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Having
learned so much in this class, one could probably write a book on what will be
incorporated into my course “The Steps of the Sale” and all future courses that
I develop. However, I’ll cover some of the key insights for me.
The course tips will provide a good roadmap to the
elements that should be included and the process to be followed. In addition,
the questions for lesson planning provide good guidance.
Course Objectives
The sales
process is about guiding the salesperson/customer communication in a way that
most effectively:
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Establish
rapport
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Identify the customer’s current situation
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Identify the customer’s wants and needs
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Recommend a product that meets the customers needs
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Overcome customer objections in a manner that maintains rapport
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Prompt the customer to make a buying decision
How Learning Styles Relate
to the Sales Process
Part
of establishing rapport depends on being sensitive to the customer’s learning
styles. The highly effective salesperson identifies the customer’s wants and
needs, and then provides only the information that meets those wants and needs.
This course will familiarize the learner with their own learning styles so that
they can begin to be sensitive to the customer’s learning styles in what they
communicate (visual, auditory, text), and how they communicate (kinesthetic). In
addition, those considerations extend to all communication both verbal and
non-verbal. By mirroring the customer’s learning style in your communication
with them, you put the customer at ease by making it easier for them to
understand the ideas you are trying to communicate. The customer feels more
comfortable because he or she perceives you to be more like them.
“Customers like to buy from
people they like, or people like them.”
Integrating Learning Styles into the Course Design
The
learner will gain greater familiarity with the learning styles by taking an
online survey. The lessons will use each of the VARK modalities in learning
activities as follows:
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Read/Write
– This is the modality that is naturally over used in developing training. By
necessity, it will be used as a thread that guides the learner from activity
to activity and will be used for learning when appropriate. A good example of
this might be to assign the reading of an article on the selling process by a
recognized expert or to explain a concept.
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Auditory
– Because ‘The Steps of the Sale’ is a process, the course will use a set of
stairs as a metaphor for the steps of the sale. Using this graphic supported
by narration, as each step is explained – the name of the step will appear on
the corresponding stair step.
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Visual
– To engage the visual learner, the course will use streaming video to model
the steps of the sale. As the actors move through each step, a graphic image
will appear on screen to identify which step of the sale is currently being
demonstrated.
Simulations will feature scenarios that include customers possessing different
learning preferences. Learners will be asked to recognize those preferences and
react to them while using the steps of the sale.
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The Dell Learning Center
– Here you’ll find a few excellent examples of how a flash animation can
instruct (tell a story) with very few words. Follow the link below this text,
then click under the box titled “The Dell Model Home” where it says “Click
here to start the tour” and then (after waiting a minute for the Flash to
load) select on any of the three circles (networking, video, digital imaging).
http://www.dell.com/us/en/dhs/topics/segtopic_lchome_resources.htm
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Big Edison
–
Longtime friends and entrepreneurs, Curt McMillan, Richard Brull and Joe
Lavenburg, founded BigEdison in July of 1999. Originally a website design and
hosting company, BigEd quickly grew into a full-fledged multimedia company
engaging in services such as CD-ROM production, Virtual Photography and
Streaming Video. In 2001, BigEd merged Interscape Development (a highly
regarded home automation company) to broaden its offerings. BigEd uses its
strength in multimedia to communicate the benefits of its home automation
product using video webcasting.
http://www.bigedison.com/bighouse.htm
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BigEdison Home Automated Living (HAL)
– This really is like the movie 2001 A Space Odyssey. Check out several of the
audio samples to see that living in a fully automated home by BigEdison is
like interacting with the HAL2000. Interestingly, BigEdison makes big use of
Microsoft’s WindowsMedia tools and you need decent bandwidth for this to work
well.
http://www.bigedison.com/halsamples.htm
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WBT Systems TopClass e-Learning
Suite
– This is a narrated slide presentation. It is a good example of how pictures
and text can provide an easy way to understand a concept. Click the link
below, then click “Play the Narrated Presentation” to take the narrated
tour.
http://www.wbtsystems.com/products/architecture.html
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STARDOT
– STARDOT is a retailer offering consulting and installation services in
Illinois and Minnesota. The STARDOT tour is kinesthetic in that you interact
with a navigation tool that is essentially a metaphor for the home automation
controller that STARDOT will install in your home. This is the best site I
have ever seen of its type and I would consider using the services of Creative
Sites Media (the web site developer) based on this example alone. Use the
various tools on the navigation box at the bottom left. Be sure to check out
how you can change the channel on the television and watch the image on the TV
change. It’s a pretty neat presentation.
http://www.stardotinc.com/tour.shtml
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ToolBook Showcase
– ToolBook is a web-authoring tool by e-learning industry leader Click2Learn.
By following the ToolBook Showcase link below, you’ll be able to select from
several instruction simulations to learn about different things by trying them
out. Be patient though, this type of robust application can take a little time
to load over a dial-up modem, but if that is how you are connected and you
want to see samples of what is possible – waiting is the price you pay.
Note:
To get this to run, I had to change my security settings in my browser. To do
this, in Explorer click “Tools” and click “Internet Options”, then select the
“Security” tab. Click “Custom Levels” and select the “Enable” radial button in
the “Initialize and script ActiveX controls not marked as safe” section.
http://home.click2learn.com/en/showcase/index.asp
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Creative Writing for Teens
– Writing classes really lend themselves to the read/write learning modality.
In this example, the learner reads lessons and submits writing assignments to
get guidance from the instructor. There is also a poll and discussion board,
in addition to a parent-to-parent teaching tip section.
http://teenwriting.about.com/library/writinglessons/blstart1_0.htm
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Differences are Good
– Here’s a text-based learning site. I sure wish I had teachers able and
willing to use this kind of technological innovation to make learning fun and
rewarding. This site was created by a group of fourth and fifth grade students
from
Roosevelt School in Wauwatosa,
Wisconsin and entered into the
ThinkQuest USA contest. April
2002.
http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0212302/
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Index of
Learning Styles (ILS)
The Index of
Learning Styles is an instrument used to assess preferences on four
dimensions (active/reflective, sensing/intuitive, visual/verbal, and
sequential/global) of a learning style model formulated by Richard M. Felder and
Linda K. Silverman. Barbara A. Soloman and Richard M. Felder of North Carolina
State University are developing the instrument.
http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSpage.html
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Web-based Survey
– Want to see how you fare on the ILS instrument? Take the survey by following
the link.
http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/ilsweb.html
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Paper & Pencil Version
– The same ILS survey for the web-free class.
http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/ILS-a.htm
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Matters of Styles
– This article discusses learning styles based on Myers-Briggs, Kolb, Herrmann
Brain Dominance & the Felder-Silverman model.
http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/Papers/LS-Prism.htm
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Myers-Briggs type survey
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This model classifies students according to their preferences on scales
derived from psychologist Carl Jung's theory of psychological types.
Personality types include extraverts, sensors, intuitors, thinkers, feelers,
judgers and perceivers.
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp
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The Kolb Learning Cycle
–
David Kolb's model of the Learning Cycle (LC) refers to the process by which
individuals, teams and organizations understand their experiences, and
consequently modify their behaviors. The four cycles include Experiencing,
Reflection, Conceptualization and Planning.
http://www.css.edu/users/dswenson/web/PAGEMILL/Kolb.htm
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Color Quiz
is an interesting
personality profile. I recommend that you open three web browser windows and
take it three times without viewing the results. Each one should organize the
colors differently. The results will be similar, but different. Please let me
know what you thought of the accuracy of the quiz.
http://www.colorquiz.com/
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