Is Selling an art, or a science? It’s BOTH: An equilibrium of innate ability and adopting a structured process. In this digital world, success is dependent on the strong analysis of customer’s profiles and business needs, whilst an adversity quotient (AQ) and the ability to influence the customers.
Is selling an art or a science?
Most sales coaches will tell you that selling is both an art and a science, whilst some will tell you that sales are 50% science and 50% art, while the art is knowing when to apply science.
I personally will disagree with this percentage since it varies with each situation and person. The art is to create value, and in sales, you cannot forget the human factor and the emotional connection derived from human interactions. Some called this process of gaining inner knowledge an Ancient Wisdom. In today’s digital world, the advancement of technology brings modern science and ancient wisdom together with unprecedented ways to help us do more and achieve more. To us, selling is more like Ancient Wisdom versus Modern Science where technology matters.
Ancient Wisdom:
- We need to see the purpose in our work – an art form
- Salespeople needs great listening skills
- Ancient technology – called two-way conversations
Technology Matters:
- Digital gadgets – smartphones + tablets
- Social media – Radio, TV, FB, Twitter
- Platforms – B2B, B2C, O2O, e-commerce
To win in this digital world, one requires strong analysis of customer’s profiles and business needs, whilst concurrently having Adversity Quotient (AQ) which is the ability of a person to deal with adversities in his or her life, and the ability to influence the customers.
In the past, both Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and Emotional Quotient (EQ) were considered the basics that determine our career success. But today, we have witnessed how unprecedented times thrown businesses and processes off tangent. More than ever, technology has redefined how we work and to reevaluate the skills we need to thrive in the job market.
Resultantly, having AQ helps you pivot and flourish in an environment of fast and frequent change. More importantly, you also need to influence the customers and build a valuable strategic relationship.
Over the next few weeks, I will discuss the balance between Art and Science in virtual selling, delve into the rising trend of digital sales and provide viewpoints on how data-driven insights will continue to accelerate this phenomenon.
Check out more posts on selling in the virtual world and connect with my team and I on LinkedIn here:
Samuel Poh
Neil Archer
Angela Coronica
Paul Wittich
