Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter and Square Reader, believes that every product developed must fit into a user narrative. A user narrative is a story of that particular user. What does he do day-to-day? What does he care about? What are his challenges? By developing a product with this user narrative in mind, Dorsey ensures that his innovation improves the lives of those he serves.
The same concept should be applied to sales as well. Every organization should have a prospect narrative. Every communication with that prospect should be crafted based on this prospect narrative. Here are a few questions to consider when creating your prospect narrative:
What is your prospect doing? Your prospects are busier than they have ever been. Many of your prospects will have over 40 hours of work piled up on their desks right now, just to catch up on! Therefore, when you get through to a prospect, you must ensure that you are as effective as possible.
What scares him away? Are you saying things to your prospect that are actually hurting you? By developing a more clear narrative of what turns your prospect off, you can avoid doing and saying things that will end the sale before you start. Just think about how many other salespeople are contacting that same prospect on a daily basis.
What will engage him? Prospects don’t care about you or me. They care about one person—themselves. Therefore, it is critical that you understand the problems they are facing, the goals they seek to achieve, and the outcomes they require. By focusing your conversation on those three components, you will more effectively engage your prospects.
What is one thing that your prospect is worried about right now? Please share below in the comments.
Marc Wayshak is author of the book Game Plan Selling and a sales keynote speaker.
Game Plan Selling and a sales trainer in Boston. 
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