The #1 Virtual Selling Tip

From someone who made 3 virtual mistakes

Watch the Video

Recently, I had the great opportunity to be on a virtual video/podcast episode of “The Thought Leader Series”. This is a weekly video series produced by Farm Equipment Magazine. Executive Editor, Kim Schmidt and I connected for about 20 minutes to discuss selling farm equipment in today’s environment. My initial thought was to just send this out and tell you how great it was and that you should watch every minute of it. I would tell you to listen for the great wisdom that I depart and send me lots of positive remarks about how great it is.

But you deserve more than that. You open, read and share my blog articles each week. So, for that, I want to share more than just the 19-minute recording. I want to share with you the 3 mistakes I made as well as the 1 thing I did right in doing the interview.

First, the 3 mistakes

Lighting – while the lighting in this video on me is not horrible, it needs to be better. To compare good and bad lighting, look at the contrast between Kim’s lighting and mine. In one week, I went from mostly in person training to virtual coaching and training. Many of my peers recommended buying lighting specific to video productions. Did I? Of course not, my DIY mentality says just grab all the lamps in the house and create my own. Bad idea. The Lesson: The week before this recording, I finally ordered my circle light from Amazon. It was one day late in arriving for this recording. Proper lighting is not really a DIY thing. Even if you are only working with internal team members, good lighting lets participants see the non-verbal messages that are being sent. The lighting mistake I see most often is too much lighting and the sun or light blinds the viewer. The second mistake is when they turn the lights off and it looks like they are in the witness protection program. For $80-100 you can get all the lighting you need.
Camera height: I use two cameras. The one on my laptop isn’t the greatest. So, I bought a Logitech from Best Buy which is better quality, but sits up a little too high. When I look at the computer screen, I am still looking slightly down and not into the camera. Secondly, throughout the recording, I am looking at my notes. It’s distracting. The Lesson: To fix this, I am now using a simple page holder next to my screen. It’s not as good as a teleprompter, but it’s better.
Say, “I think” less often: Being aware that I can come across too strong in some of my ideas, I will often times use the phrase, “I think”. While this may not jump out at you, after watching this recording, I got a little tired of hearing me say, “I think”. In written form, I would have certainly edited it out. In a live recording or on a stage speaking, we make these mistakes. They aren’t monumental and we still have a great message. However, these small details are distracting for our audience. The Lesson: While there is no way to fix a live recording or a live performance, you can employ one very critical tactic: In my training workshops, this is one aspect I stress over and over again. Even the most famous presenters, the best comedians, the top speakers (especially the top speakers) will rehearse over and over again. Record the rehearsals. Take the time to play them back and be very happy you have the opportunity to fix these distracting behaviors. In sales, rehearse the most difficult message or question you will ask.

Now, for the tip on making better virtual presentations:

I did it, will do it again and will get better! That’s it. The one way to become an expert at anything you want to do. Too many salespeople are deathly afraid that they will look bad. So, they never take that leap onto the stage or fire up their home office cameras. Big mistake. The message that I share is good. The social media component is great. Is it perfect? Of course not. Can I do better? Yes, and I already am. If you wait to be perfect at anything in sales, you will be waiting a long time.

There’s an anonymous quote I use in my workshops,

You’re going to do some stuff

You’re going to be bad at it

You’re going to try it again in a different way

You’re going to be better at it

It’s not Bill Shakespeare level material, but sure does help when you need to try something new!

Bonus Tip: When you have a recording, you can help viewers by giving a sort of agenda with corresponding times. See below. This is especially helpful in long recordings (45 minutes or longer). Our attention spans are short. Help your listener out in case they decide to skim the video, podcast or article.

In Today’s Episode

:45 – Why relationships with customers are more important than ever

2:09 – What is the one selling skill a salesperson should improve right now?

6:35 – How can dealers keep their sales team motivated in these tough times?

10:14 – How do dealers get salespeople back out on sales calls?

12:15 – The one thing a dealer should be doing right now

14:50 – The one thing a dealer should not be doing right now

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