Market Sophistication Makes Most Sales Methods Obsolete. Almost all prospects in every market have changed immensely in the past twenty years.  “Information overload” is the primary cause of them becoming vastly more sophisticated and informed about almost every product and service that they might need.  They are also far more sophisticated and cynical about traditional sales tactics.  Thus, most sales systems are now obsolete.

Persuasive Selling

Selling as the Art of Persuasion is obsolete.  Persuasion creates sales resistance and rejection.  The more subtle the persuasion gets, the more resentful the prospect gets. 

Manipulative Sales Methods

Selling with the use of mental manipulation, such as the Five Step Decision Model, NLP and Hypnotic Selling is obsolete.  Most prospects are intuitively repulsed by manipulation.  Their intuition tips them off to what the salesperson is doing.

Consultative Selling

Prospects know that you are not a consultant. Consultants are paid to be impartial and objective.  You, on the other hand, are there to sell them something.  That causes them to be wary and suspicious.  Most prospects are far busier than they were even ten years ago.  They do not have time to provide you with the information necessary for you to identify their needs so you can try to sell them your products and services.

Interested Prospects Seldom Buy

Making appointments with "interested" prospects is obsolete.  They just take up your time and expertise getting a free education.  Their resistance to your selling methods creates an adversarial relationship.  Then, they are psychologically inclined to buy from one of your competitors.

Needs Selling

Real prospects know what they need.  If the prospect does not already know what they need, you will have to discover their needs.  Then you will have to make them feel the pain of not buying from you.  Most prospects don't appreciate people who make them feel pain. 

Building Rapport

The way most salespeople attempt to build rapport, through charm, flattery and commonality, seldom works. The insincerity is transparent. 

What Most Top Producers Do Now

They find and make appointments only with prospects who are ready, willing and able to buy their type of products or services.  They achieve very high closing rates by using simplified sales processes based on mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual commitments.  Their authenticity makes it work.