Sales Tip of the Week from Mike Leeds – Pro Sales Coaching
Want to Attend a "Free" Training Session?
How many times have you been invited to a "free" training session? There are definitely some good content-rich sessions out there, but there are also those "free" sessions that are blatant sales pitches disguised as training sessions.
At one of these sessions, I was told the presenter went as far as to say, "I have 7 tips to help you get more social media or website hits. I'll give you 3 now, and the other 4 are in my book that you can purchase in the back of the room." The pitch continued from there, became even more of a hard sell, and many people starting walking out of the session.
Offering training sessions at no charge can be an effective way to connect with future prospects, share some valuable tips, and be considered a subject-matter expert. (I also recommend the terms "no charge" or "complimentary" since your workshop should contain value.)
The focus of your session needs to be clearly centered on the content that you have advertised, and not have any "strings" attached. Keep the self promotion to the very end of the presentation, or even as an event follow-up. Otherwise, this could look either desperate or deceiving, and viewed as a "bait and switch." After you have covered all of the topics you promised, using 90+% of your time on the content, you can make some final comments, mention upcoming events or how people benefit from your products/services. You'll score major points with your attendees, and be positioned as a potential valued-added product/service provider.
Have a great sales week!