No Is a Beautiful Word

No, I’m not kidding!  For the successful insurance agency owner, producer, CSR or anyone involved in sales for that matter, “no” is a great thing to hear. 

Of course, YES! is better.  Because it means a sale right?  Obviously, the object in any sales call is to get as many yes’s as possible right?  Well, or at least a no.

See, we aren’t going to sell most prospects anything.  Right?  Regardless of how good you are you will never convince everyone to buy from you.  So, if you’re not going to get a “yes” then a “no” is the next best thing.   In fact, the sooner you get to that no the better!

If you’re not going to win the sale then every minute you spend with that prospect is a minute of your life that’s wasted.  And you’re never going to get it back.  So, my goal is always to get a yes or a no.

What absolutely kills you is “maybe.”

Maybe is an ugly word because it really means no, but it’s designed to get you to give the prospect as much free information as possible.  It’s a word designed to get you to do free market research (competitive quotes for example).  Maybe is a word designed to use you. 

So, to be as successful as possible in sales, seek out yes and no.  And when you hear “maybe” or any of its relatives (I’ll think about it, for example) take the opportunity to give yourself a gift.

Take that “maybe” and tell the prospect “no”! 

One last word of advice.  People don’t like being told no.  Especially by sales people.  So, when you tell the prospect no they are going to beg you to agree to maybe.  They may even promise a chance at yes.  But they almost never mean it.  Say no and move on to someone else worthy of your time.