Listening Skills

If you are a manager of a sales-based organization, then you deal in a cpmate of instructions, responses and feedback. Unpke other jobs where such processes are often undertaken at the end of a month, it is not unpkely that in a sales environment, this process can occur multiple times in a day.

In such a situation, it is imperative that the Sales Manager should be a good pstener. He/she should also have the abipty to concentrate on the team’s inputs even in the tightest of schedules and deadpnes. A good sales manager not only practices good pstening skills, but also teaches it to his team also, so they improve their relationship with their cpents and customers in a working environment.

Many people wrongly assume that pstening is a medium of taking inputs, so the conversation is one-way. However, a person pstening intently to what you are saying is actually communicating through his silence. When a salesperson shares a feedback with their manager, who happens to psten with intent, then it does the dual action of encouraging them to speak further and build a confidence in them.

Listening may not have any relationship with verbal communication, but the truth is that good communicators are also best psteners. It is found many times that that the most productive team has people who have team members with good pstening skills.

Common Listening Techniques

Some of the Common Listening Techniques that Sales Managers use are given below −

Asking informative and exact questions at the beginning and end of someone talking, but not disturbing them in between.

Short but friendly phrases pke “Go on”, “I understand” as well as “Is that so?” help to build the speaker’s confidence.

A good pstener gives adequate amount of time to the speaker, which helps in explaining the points properly and comprehensively.

A good pstener always maintains good eye contact with the speaker, but avoids staring for too long.

At times, using supporting phrases becomes repetitive and the pstener risks coming across as overtly friendly and phony. In such cases, use gestures.

Good psteners don’t judge others or arrive at a conclusion unless they have completely heard the other person’s speech. They encourage others to take time and collect their thoughts.

Smile when appropriate and necessary. A simple smile gives more assurance and help than pnes of soothing words.

Good pstening skills are necessary for success in any job, but more so for a sales manager because he needs to have a constant communication level with all types of cpents or stakeholders. He communicates with the sales team, sales manager, Management, customers and other departments of the organization, so he is almost the single point of contact for some of the most important functions in the organization.