What is Selling? (Definition, Features, Examples, and Effective Strategies in 2023)
Irrespective of the goods or services a business provides, these must make their way to customers to generate sales. The art of selling makes this happen. Although selling is a simple concept, there is so much more to effective selling than meets the eye. So, what is selling?
Selling is exchanging goods and services for money. Selling requires understanding, building a rapport with customers, and providing solutions for customers’ needs and wants. Selling techniques include; transactional, solution, consultative, provocative, collaborative, and insight selling.
To successfully sell goods and services, a sales force must be equipped with an understanding of the features of selling and follow effective strategies. Not all sales are handled in the same way. Different selling techniques apply to different types of goods and services. Knowing the best course of action elevates selling from a simple transaction to a profitable skill.
Table of Contents
Definition Of Selling
The basic definition of selling is exchanging money for goods or services and is a broad concept. Industry experts expand on the concept of selling by drawing attention to the process and requirements for making a sale.
Kotler and Keller, authors of Marketing Management with MyMarketingLab, amplify the concept of goods and services as “anything that can be offered to a market to satisfy a want or need and includes services, people, ideas, and physical goods.”
Selling begins by understanding wants and needs. Wants and needs are the reason customers approach businesses, or businesses identify opportunities to sell to customers. Wants and needs must be satisfied before a sale can take place, and these can be tangible or intangible.
Kotler and Keller say that meeting profitable needs and turning them into profitable business opportunities is the precursor to making a sale.
Features Of Selling
Selling is an activity that convinces a potential buyer to purchase goods or services. The level and type of engagement between customers, salespeople, and an organization differ based on the customer’s requirements and the nature of the sale.
An interesting definition of Selling by Tom Hopkins in his book The Art of Selling is that “Selling is the art of asking the right questions to get the minor yeses that allow you to lead your prospect to a major decision. It’s a simple function; the final sale is the sum of all your yeses.”
This concept expands on the role of selling in an organization and delves into the premise that selling is not merely a transaction but the art of understanding a customer. Selling depends on communicating in a way the customer understands and leading the customer to the outcome of a sale.
Although Hopkins describes selling as a simple function, the art lies in guiding customers and allowing them to think a purchase decision through and arrive at the same solution the salesperson has presented to them.
What is clear is that selling is more than one simple act of transferring ownership for a sum of money. It is a process that encompasses several actions based on a set of important criteria:
Identify Needs And Wants
Businesses analyze the market they trade in before providing goods and services. Successful businesses invest time and money to ensure they know everything about their market before deciding how and where to sell.
Although this stage is not typically considered selling, it impacts the business’s success and sales volume. Knowledge and understanding empower salespeople and better equip them to be relevant and in touch with customers.
Establish A Rapport With Customers
The fundamental requirement for selling is communication. Selling features several types of communication, which in turn influence different sales outcomes.
Establishing a rapport with customers requires a salesperson to understand the customers’ predicament and build a trusting relationship. Trust relationships require the business and salesperson to be reliable, available, and transparent.
Present A Solution To Customers
Brian Tracy, a Canadian-American self-development author, defines successful selling as solving a problem or helping a customer instead of merely focusing on selling a product or service. Identifying needs enables salespeople to present feasible solutions to customers.
Allow Customers To Rationalize A Decision
Post-purchase dissonance occurs when customers make a purchase and they are disappointed with their purchase.
Provide customers with accurate information to rationalize a decision; this results in a sale where customers feel gratified, and the organization receives a financial reward.
Provide Post Purchase Support
Effective selling does not end with a sales transaction. The process continues afterward in the form of after-sales service, complaint resolution, and providing any additional information or support a customer needs. The impact of post-purchase support builds a foundation for further engagement and potential sales.
Effective Strategies for Selling
The sales landscape has changed considerably since 2000. Tradition selling plays a major role in the seller/buyer relationship. Still, customers are exposed to hundreds of marketing messages daily.
The brick-and-mortar sales environment is often the last port of call before customers’ purchase. Even in-store selling competes with online buying, which is convenient and saves customers’ time.
More recently, selling is no longer a singular interaction between a salesperson and a customer; it requires a holistic approach to gaining a customer’s attention, providing convincing but honest information, and engaging with customers on multiple channels.
Traditional Selling
The traditional selling model is rooted in pure selling and places little significance on adding value to consumers.
Often in a traditional sales environment, the product on sale becomes the hero with far less focus on customers.
The downside of traditional selling is that salespeople and businesses impose their products on customers and do not allow for qualitative engagement between the salesperson and consumers. A typical sales method would be to attract, inform, and close the deal.
Traditional selling relied heavily on traditional marketing campaigns such as brochures, billboards, television advertising, and advertising on radio stations.
Examples of traditional Selling are:
- In-store salespeople sell products based purely on benefits and features.
- Cold calling
- Mass-generated sales letters and emails.
- Direct Selling
Transactional selling is based on the same principle; a buyer selects a product on offer and makes a purchase. Often products are advertised through traditional advertising channels, and an organization relies on product appeal to make a sale.
Sales Strategies For Traditional Selling
For traditional selling to thrive, salespeople must be empowered with greater product knowledge and an understanding of customers’ needs. Service plays a role in traditional selling, and sales thrive in a well-serviced environment.
The best strategies for traditional selling require an emphasis on customer experience and diligent sales practices.
- Sales staff training must be ongoing, encompassing broader market and product knowledge skills.
- Customer service must take precedence.
- Sale staff must be present and responsive.
- Lead generation must focus on something other than a shotgun, generalized approach but a narrowed down high potential customer base.
- Follow-up and follow-through are new buzzwords in the selling environment. They are practical ways to improve a customer’s experience.
Modern Selling
Selling has rapidly evolved over the past 15 years. A shift to customer awareness and informed customers requires new sales techniques.
The sales environment extends beyond a store and permeates consumers’ environments. The digital world allows potential customers to evaluate and compare products and services before purchasing.
An organization must embark on the selling journey long before a sale is made to thrive in this economy.
Omnichannel Selling
The selling environment is now a selling arena, and businesses must embrace messaging that is available where customers need it. Being present where and when customers need information or support is the fundamental principle of omnichannel selling.
Omnichannel marketing is completely customer-centric. A multi-dimensional approach takes cognizance of each touch-point that customers potentially interact with a product and service.
Selling no longer takes a standardized approach in an omnichannel strategy. Messages and customer support must be tailored to where customers engage with the business. The structure and tone of selling messages may vary, but the content of each message must align.
A business consulting firm, Frost and Sullivan define omnichannel as ‘seamless, effortless, high-quality customer experiences that occur within and between contact channels.”
Understanding customer touch points and motivators are the basis for omnichannel selling, and businesses must cover all bases to be successful.
A strategy that enables businesses to create effective omnichannel selling is mapping the customer journey. This strategy requires careful observation of customer behavior and understanding customers’ needs with the end goal of selling a solution to customers.
Traditional Selling Compared To Modern Selling
| Traditional Selling Product Promotion | Modern Selling Touchpoints |
| Brochures, Television, Radio | Brochures, Television, Radio |
| CRM | Website |
| Phone Calls | Online Shopping |
| Emails | Digital Touch Points |
| In-store Sales | Experiential Marketing |
| In-Store Promotions and Information | In-Store Sales |
| In-store Promotions and Information |
Examples Of Selling
Selling is a series of actions that convince a potential buyer to purchase goods or services. The level and type of engagement between customers, salespeople, and an organization differ based on the type of sale.
There are 8 selling scenarios, each with its features and sales techniques. The type of connection is determined by the selling interaction necessary to make a sale.
Method 1: Transactional Selling
Transaction selling requires minimal engagement between the seller and buyer if any at all. Much of the motivation for sales is delivered before any contact between a buyer and a seller.
Think of marketing and advertising. These are precursors to a sale and are the basis on which a potential customer makes a purchase decision.
The sale occurs rapidly when the customer decides what and where to purchase. It constitutes a simple transaction whereby ownership is transferred for financial gain.
Transactional selling often relies on the silent salesperson. A silent salesperson would, for instance, be information in a supermarket that details product features, promotions, and displays.
Examples:
- Supermarkets
- Mass market clothing stores
Method 2: Solution Selling
The concept of solution selling relies on a salesperson’s understanding of a customer’s needs and the ability to provide a suitable solution. Often salespeople need to present a well-thought-through argument, which requires expertise and customer awareness.
Solution selling is a preferred technique for B2B business. There are many instances where consumers require a product solution to satisfy a need.
In the solution selling process, salespeople will highlight the benefits and features of products or services and use this to convince customers to purchase.
Examples:
- Pharmaceuticals
- Banking
Method 3: Consultative Selling
Consultative selling requires highly skilled salespeople with business acumen and adaptive selling skills. Unlike solution selling, consultative selling focuses more on providing a bespoke solution to the customer’s problem. Product information is less important than designing and aligning techniques and products to support the solution.
Examples:
- Business services
- Interior design for office spaces
Method 4: Provocative Selling
Provocative selling requires a salesperson or organization to identify needs that customers may not be aware of. To enable provocative selling, the seller must identify the consumer’s current or future pain points and provide solutions in advance.
Provocative selling aims to create a sense of urgency and salespeople home in on grabbing the potential buyer’s attention and prompting the buyer to make an immediate purchase.
Examples:
- Health products
- Insurance policies
Method 5: Collaborative Selling
Collaborative selling is an extended selling process whereby customers participate in the process. The collaborative approach is mentioned by Gartner, the author of ‘The Sense-Making Seller’ and refers to collaborative selling that makes sense to the customer.
Collaborated selling is a high-engagement, low-risk sale that allows the potential customer to participate in the solution.
Examples:
- House sales
- Wedding venues
Method 6: Social Selling
Social Selling is the newest landscape in which customers purchase through digital media or online. The selling process involves a business putting its goods and services onto a portal from which customers can purchase.
Businesses provide pertinent and convincing information, and customers make purchase decisions based on the information available to them. A business’ reputation plays an important role in social selling. Customers prefer to buy from companies with good social media reviews.
Examples:
- Online retailers
- Social media click-throughs to websites and purchase portals.
Method 7: Partnership Selling
Partnership selling involves 2 businesses with complimentary products or services selling a solution together.
Sales partnerships are an ideal way for businesses to provide a comprehensive solution to customers and leverage a joint benefit by taking care of the customer’s complete requirements, thereby alleviating the customer’s need to double up on efforts to achieve a solution.
The advantage for businesses is that they obtain access to each other’s client bases and benefit from cross-selling opportunities.
Examples:
- Computers and computer systems
- Package deals such as holiday accommodation and airfare
Method 8: Insight Selling
A highly effective selling method is for companies and salespeople to familiarize themselves with all the information about their customer base and target market.
In addition to the company’s deep understanding of the customers, salespeople also ask pertinent questions to determine customers’ needs and provide the most effective solution to the customer’s concerns and requirements.
Examples
- Skincare products
- Motor vehicle sales
Selling Pros And Cons
Selling is not a generic action; it requires a strategy and relevant approach. Each selling method focuses on a specific sales technique, which addresses sales scenarios differently.
There is no right or wrong technique, but each has pros and cons.
| Selling Method | Pros | Cons |
| Transactional Selling | Quick sales conversions | No customer engagement |
| Solution Selling | Medium engagement | May not build long-term relationships |
| Consultative Selling | Valuable engagement | It may not come to fruition |
| Provocative Selling | Immediate revenue | It may damage the business’ reputation |
| Collaborative Selling | Relationship building | Time-consuming for businesses |
| Social Selling | Customer-friendly | Based on customer opinions with limited input from the business |
| Partnership Selling | Provides a comprehensive solution to customers | Business partners may dispute profits |
| Insight Selling | Addresses customers’ needs | Reliant on intuition from and committed participation from salespeople |
Why Is Selling Significant?
Sales generate profits for businesses, and businesses need a healthy bottom line to survive. Customers are a business’ lifeblood, and selling connects a business to its customers.
Builds Customer Relationships
One of the key roles that selling plays in a business is generating customer relationships. Satisfied customers are most likely to speak positively about a business and recommend it to friends and family. Good customer relationships lead to future sales.
Provides An Opportunity For Incremental Sales
A good salesperson will be able to upsell and cross-sell to customers. An example of upselling is a salesperson who converts a customer’s product selection to better-quality and higher-priced items.
Cross-selling is illustrated by a salesperson who anticipates a client’s needs and ensures that the customer purchases the full range of products needed for a project. An example of this is a customer buying paint for their home. Cross-selling would entail selling the customer paintbrushes and other painting accessories.
Enables Businesses To Build Data Bases
Obtaining customer information and detailing product preferences allows businesses to create valuable databases for future communication.
Digital And Online Selling Show Customer Behavior
Embracing an omnichannel selling strategy allows businesses to track customers’ behavior. Tracking enables businesses to adapt their selling platforms and intersection points to best suit the customer.
Allows Business To Influence Decision Making
An effective sales force can lead customers to a sale and provide the necessary information and solutions to clinch a deal.
Educates Customers
Online and personal selling educates customers. Educated customers are more likely to make informed decisions that benefit them in the long run, reducing dissatisfaction and increasing their chances of making new or repeat purchases.
Wrap Up
A business’s success is largely dependent on its selling abilities. Selling, in its simplest form, is defined as exchanging goods or services for money.
Effective selling is customer-centric and focuses on understanding customers’ needs and providing solutions that address these needs. Modern selling requires an omnichannel approach that is seamless selling across many platforms.
PIN THIS FOR LATER…
DID YOU FIND THIS INFORMATION HELPFUL? Share the love on social.
Follow us on Pinterest & Instagram!
ANY OTHER BUSINESS ADVICE WE CAN WRITE ABOUT?
Let us know, email us at:Â Advice@TheBestBusinessAdvice.com
