One of the biggest things that all freelancers struggle with is sales. Here are my six top tips for sales for freelancers.
Sales tip number one, listen more than you talk
This can be really counterintuitive for a lot of freelancers. A lot of times when you get to that sales conversation where somebody is actually inquiring about hiring you, it can feel really intimidating.
This is the time when a lot of those imposter gremlins can come up and start haunting you. It is in that moment when you are confronted with having to sell yourself.
This is where the disconnect happens because in a sales conversation, you aren’t actually selling yourself.
What you’re doing is listening…you’re gathering information and you’re learning…what kind of problems does this person or business have? What kinds of solutions do they think are important to them? You are listening to them.
One of my biggest pet peeves is being on a sales call with someone where I am potentially going to be investing with them, and they spend that whole call talking about themselves and they never really give me a chance to feel heard. I don’t know if they understand my problem and I walk away just feeling kind of like, meh. That was kinda weird.
So don’t do it.
Don’t turn off your prospects by doing marketing in a sales conversation.
Because as I discussed before, there are three stages of marketing, and if you are in that promotional stage when you should have moved into the sales stage, your prospect is going to get turned off.
So number one, listen more than you talk. And in order to be able to listen more than you talk, you need to have a framework for the sales conversation.
My second sales tip is have a Framework
I know a lot of people really struggle with not wanting to sound too salesy, they don’t want to follow a script, they don’t want it to feel stiff, and they want to show up authentically in their business.
I totally get it, and I am with you. I don’t like any of those things myself.
And…what I found is that if I don’t have a framework to guide the sales conversation, the prospect guides the conversation. They don’t know what the end destination ought to be. They don’t know what services or solutions you offer.
Part of our job when we are in that sales conversation is to guide our prospect
You and your prospect need to be really clear on what their needs are and what they think is a great solution, what they value and care about, and what, if any, concerns they have.
The only way you’re going to be able to do that is by listening to what they have to say and having a framework for being able to move them through that conversation.
Part of that framework is having some specific questions or some different stages of that sales conversation to be able to aim for like the discovery stage, the rejection stage, or the establishing value stage.
One of the main tools that I offer in my Business Mastery program is a really detailed training on how to create your own framework for selling your services successfully.
If you’re listening more than talking, you’ve already got a great framework.
Presenting your proposal is sales tip number three
Whether you are doing custom quotes or have already created packages for your photography or designer services, you still are presenting a solution.
Custom quotes and proposals aren’t exactly custom. They are still based on a target for the offer that you want to guide them to. And, of course, create the custom quote or estimate for them.
Here’s one of the big mistakes that a lot of freelancers make.
They’re on the sales call. They say, great, thanks for all the information, I’ll send you that proposal in the next day or two. Then they hang up and then they send the proposal.
And then they wait.
I know you’ve been here. You’ve sent your proposal, you’re sitting there, you’re waiting.
Is it too soon to follow up? When do I follow up? Am I being too pushy?
So when you are in that sales conversation, let them know that you want to present your proposal.
There’s a whole bunch of really great benefits to presenting your proposal.
Booking that proposal presentation call means that you’ll have a specific time when you’re going to complete/close the sales conversation. So you won’t have to stress about when to follow up.
And, when you book that call, you’re going to know make sure that the decision makers are on that call. A lot of times our first phone call with a prospect, the decision makers aren’t necessarily there.
You want to be able to get on a call with the decision makers and present your solution to them.
The last thing that it allows you to do is it allows you to handle any objections as they come up. It allows you to be able to adjust or accommodate new information or new ideas.
So whenever possible, my number three sales tip for you is, present your proposals. Don’t just email them, don’t just send them, but present your proposals.
And of course, part of that is about booking the follow up call.
Tip number four is always book your follow up call
Even if you’re not presenting your proposal, always book a time to follow up with them so that you’re not having to chase them down. You’re not having to worry about them ghosting you. You have clear agreements and communications. It’s just going to make it easier for both of you.
Ask specifically, when can we book a follow up call? When are you going to have your decision by? Great. I’ll book a time in my calendar to reach out.
My best sales tip is handle objections before price.
Handle all other objections that they might possibly have before you present your price. Nobody likes handling objections. But, if you can remove any concerns about the project itself it can be much easier (and sometimes, unnecessary) to handle objections on price.
For example, if you are presenting a proposal for a photo shoot you want to make sure that you are asking people things like: Does that timeline look good? Does that production schedule look good? Does the distribution of who’s going to handle what look good? Is there anything else that you want from a photographer that you’re not seeing here?
Is there any reason why you would say no to this proposal?
Handle all of those objections before you get to price. A lot of times if you say the price first, there might be other objections. Often people use price as an objection when really it’s something else, and then you have to dig around and figure out what that something else is. Or you’re too busy focused on trying to fix the price objection, but even if you fixed it, they’re still not going to hire you.
Always make sure that you handle as many of those objections before you present your price.
And then you can finally review all of the things that you’re going to do for them, all of the ways that you’re going to handle their concerns, all of the solutions that you’re going to provide, and then you tell them the price and ask for the sale.
Sales tip number six is ask for the sale
I know asking for the sale feels awkward. I know it doesn’t feel yummy the first few times that you do it. I know it can be hard to say…So, would you like to work together? Are you ready to move forward? Would you like me to send the contract? Are you ready to pay the deposit?
It can feel uncomfortable the very first time that you do it. I get it.
And you must ask for the sale.
As soon as you ask for the sale, stop talking.
Yeah, silence can be a little weird and a little uncomfortable, but it gives them time to process. It gives them time to make a clear decision. It gives them time to sit with their own feelings and their own questions, and it forces them to make some kind of a decision before you can move forward.
It’s really challenging. I get it. But do it.
You must ask for the sale and then stop talking.
Those are my six sales tips for freelancers
- You’ve got to listen more than talk.
- Have a framework to lead the sales call.
- Present your proposals to the decision makers.
- Book your follow up call.
- Handle all other objections before you say the price.
- Ask for the sale.
Let me know which of these tips resonated most with you. Or check out the Marketing and Sales Accelerator Membership program and how it can help you close more sales.
