How to Avoid Anxiety in Selling

All small business owners have to sell their product or service regardless of whether they have a team. Owners have to convince people that their product or service is better than others. They do this when in networking meetings, on the golf course, in trade shows and online. Before they hire a sales team, they have to do the convincing themselves.

According to recent studies, 78 percent of small business owners said they'd been worried about cash flow, and 44 percent of small business owners said they experience financial stress and fear about the future of their companies with cash flow and sales volatility being closely linked. Often, they verbally fear the sale and have anxiety over having to sell themselves. During B.O.S.S. Academy’s Phoenix Fridays Leadership Power Hour, members discuss effective ways to sell. Here are some ways to make selling less fearful.

1. Ask Questions – Instead of listing a million features, small business owners should ask questions of potential clients. When you ask questions, you find out exactly what they need or what they want. You then can provide the features that fit that need and desire. You also can discover up front whether they are worth pursuing. If you are unable to provide the services or products to solve their problem, you can tell them and save time.
2. Reframe Selling – Most business owners picture sales as convincing clients something they don't want. That's not selling. That's manipulation, and your gut is right to resist it. Real selling involves communicating how you solve a problem they already have. When you shift from "I need to convince them" to "I need to help them decide," the pressure drops immediately.
3. Find Common Ground – Small business owners go on a journey. Along the way, they do things that might be similar to the people you are targeting. You need to find those common items that you can discuss with the potential client. This eases tension for both owner and buyer. The buyer relaxes and doesn’t believe he or she would be pushed into buying something. The owner relaxes because he or she can talk about something other than the product or service. For example, you might both like the same sports team or restaurant. When everyone is relaxed transitioning into the product or service is easier. They are more likely to like you too.
4. Reduce Uncertainty – Anxiety thrives on uncertainty. If every sales conversation feels like starting from scratch, of course it's stressful. Instead, create a simple script or checklist:

• How do you open the conversation?

• What two or three questions do you always ask?
• How do you describe your offer in one sentence?
• What's your go-to way to ask for the next step?

Once the structure is decided in advance, you're not improvising under pressure. You're just following your own plan.

5. Tell Stories – People want to get to know you. If you tell stories of successes or stories of things that didn’t go right, you are going to get empathy from potential clients. They want to share in your joys and sadness. This builds a rapport with people who won’t buy until they like you, know you and trust you. Telling stories is a good way to show how you solved a problem and made you seem human.
6. Be Yourself – Too often business owners try to be people other than who they are. This will not work. When you are authentic and vulnerable, it comes through loud and clear. The people on the other end of that authenticity will appreciate that you are honest and true to yourself. When you are trying to sell, it is less stressful when you don’t have to remember who you are trying to be.

Sales anxiety isn't a sign that something's wrong with you. It's a sign you care about doing right by your clients and your business. The goal isn't to eliminate the nerves completely. It's to build enough structure and self-trust that you can act despite them.