Feedback Guides your Presentation

Learn how to generate feedback to determine whether your listener has received your intended message. Feedback does not refer to any type of listening behaviour by the buyer but to a recognisable response from the buyer. A shake of the head, a frown, or an effort to say something are all signals to the salesperson. If the salesperson does not notice or respond to these signals, no feedback can occur, which means faulty or incomplete communication. A salesperson’s observation of feedback is like an auto racer’s glances at the tachometer. Both aid in finding a receiver’s response.

Often, feedback must be looked for openly because the prospect does not always give it voluntarily. By interjecting into the presentation questions that need the customer to give a response, you can stimulate feedback. Questioning, sometimes called probing, allows the salesperson to determine the buyer’s attitude toward the sales presentation. PROBING refers to gathering information and uncovering customer needs using one or more questions.

The following types of feedback normally form part of sales training sessions. Sales trainers suggested that salespeople could use questions in their presentations. Some of the questions suggested were:

• Do you think you are paying too much for telecommunications equipment?
• Are you happy with the provided service?
• Are you happy with the equipment your present supplier has installed for your company?

These questions aimed to draw negative responses from the customers concerning the relationship with their present supplier. This provided salespeople with a method of determining how the prospect felt about the competitor. These responses allow the salesperson to discuss the specific features, advantages, and benefits of their products relative to the products currently used by the prospect.

The use of a question after discussing a benefit is a great method of obtaining feedback. Another way of creating positive feedback is through empathy.