Salespeople have their own secret language known as Sales jargon. Experienced Salespeople know success comes from communicating clearly. That is, in language their prospects can understand. However, there are numerous slang terms that Salespeople reserve for internal meetings and happy hours. Here are some Sales jargon words and phrases most Salespeople have in their arsenal. Importantly, we also outline reasons why you shouldn’t use insider speak around clients and customers.

ABC

ABC is an acronym that stands for “always be closing”. This is a Sales strategy that is rooted in the idea that every action a Salesperson takes throughout their Sales process is in pursuit of closing a deal.

BANT FRAMEWORK

BANT is used when Sales representatives are qualifying leads. Budget: determines if the business has the budget to purchase the solution Authority: identifies key decision-makers in the business Need: verifies that the business has a real need for the solution Time: checks if the business is likely to make a timely purchase

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BUYING SIGNALS

Cues from a prospect that they’re ready to buy. Buying signals can be Verbal, that is, asking about price; or Non-Verbal, that is, nodding and holding eye contact.

CHURN RATE

Churn rate is the percentage of customers that stop doing business with a company over a certain period of time. The churn rate is calculated by dividing the number of customers you lost by the number you had at the beginning of the chosen time frame.

THE DM

The Decision Maker is the person who ultimately approves a sale or purchase. This is not necessarily the person who appears to be calling the shots.

EMOTIONAL SALE

A selling method that attempts to appeal to a buyer’s emotions. That is, either by generating desire and excitement around the product’s benefits, or evoking negative emotions. This includes feelings like fear and frustration. These are uncovering pain points that your product or service can alleviate. (See: Intellectual Sale)

FORECASTING

Forecasting is the act of estimating future Sales. This is so companies can make better business decisions and predict performance. Additionally, forecasts can be based on past Sales data, industry comparisons, or economic trends.

GATEKEEPER

A gatekeeper is someone who controls access to the Decision Maker. For instance, a gatekeeper may be a personal assistant who relays information back to their boss. Put simply, gatekeepers are responsible for filtering out unimportant distractions. Ultimately, this means you have to prove your value to them first before you can progress any further.

INTELLECTUAL SALE

As opposed to an Emotional Sale, an Intellectual Sale attempts to appeal to a prospect’s logic. That is, it targets a customer’s need for a quick, affordable solution to a problem. An Intellectual Sale is more “business” than “personal.”

LAND AND EXPAND

“Landing” a Sale refers to the initial close, when you bring on a new customer for the first time. And “Expanding” means generating even more revenue from the account. That is by upselling or broadening the scope of the service you’re providing. Crucially, Salespeople need to land and expand in order to generate the most revenue from a given prospect.

MIRRORING

Building rapport with a prospect by adopting their body language and speech patterns. Subtlety is key, here. That is, if you overdo it, you will come off as ingenuine, or even creepy.

To Refine Your Sales Team’s Communication Skills

NSAs

Non Sales-related Activities. That is, actions and tasks that Salespeople spend time on that do not directly lead to Sales. This can include administrative activities and paperwork or making personal calls and surfing online. Basically, whenever you are not prospecting, qualifying, setting up presentations and appointments, or closing, you are probably engaged in an NSA.

PUPPY DOG CLOSE

Allowing customers to try out a product with no obligation while they make their decision. The idea is, an uncommitted buyer will fall in love with the product and will not want to let it go. This is likened to a person wanting to buy a puppy, they wouldn’t be able to say “no” after taking one home for a few days.

 

SOCIAL SELLING

Social Selling is the act of using social media to interact with prospects. Oftentimes, this includes providing answers to simple questions that will help the prospect better understand their pain points and potential solutions.

SALES WHALE

A prospect that has the potential to bring tremendous ongoing Sales revenue to an organisation. Like whales, they are big, elusive, and rare. And, Sales teams pull out all the stops to land one.

SANDBAGGING

Holding off on closing active deals once you have already hit your quota/commission for the month. Some Salespeople do this so that they can more easily hit numbers the following month.

SMILE AND DIAL

Cold-calling with a cheerful, positive tone of voice – and yes, a smile! Smiling communicates warmth and trustworthiness over the phone. Ultimately, it makes the prospect less likely to hang up on you. Even if people cannot see your smile, they can hear it!

TIRE-KICKER

A prospect who has no intention or ability to buy. It isn’t long before the red flags appear! That is, they don’t have a budget, the purchase is not within their authority, or their timeline is far into the future. Put simply, tire-kickers are time-wasters.

WARNING!

Even though prospects might seem to understand what you’re talking about, you should avoid using Sales jargon during interactions. Sure, your clients might know what you mean, but the danger is you will either lose them completely or they will think you don’t care about them enough to communicate clearly.  

THE QUALITY OF YOUR COMMUNICATION CAN ONLY BE MEASURED BY THE RESPONSE THAT YOU RECEIVE

 

SALES JARGON TO AVOID WITH PROSPECTS

The overuse of jargon can come across as confusing and will often put the buyer off. Apart from the abbreviated type of jargon, the repetitive and cheesier one liners are often over-used.

AVOID:

1. “Lets touch base”
2. “We are on a journey”
3. “Its a no brainer”
4. “Its a game changer”
5. “Lets line our ducks up in a row”

INSTEAD USE:

Simple language that sounds more natural. Here are some alternatives to the above.

• “Hi, I just wanted to catch up and see how things are going”
• “We are with you every step of the way”
• “I believe our product/service will be a great addition to your business” … then explain how.
• “I believe our product/service will work well with your business”… then explain how.
• “Let me explain how we work and then see if we can get a date in the diary”

So remember – while amongst colleagues, Sales speak is a sign of efficiency and understanding, to the prospect your Sales jargon can create a communication barrier! So make sure you train your Salespeople how and when to use it effectively. Refine Your Sales Team’s Communication Skills with KONA’s Tailored Effective Communication Workshops. Contact us for your team’s bespoke training, on 1300 611 288 for a confidential conversation, or email info@kona.com.au anytime.