Sales Jokes Can Be One Of The Most Powerful Tools You Can Use To Close A Sale

A good salesperson has lots of tools in his or her arsenal. They have to. The sales process is loaded with unexpected twists and turns. Even the friendliest of buyers can have plenty of objections to overcome or special situations to handle. The fact of the matter is any sale can turn stressful. Your job as a salesperson is to establish a relationship with your buyer so that you can anticipate the bumps in the road and counter any objections.

What better tool can you use than a sense of humour? While it may not sound practical at first, a good sales joke can be your best friend when it comes to closing a sale.

If you break the sales process down to its finest points you can quickly understand that it's all about the relationship between the buyer and the seller. The buyer must trust the sales person and the sales person must be credible. What better way to break down the barriers to creating a relationship than through humour?

A common first reaction when thinking about introducing jokes about sales into the mix is that it is a risky proposition. It probably can be risky if you just throw out a joke or two without thinking about why you are using it and you forget to consider your audience. It goes without saying that your sales jokes should be used at the proper time and place and in the proper context. That is true for any type of tool or information that you are using during a sale.

If you have properly prepared for your sale then you've already done half the work because you already know your audience. Under any circumstances you want to steer clear of topics that may be sensitive such as sex, politics, religion or race. Anecdotes about personal appearance are never appropriate either.

Having said that, a well placed line that deals with typical workplace antics or the sales process itself can go a long way toward loosening things up. Any office worker can relate to these types of jokes - sales jokes that touch on products, competitors, difficult people. It never hurts to poke a little fun at yourself either. Just don't take it too far.

The sales process can be stressful and good jokes about sales, sales training jokes, or sales meeting jokes can be effective in easing tension and helping people relax. This is particularly the case in awkward situations. A strategically placed sales joke can help you change the subject or deal with an unpleasant situation.

If you aren't an experienced joke teller, it is always a good idea to get in a little practice telling sales jokes before you do it live. Chances are you'll stumble a time or two but with time you'll get better at it. There are very good sales training programs that can help you with your humour or you can study delivering sales jokes on your own.

Either way, you will be very glad that you took the time to add humour to your tool box. At best it will help you close the sale.

At worst it will give folks a laugh. Maybe even you.