10 Tips for a Better In-Clinic Conversation
Sales representatives have all been taught various selling methodologies, from consultative to action selling, etc. But isn’t it time to get back to the basics of in-clinic conversation?
Confident, coherent conversations at the clinic level are something every sales rep strives for, especially when detailing a product to the clinic owner or veterinarian.
Of course, the best conversations occur where all parties feel connected, feel engaged, and understood.
Some easy guidelines ensure that happens:
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- Talk less, listen more – a conversation requires a balance between listening and talking.
- Don’t multi-task – Be present in the conversation and not thinking of your next point; let the conversation evolve organically.
- Assume every conversation provides both parties an opportunity to learn.
- Use open-ended questions, so the other party has an opportunity to describe the problem and an opportunity to think.
- Go with the flow. Don’t stop listening mid-story. Let questions come and go from the brain but stay with the speaker.
- If the answer doesn’t come easily in front of the veterinarian, be honest and follow-up. It will help you generate trust and respect.
- Don’t equate experience. All experiences are individual. And it’s not all about each of us. Although you may think, “it has happened to me too,” but that may not be best to say it.
- Try not to repeat yourself. It can be interpreted as condescending, especially if the repetitions happen in the same conversation.
- Be brief.
- Listen. It’s the number one, most important skill of us have. The person speaking is not learning from the interaction. We need to listen with the intent to understand and not to respond.
Be genuinely interested in the people you meet in the clinic daily. Not for the opportunity to make a sale but to partner with the fascinating veterinarians you meet every day with high-quality in-clinic conversation.
