Author: Roger Dawson
Publisher: Elpac Publishing
Reviewer: Goke Ilesanmi
Persuasive skills are greatly required whenever we want to convince people. This is why I want us to examine this text “Secrets of Power Persuasion for Salespeople” this week. It is written by Roger Dawson, one of the most-respected authorities as regards Persuasion and Negotiation. Dawson has trained executives, managers and salespeople throughout the United States, Canada and Australia.
He says if you have read his other book “Secrets of Power Negotiating”, you might think there is no need reading this one. Dawson adds that this inference is wrong because there is a difference between Negotiation and Persuasion. He however explains that the two are very close, and the skills in each area will apply to the other. Dawson says Negotiation involves reaching an agreement on price or on the specific terms of an agreement. He educates that Persuasion is the art of getting people to go along with your points of view. Dawson says you need negotiation skills to be a good persuader and persuasion skills to be a good negotiator.
This book is divided into four parts of 24 chapters. Part one is christened “How to play the persuasion game”, and contains first 13 chapters. Chapter one of this part is entitled “6 magic keys that control buyers”. According to Dawson here, selling is really a persuasion contest because you are trying to persuade the buyer to buy. In his words, “The buyer is trying to persuade you to buy his or her point of view that he or she: 1. Can’t afford it; 2. Does not need it; 3. Can get it for less somewhere else. One of you will succeed in your persuasion attempt. Will you end up as the persuader or the persuadee?”
He says maybe you are a salesperson in a competitive, price-conscious industry and you sweat buckets getting a new account to open up for you. Dawson adds that however, the person who works the territory in the state over never seems to have that kind of trouble because at every sales meeting, he or she is up there getting an award for the most new accounts. The author expatiates that to rub salt into the wound, you bet that he or she does not work half as hard as you do. “Perhaps you’re a salesperson who has become very good at prospecting for business and building rapport with the customer, but closing is your problem,” explains Dawson.
This consultant says if you are encountering problems selling, then you can employ these six magic strategies. That is, buyers can be sold, if you can reward them; buyers can be sold if you can exercise punishment power; combine reward and punishment; buyers can be sold if you bond with them; buyers can be sold if they think you have more expertise than they do; and finally, buyers can be sold if you act consistently.
Chapter two is entitled “Get enthusiastic about your product”. Dawson says every top salespeople that he has asked lists enthusiasm as the most important factor in sales persuasion. The author stresses that you cannot be a top salesperson unless you genuinely believe in the value of your product or service and can enthusiastically convey that to your buyers.
In chapters three to 13, he beams his analytical searchlight on concepts such as 12 magic keys for building credibility; creating buyer desire by creating an obligation; how scarcity motivates buyers; making the sale with time pressure; the Zen-like art of sharing secrets; tying your persuasion effort to something good; the power of consistency; bonding as the magic key to persuasion; selling to a committee; eight verbal persuasion tools to control the buyer; and exposing and destroying the HAGS.
Part two of this text is eclectically tagged “Analysing the buyer”, and covers three chapters, that is, chapters 14 to 16. Chapter 14 is christened “Matchers versus mismatchers”. Here, Dawson says everyone either tends to be a “matcher” or “mismatcher”, and being able to recognise which your buyer is makes you a better persuader.
In chapters 15 and 16, this author discusses the concepts of what motivates the buyer and how the buyer makes decisions.
Part three is eclectically tagged “How to become a power persuader”, and covers four chapters, that is, chapters 17 to 20. In these chapters, Dawson looks at the concepts of how to make your buyers love you; 12 ways to project an awesome charisma; how you can develop a dynamite sense of humour; and the need not to forget another name.
Part four, the last part of this text is based on the summary concept of learning persuasion techniques and contains four chapters, that is, chapters 21 to 24. In the words of this author in chapter 21entitled “A magic persuasion technique”, “Let me tell you about a persuasion technique that’s so simple, and so effective, that’s it’s amazing so few people are aware of how powerful it is…This simple technique is to use the person’s name, at the start or end of a sentence, and make your request. You must tilt your head a little and smile as you say his or her name….”
In chapters 22 to 24, Dawson analytically X-rays the concepts of eight ways to persuade an angry buyer; eight reasons why buyers won’t open up; and sales management and the power persuader.
Dawson has given his subject matter a touch of conceptual creativity in this book. As regards style, this text is an embodiment of success. To ensure readers’ active participation, he includes exercise sections. The language is simple. To ensure easy understanding on readers’ part, this author uses detailed and accurate illustrations. He employs graphical embroidery to visually reinforce readers’ understanding. However, chapter one’s heading should have been appropriately written as “Six magic keys that control buyers” instead of “6 magic keys that control buyers”. Also, some chapters that look conceptually redundant or repetitive need to be harmonised for compactness.
Finally, this text is fantastic. It is a must-read for individuals and organisations that want to enhance their sales capacity through strategic skill of power persuasion.
GOKE ILESANMI (FIIM, FIMC, CMC), CEO of Gokmar Communication Consulting, is an International Platinum Columnist, Professional Public Speaker, Career Mgt Coach and Certified Mgt Consultant. He is also a Book Reviewer, Biographer and Editorial Consultant.
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