photo: Ville Pirttilahti

Blocking

In traditional martial arts, a lot of training and emphasis is spend on training blocking techniques. These can be trained in forms (alone, without an actual attack), with training partners following set patterns, or in a sparring environment where the movement and attacks are free.

At first, the emphasis is on the outer form and the track of the block, where you will try to imitate your instructor’s movements. You get a feeling of contact and try to build your balance against the attack. Sometimes, the block is more like a hit against the attack and sometimes you try to use the power of the attack to your advantage and move into a better position for your next attack.

Block your sales objections

In sales, a block is your answer to the sales objection or a critical question that your customers asks from you. The customer is trying to find your weak spot and see if what you are offering is really solving a problem for her. She might have got insights of your product/service from your competitor, have previous experience of similar solutions or she has been doing a research of information on her own. You have to be prepared for all of these and train at your home dojang (training place) for upcoming attacks.

Training blocking techniques require discipline. You have to have your mind into them or you will not get much out of the training. The form is given to you and you have to follow it and trust your instructor on his expertise. He will try to correct your movement with vague explanations and modify your movement to follow a certain track. With repetition, you will learn to control your body and become quicker to perform the block with better balance. As with everything else, the timing of the block is crucial. Even if everything else is in balance, the form looks great and the track is perfect, you will get hit without mastering the timing of your block. But still, beginners worry too much about the timing and try to come up with excuses of why this time, the timing wasn’t the best. One shouldn’t concentrate too much on the timing in the beginning, because that is more of an inner skill than a physical skill. The timing will come with a lot of repetition and with the development of the physical form of the movement. Perfect timing for a block comes “from the feeling” not from reaction to an attack.

Too few salespeople take the time to train for sales objections properly. Even if you have mastered the particular sales objection last time, it is wise to train for it again. How did we get into that situation? What was the real purpose of that question? Have our competitors found a new approach that challenges our solution and is considered to be better? When you can trust your knowledge and you have readymade proven answers to sales objection, you will be more comfortable in a tougher conversation with your customer. When you have many tested answers to the common sales objections, you can choose the one that fits the best for the situation. The more you prepare yourself with these basic questions and answers, the easier it is for you to keep your concentration on the more important signals, those that will result in making a deal with your customer. Don't spend too much energy on unimportant parts of the sales conversation.

The purpose of the block is to keep you unharmed and improve your position in the fight, moreover to stop the attack before it hits you. The attacker often uses more energy than you with the block. The same goes with a sales conversation. Answering simple sales objections, should be easy for you and you should have practiced the answers before entering the meeting. The more you practice, the better timing and better answers you will provide, when being asked the questions you already know. With this solid foundation, you are more prepared and don’t spend too much energy on the less important questions of the sales conversation Whenever you have time, go through in your head the basic questions your customers have asked you and try to prepare more answers with more versatile approach. Ask from your colleagues and manager, what kind of sales objections have they encountered and how have they answered them. Mastering the basics is the foundation of success.

photo: Seppo Iivonen

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Part 1 of to evade, block or counter

In a fight, when the opponent is attacking you, basically you have three choices - to evade, block or counter. Evading gives you a chance to monitor the situation and you stay unharmed. If you chose to block, there is always some contact, but the attack breaks or starts over again with another attack. With counter attack, you chose to take advantage of the situation and try to strike where you seen an opening.

In sales, you have the same options when your customer is trying to object your sales pitch or starts questioning you before agreeing to buy. You can try to evade the situation and lead the conversation to another direction. The second option is to answer the (sales) objection and show that you are an expert in the field. The third option is to challenge your customers thinking and by using your knowledge, outwit your customer.

Like in a fight, in sales you can’t always use the same tactic. You need use all of these approaches in a single sales conversation. The big question is when to use which?

Evading (try to find the rhythm)

In a fight, the first thing I try to do is to find the rhythm of my opponent. This means, that I try to find out how fast he is with his attacks. How well does he moves and what kind of sequences is he trying to use when trying to attack me. Evading and keeping the distance is the best way to feel comfortable and avoid risks. With full contact fighting, it is better to avoid the contact, before you feel comfortable. In the beginning of the fight, the surprise attack is the most dangerous. You don’t know what to expect, therefore it is better not to take any risks. But still, it is wise to get the opponent be the first one to attack. From there, you can start to find his rhythm and adjust your speed to his. The one who controls the speed, is the one who will succeed in his attacks.

When starting a new sales conversation, the first impression is very important. You can lose the sales in the first few seconds, if you don’t play your part well. The prospect often waits for the sales person to start the conversation, but don’t push it too far. Try to see how she wants to play it. Start with being polite and ask simple questions. When you introduce yourself, try to get her to talk more about herself. Some people are easy to lead into conversation and some more difficult.

Open questions are good to start with, but if she gives you short answers, you are have not found her rhythm yet (meaning that you have not connected in the conversation) or you are asking too difficult questions. If it feels like interrogation, then the flow is lost in the beginning. Your body language, words and other expressions should invite your prospect to a warm and intriguing conversation.

Evading also means that you lose the tension. In a fight, it gives you time to relax, but at the same time you have no chance of attacking back. In sales, the conversation feels nice, but gets you nowhere. When you have found the rhythm, you need to start getting points. More about this in my upcoming posts.