can position themselves as trusted advisors rather than pushy product peddlers, leading to more meaningful relationships and increased sales success.

2. Build trust through genuine curiosity and active listening

The best way to persuade people is with your ears—by listening to them.

Practice active listening. Effective salespeople spend up to 70% of their time listening to prospects. To improve your listening skills:

• Focus on understanding, not just hearing
• Avoid interrupting or preparing your response while the prospect is speaking
• Pay attention to nonverbal cues and emotions

Demonstrate genuine curiosity. Show interest in your prospect's situation by:

• Asking follow-up questions to gain deeper insights
• Seeking clarification on ambiguous statements
• Acknowledging and validating their concerns and experiences

By truly listening and showing curiosity, you build trust and rapport with prospects, making them more likely to open up and consider your solutions.

3. Master the art of asking strategic questions

Solutions come through evolution. They come through asking the right questions because the answers pre-exist. It is the questions that we must define and discover.

Develop a question sequence. The New Model of Selling emphasizes a strategic approach to questioning:

1. Connecting questions: Focus on the prospect and establish trust
2. Situation questions: Understand the prospect's current state
3. Problem awareness questions: Uncover challenges and their impact
4. Solution awareness questions: Explore potential solutions
5. Consequence questions: Examine the implications of inaction
6. Qualifying questions: Confirm the importance of change
7. Transition questions: Move towards presenting your solution

Ask powerful questions. Effective questions should:

• Be open-ended to encourage detailed responses
• Provoke thought and self-reflection
• Uncover emotional motivations behind decisions
• Help prospects realize the severity of their problems

By mastering the art of strategic questioning, you guide prospects through a process of self-discovery, making them more receptive to your solutions.

4. Create a safe environment for prospects to open up

Sales is no longer about being challenging, being aggressive, and pushing people into doing something you want them to do. It's about breaking down why people think the way they do and helping them think for themselves.

Establish psychological safety. Create an environment where prospects feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and concerns:

• Use neutral, non-threatening language
• Avoid judgment or criticism of their current situation
• Demonstrate empathy and understanding

Build rapport through authenticity. Develop a genuine connection with prospects by:

• Sharing relevant personal experiences
• Admitting when you don't have all the answers
• Being transparent about your intentions and process

By fostering a safe and open environment, you encourage prospects to be more honest about their challenges and more receptive to exploring potential solutions.

5. Transition from traditional closing techniques to commitment-based selling

Committing, the art of sales formerly known as "closing," is the last of the prospect's many logical conclusions in the sales conversation.

Shift from closing to committing. Instead of using aggressive closing techniques, focus on guiding prospects to make logical commitments:

• Present solutions as natural next steps based on the prospect's revealed needs
• Use neutral language to reduce pressure and resistance
• Offer choices and involve the prospect in decision-making

Use commitment questions. Replace traditional closing questions with commitment-based alternatives:

• "With your permission, what I'd like to suggest as the next step is..."
• "Would that be appropriate?"
• "How would you like to proceed from here?"

By framing the sale as a mutual commitment rather than a conquest, you create a more collaborative and less pressured buying experience.

6. Handle objections by uncovering and addressing underlying concerns

Understanding that now is not the time to go back into selling mode to try to persuade them with logical facts on why your solution is good for them.

Reframe objections as concerns. Instead of viewing objections as obstacles, see them as opportunities to understand your prospect better:

• Listen carefully to the objection without immediately countering
• Ask clarifying questions to uncover the root of the concern
• Show empathy and validate the prospect's feelings

Address concerns collaboratively. Work with the prospect to resolve their concerns:

• Restate the concern to ensure mutual understanding
• Ask the prospect how they think the issue could be resolved
• Offer potential solutions and ask for feedback

By treating objections as opportunities for deeper understanding and collaboration, you build trust and increase the likelihood of finding mutually beneficial solutions.

7. Leverage emotional intelligence to connect with prospects on a deeper level

People buy emotionally and defend their decisions logically.

Develop emotional intelligence. Enhance your ability to recognize and respond to emotions:

• Practice self-awareness to manage your own emotions during sales interactions
• Improve your ability to read nonverbal cues and emotional subtext
• Adapt your communication style to match the prospect's emotional state

Appeal to emotions. While maintaining professionalism, connect with prospects on an emotional level:

• Use storytelling to illustrate how your solutions have helped others
• Help prospects envision a positive future after implementing your solution
• Address both logical and emotional motivations in your presentations

By leveraging emotional intelligence, you create deeper connections with prospects and tap into the true drivers of their decision-making process.

8. Adapt your sales approach for the skeptical, information-rich modern buyer

In the post-trust era, with trust being at its lowest point ever, it's no longer about the quantity of calls you make or how many contacts you reach. It's about the quality of your conversations and your ability to bring out their emotions by asking deep questions.

Recognize the modern buyer. Today's prospects are:

• Skeptical of traditional sales tactics
• Well-informed through online research
• Resistant to pushy or manipulative techniques

Adjust your approach. To succeed with modern buyers:

• Position yourself as a knowledgeable guide rather than a pushy salesperson
• Provide valuable insights beyond what prospects can find online
• Use questioning techniques to uncover needs they may not have recognized
• Demonstrate expertise by addressing specific, complex challenges

By adapting to the needs and expectations of modern buyers, you differentiate yourself from competitors and build credibility in a crowded marketplace.

9. Use neutral language to reduce sales pressure and resistance

Using the example from before, you could try saying something like, "If there was an investment out there that could get you the returns you are looking for, would that be of possible interest to you?"

Adopt neutral language. Replace pressure-inducing phrases with more neutral alternatives:

• Instead of "sign the contract," say "authorize the agreement"
• Replace "closing the sale" with "moving forward" or "next steps"
• Use "might," "possibly," and "could" instead of definitive statements

Remove assumptive language. Avoid phrases that assume the prospect's decision:

• Instead of "When should we start?" ask "What do you see as the next step?"
• Replace "Which option works best for you?" with "How would you like to proceed?"

By using neutral language, you reduce the prospect's feeling of being "sold to" and create a more collaborative, pressure-free environment.

10. Embrace the New Model of Selling: Engage, listen, and guide prospects to self-persuasion

Because you have acknowledged their concern and have not tried to refute and invalidate it, your customer will notice that you are very different from any other salesperson they have dealt with because you have shown an interest in their issue.

Focus on engagement. The New Model emphasizes spending 85% of the sales process on engagement:

• Ask thoughtful questions to uncover needs and challenges
• Listen actively and demonstrate genuine interest
• Guide prospects to realize the severity of their problems

Facilitate self-persuasion. Instead of convincing prospects, help them convince themselves:

• Use questions that encourage self-reflection
• Allow prospects to verbalize their own needs and desires
• Guide them to logical conclusions about the value of your solution

Minimize presentation and closing. Allocate only 10% of your time to presenting solutions and 5% to securing commitments, as the groundwork is laid during the engagement phase.

By embracing this new approach, you transform the sales process from a push-based model to a collaborative journey of discovery and mutual benefit, resulting in more successful outcomes and satisfied customers.

Last updated: February 14, 2025