Win-Win Selling by Wilson Learning Library

Selling isn't an easy profession. In a rapidly changing world with increasingly savvy consumers, the techniques that worked yesterday might not succeed tomorrow.

The approach discussed by Win-Win Selling takes the well known needs-fulfilment salesman scenario and extends it to the 'counselor evolution' model. This model is all about creating a close relationship, or even longterm partnership, between the salesman and the customer.

There are four main sections, namely Relating, Discovering, Advocating and Supporting. The overall aim is to encourage a more customer friendly approach by changing attitudes, rather than imposing a rigidly defined structure. While the primary audience is sales professionals, there's plenty of thought provoking information for anyone connected to sales, marketing or advertising.

Throughout it emphasises the importance of honesty, credibility, competence, and in particular empathy. Empathy is essential to discover your customers attitudes, motivations and feelings, understand their problems and develop a strong, trusting relationship. In this way a successful salesman will identify and fill the gap between the customers current needs and their desired solution.

Once learnt the basic 'relationship' selling principles can be used to form the basis of your own bespoke technique. In fact, the book positively encourages the reader to pursue their own style and best practices based on the information provided.

It would have been easy to create just another 'theory' book. Instead the reader will enjoy a practical style of presentation, one where advice is backed up with a raft of stories and case histories, which clarify the messages and illustrate how they work in real-world situations. My only niggle is the occasionally disjointed layout and flow.

In a crowded marketplace Wilson Learning have created a distinctly individual book that's as easy to read as it is informative. And one that successfully conveys a better way to sell.