Taking today to follow-up on last week’s sales-related essay, which elicited some interesting responses. (If you missed it, check it out here)
I even had someone reply, “I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with and agreed with someone so much at the same time!”
(Which is great, nuanced feedback btw!)
Let’s dig a deeper into the topic of “sales” and one area of last week’s essay where I could have been more clear in the message.
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At one point I addressed the question, “If you have the cure for cancer, how hard would you ‘sell’ to help a terminal cancer patient choose the treatment?”
And I basically said… you’d sell the heck out of the cure. A couple folks replied along the lines of “Well yeah, but a lot of what we’re doing on the elective side isn’t medically necessary. So it’s not the same.”
Agreed. But look at the cancer example again from a practical standpoint. What would you actually do if you were treating a terminal cancer patient, and you had the cure?
You likely would NOT just say, “Here’s the info on the cure. Let me know what you want to do.”
But on the flip side, you probably wouldn’t (or shouldn’t?) say, “You have to do this! Oh my gosh this is the best thing. YOU must get started right NOW.”
Neither of those are awful responses. But neither of these responses serve the patient at the highest level.
So what is the right way to “sell” in that situation? Or even in a situation where a procedure isn’t medically necessary, like LASIK or a Mommy Makeover?
What we teach (and what you probably naturally do) is:
- ASK – Start by asking questions. Figure out what the patient actually wants and needs and why.
- PROCESS – In this case, you weigh their answers against the risks of having the treatment.
- RECOMMEND – And finally – based on your knowledge of your treatments and the patient – you will make your professional recommendation. And you’ll frame your presentation in way that the patient can understand and is useful to their decision making process.
Now, you might call that selling. You might call that communicating. You might call that informing.
Whatever you call it, this is how you help the patient to make the decision that’s right for them. (The #1 Rule of Modern Sales)
And each member of your team has their own version of this process that they need to go through during the part of the Patient Journey they’re responsible for.
But if your entire team doesn’t know how to do this (which most don’t, in our experience), then you are losing prospective patients. Daily.
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I hope this adds more color to the ways you can think about the “sales process.”
And if not, let me know. Happy to clarify further.
Curious – Do you agree with our approach, or do you think I’m totally off-base?
- Troy “Sales or Whatever You Wanna Call It” Cole