This time last year I was on a holiday with my family in Thailand. We stayed somewhere we’ve been to a couple of times. It is the ultimate spot we’ve found if the kids want to play and the parents want to relax for a few days. I mention this not only because when it’s cold outside your mind starts to wander to warmer memories but also because my daughter reminded me this morning of something we had witnessed while we were there, something that was a great example of how two sales techniques can have very different results.

The night in question my family and I had dinner at one of our favourite little restaurant’s, Smile Bar on Kamala Beach. It is blessed with one of the most amazing settings, being right on the beach with a western aspect that throws up the most glorious view as the sun sets every night over the bay (the picture to the left is that actual view). Add to that the fact they serve up a perfect example of what makes Thai food so great, and that you can stroll there after spending the afternoon with the kids on one of the best beaches in the world, and you have all the ingredients for a pretty special evening.

The other thing that attracted us to the Smile Bar the very first time we came here a couple of years ago, were the staff. The owner is an older local lady who does all of the cooking and took the time to great us warmly and suggested that if any of us wanted another drink, we could order one or, if we preferred we could just go to the fridge and help ourselves. The manager/head waiter had that perfect balance of knowing when to engage and when to simply allow us to enjoy the experience on our own, and the rest of the staff, when there were others, followed suit to a tee.

So, apart from the obvious customer service example, how does this relate to how you can build a better business?

Well, we had the added benefit one night of watching two very different sales techniques from the people allocated the role of beach-side ‘spruiker’ and we all got a wonderful lesson on how the wrong style of pitch can sometimes work, but the right style of pitch gets a much higher sales strike-rate and also takes a lot less effort. And it all came down to one very simple difference – asking versus telling – which resulted in buying versus selling.

The first person who had the role of spruiker, when considered in isolation appeared to be doing a reasonable job. She engaged with everyone as they came along the beach in a very friendly open way. She smiled, wasn’t overly pushy and when she pointed out the wonderful seafood BBQ specials that were on offer that night she appeared to be getting quite a few (fairly) positive reactions. Like most OK salespeople, she wasn’t obviously poor. She just didn’t have a great strike rate with only one couple out of the dozen or so she spoke to taking up the offer to enjoy Smile Bar’s amazing food.

It was only really when the shift changed and another lady took over, that we  were shown the difference between an OK salesperson and a really good one. It was then that we saw the power of asking questions, rather than providing information.

The second lady also smiled at the people walking along the beach trying to decide on which restaurant to eat at that evening. What she did next after saying good evening though was what made her a great sales person rather than just an OK one. She asked the potential customers what they liked to eat. Sounds fairly obvious but our first spruiker hadn’t done that, she had told potential customers all about the evening special, explaining how beautifully fresh and flavorsome their seafood BBQ dinner was. Now what she had told them was all true but as she didn’t actually take the time to find out what the customers wanted, and as a result, anyone who didn’t immediately feel like a seafood BBQ simply walked away!

Our second spruiker on the other hand, with the simple act of asking what the customer liked to eat, got immediate engagement because it was all about what the customer wanted to buy, not about what she wanted to sell them. Even better, it was something that she knew the restaurant had a ready made solution for. And what my daughter found amusing was that solution often turned out to include their seafood BBQ.

The great news is that anyone, whatever they happen to be trying to sell, can get this same result. All they need is to be aware of what they’re doing and learn to re-frame their approach a little. Then, with a little practice they can stop selling to customers and start having your customers buy from you.

If either approach sounds familiar we’d love to hear from you so either add a comment below or drop us a line to contact@bellajack.com