BEST

Selling Skills
Ver. 1.1 Rel . 1

CONTENTS
Session

Page number

1. Overview of the Sales Process

2. Preliminary Preparation

3. Reaching the Customer

4. Opening the Call

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5. Building Need

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6. Offer Solutions and Objection Handling

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7. Closing and Collecting Referrals

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8. Summary

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Introduction
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Selling is an integral part of our organization. Selling a banking

product is different from selling any other product not because of
competition. It is because we have different products catering to
different customers whose financial needs could be either short
term or long term in nature.
We not only deal with different types of customers day in and out
but also more importantly we deal with public money. Selling can
be effective only when the customers believe that their money
would be safe with us and when the products offered have the
expected utility.
This workbook helps the participants to understand the process
involved in selling our banks products to different types of
customers. It contains well structured exercises like role plays,
case studies and discussions. Our in-house faculty team at HRLearning & Development has put together its experiences in the
form of this sales training module named BEST Selling
Skills .
BEST Selling Skills will help the participants to scale new
horizons in terms of maximizing business through value building
propositions while offering financial solutions to customers.

1.Overview of the Sales Process

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Exercise (i)
1. What are the steps involved in selling?

Introducing

P R O B O2 C S
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P ------Preliminary Preparation
R------ Reach
O------Opening the Call
B------Building Needs
O------Offer Solution and Objection Handling
C------Closing and Generating Referrals
S-------Services

Exercise (ii)
1. Applying PROBOCS in banking products

2: Preliminary Preparation
What are the preparations you make before approaching a prospective customer?
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List down 5 ideas that you have observed somebody using for collecting client database?
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3: Reaching the Customer

This is the first interaction between the seller & the prospective customer.
The prospect is approached on the phone with various objectives. A few objectives are -

Exercise-(ii)
(Skill Drill) Role plays on seeking appointments

Telephone call objective

To prospect and make an appointment at the same time.

To get some basic information in the first call, calling up a
second time for the appointment.
To make an appointment prior to researching for information.

Write down a telephonic script to be used for collection of some basic information about
the prospects needs as well as fixing a meeting for detailed discussion?

Telephonic Appointment Fixing

What are the steps involved in taking appointments over telephone?

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Telephone etiquette
A few tips to be kept in mind while making a phone call:

Be prepared before making the call.

Be optimistic on getting an appointment.
Smile over the phone.
Be brief.
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4. Opening the Call

Exercise (iii)

Record your observations for the Role-play

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Exercise (iv)

Situation: a. Prospective customer

A prospective customer has come for opening a Savings bank account with us.
His house is very near to our new branch and that is the reason he is interested in
opening the account. His presently banks with XYZ bank which is far from his
residence.
How would you handle the customer? Do you see any opportunity to cross sell?

Situation: b. Customer with a query

The customer walks into the branch with a query on the fixed deposit rate?
Do you see any opportunity for sales?

Situation: c. Irate customer

A customer had given a cheque for his childs tuition fees which got returned. The
customer is fuming. Actually, the customer had given a post dated cheque which
was deposited by the school.
How would you resolve this service issue?
Do you see any opportunity for selling despite customer yelling?

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Steps in opening the call

Prospective customer
Greetings/ Self Introduction/ How may I help you
Building Rapport
Taking permission to ask questions?

Irate customer
Greetings/ Self Introduction/ How may I help you
Resolve the complaint
Listen
Acknowledge
Isolate
Counter
Proceed (Taking permission to ask questions)
Customer with a query
Greetings/ Self Introduction/ How may I help you
Building Rapport
Taking permission to ask questions?

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5. Building Needs
Understanding Problems and Clear Needs
Effective sellers distinguish between problems and clear needs prior to building solutions.
It is utmost important for the seller to do so. We will understand the relevance of this in
due course.

Exercise (v)

Test to understand problems and clear needs

Problems

1.

2. I want to open an account for my child.

3. Your debit card charges are very high.

I am looking forward to do a fund transfer using my(

Cheque book.

4.

I have fund transfer problem every time

Clear Need

5. My present account is with XYZ bank which is

located far away from the house.

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6. I am not satisfied with the service provided

by XYZ bank.

7. My present bank does not have a locker facility.

8. I want to open an account in a bank close to my

house.

9. I am looking for a bank which can give me good

service.

10. I am looking forward to opening an SB account

along with a locker facility

11. I am still waiting for my cheque book.

12. I am not happy with the returns from FDs.

13. I am traveling to U.S and do not know how to

manage the cash requirement in buying
Travellers cheques.

14. Withdrawing huge cash and carrying over long

distance is a risky proposition.

15. I have a problem withdrawing money from the

branch located at a far off place from my home and
look forward to finding a solution to this problem. (

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Exercise (vi)
Script- A
Identify the statements as Problems (P), Clear Needs (CN), Background
Questions (BQ), Emotional Questions (EQ), Significance Building
Questions (SQ), Target Fulfillment Questions (TQ), Objections (O),
Features (F), Benefits (B) and Not Defined (ND)
Customer:

I am interested in opening a Savings account.

Seller:

Oh yes. We have different types of savings account.(

Do you have an account with any other Bank?

Customer:

Yes, with ABC Bank. I am interested in opening an

account here since it is very close to my house.

Seller:

Good. Let me tell you about our best Savings account.

With this account you get a free Gold Debit card with
which you can have the facility of unlimited cash
withdrawal and balance enquiry transactions at any
Banks ATM. 50% off on locker rentals for the 1st year.

Not only that, you can also avail of an Accidental

Hospitalization Insurance cover of Rs 1 Lac as well
as Accidental Cash Benefit for each day of
Hospitalization @ Rs 1000 per day for maximum
of 15 days per year. And for the Insurance
Benefit you dont need to pay any premium.
It comes for free with this account.
(Customer already looks bored and looks at his watch).

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And the goodies in this account dont end here.

We also have a Money Maximizer facility where in
an FD is automatically booked when the balance in
your savings account exceeds Rs 125000. An FD
gets booked automatically for Rs 25000 leaving
Rs 100000 in your account.
Customer:

It all sounds good to me. So how much do

I have to deposit to open this Savings account?

Seller:

For these benefit all you need is just Rs 25000.

Customer:

Oh! That is too much. I cant block Rs 25000 in

my savings account.

Seller:

If you dont mind could you please tell me

your annual income?

Customer:

I work part time. So my monthly/annual income

is not guaranteed.

Seller:

Oh I see. In that case I have a Regular Savings

account for you. And the call continues

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Exercise (vii)
Script- B
Identify the statements as Problems (P), Clear Needs (CN), Background
Questions (BQ), Emotional Questions (EQ), Significance Building
Questions (SQ), Target Fulfillment Questions (TQ), Objections (O),
Features (F), Benefits (B) and Not Defined (ND)
Seller:

Good morning sir, I am Vijay, How may I help you? (

Customer:

Good morning Mr. Vijay, I was looking forward to

opening an account.

Seller:

With due permission may I ask you some questions

in order to recommend the most suitable account for you.

Customer:

Please go ahead

Seller:

Do you have an account in any other bank?

Customer:

Yes, in XYZ bank

Seller:

How old is the account?

Customer:

2 years

Seller:

Is there any service issue in your existing bank?

Customer:

NO! It is far from my residence and so is

difficult to operate.

Seller:

Who are all there in your family?

Customer:

Me and my wife

Seller:

Do you want to open a joint or a single account?

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Customer:

Wanted to open a joint account but unfortunately

(
her ID and address proof are in her maiden name/address.

Seller:

Did you face problem in encashing cheques in your wifes (

name?

Customer:

Yes, gift cheques which she got with my surname.

Seller:

I believe you need to encash the same within the validity

period.

Customer:

It will expire in another months time.

Seller:

How would you feel if we can open an account in your

joint names with your wife having your surname.

Customer:

Great!

Seller:

Would you be interested to avail a locker facility for

safe keeping of your valuables as you know there is
risk of loss (Robbery) in keeping valuables at home?

Customer:

Definitely, but can I get a locker of my choice

Seller:

Sure if it is available. How do you feel if I give you

an account with a locker facility where you get a 50%
discount on the locker rental for the first year?

Customer:

Sounds good, what additional features does the account have?(

Seller:

Have you taken any insurance plan?

Customer:

Yes. A couple of them, but I do not want to shell out

any more money as premium.

Seller:

Do you travel a lot?

Customer:

Yes

Seller:

Since you travel a lot, do you have an accidental

insurance rider in your existing insurance policies.

Customer:

No

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Seller:

Since you travel a lot and do not have accidental insurance (

cover, does that disturbs your peace of mind.

Customer:

It does, but I am not willing to pay any more premiums

Seller:

How do you feel if we provide you with an accidental

(
death insurance facility of Rs. 5 lacs at no additional cost.

Customer:

Good

Seller:

Also Rs. 1 lac accidental hospitalization facility without

(
paying any premium besides 15 days hospitalization charges
@ Rs. 1000 per day.

Customer:

Is there any hidden charges.

Seller:

All come as a package with savings max account

free of cost by keeping an AMB of Rs. 25000.

Note: Product features mentioned in the above scripts are only illustrative. Please refer to
the latest product papers hosted on our internal portals for the latest features.

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Exercise (viii)

Group Activity
Power of Probing
Ask your opponent team a maximum of 20 questions to find out the product they have
with them.
Plan your questions in the next five minutes.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8
9.
10.
11.
12.
13
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.

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6. Offer Solution and Objection Handling

Offering solution(s)
Offering the solution in the right manner helps in creating greater satisfaction levels in
the mind of the customer. Offering solution is a 3 step process which starts with the
features of the product/ service, includes the advantage & ends with customizing the
benefit.
Feature: Characteristics
Advantage: So what?
Benefit: What It Does For Me

Exercise (ix)
Group activity:
Work out the benefits for the products given to you
Features
Advantages
S.No
1

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Benefits

Objection Handling
Tips on Objection Handling
A few more tips on handling objections:
Acknowledge the customers statement
Do not argue
Do not exaggerate
Do not give up
Do not pitch features
Ask questions

Write down an objection handling experience you have had with a tough customer &
emphasize on the learnings?
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Most Common Objections

List down the most common objections?
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How to Handle Objections

Similar to offering solution, objection handling is also a 3 step process. Step no. 1 is
aimed at listening actively to the customer .The next step takes care of the real problem.
And the last step directs the call towards closure.

AICP
Acknowledge
Isolate
Counter
Persuade

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7. Closing & Collecting Referrals

It is a good idea to pick up buying signals from the customer and close the call when the
customer is ready. Closing starts from the final agreement of the customer and extends to
the final execution of the deal.
From the prospecting stage to the closing stage the seller and the buyer spend enough
time with each other to understand and share not only the needs but also each others
body language. It is advisable to observe these buying signals and proceed for execution.
It is always advisable to close the call only once after building the value of the solution
the customer is looking forward to.
However, there are a few blocks at the closing stage:

Sales Persons fear of returning with an unsuccessful call.

Prospects fear of not getting the right deal/ product.

Be prepared with authority and positivism to close the call as, an unclosed call will do no
good to either the seller or the buyer.

Closing -Steps
Similar to the other stages of selling, closing also has some special techniques. 3 things to
be necessarily done while closing a call are:

Summarize: A lot of discussions happen during the call and some of

these may skip the sellers or the buyers memory during the course of
the call. It is always advisable to discuss in brief the solutions required
during the call. This helps in enhancing the satisfaction level of the
customer.
Check for unaddressed concerns. Few concerns might remain
unaddressed. Buyer may develop some concerns post seller closing the
call. It is always a good idea to check for these unaddressed concerns
while closing the call. For example, a lot of Free Look-in period
cancellations in Life Insurance happen owing to failure on the part of
the seller in addressing all concerns while closing.
Formulate action points: Call closure stage is a good place to discuss
future course of action so that like the first deal, all the future deals
and actions run transparently.

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10: Summary _ PROBO2CS Sales Process

Preliminary preparation
R
Gather Client database

Build needs
Ask Need fu
Remember buying Cycle

Keep sales Kit & Bag Ready

Develop need by asking questions

related to current situation
(Background Questions), Establish
Gap for various needs; ask questions
related to consequences of not filling
the gap now (Emotional Questions &
Significance Building Questions.

Be well groomed

Be thorough on Products, Company

and industry knowledge

Ask Target Fulfillment questions

for buyers agreement

Reaching
Offer Solutions
Greet, Identify self & confirm the
called person is holding, take consent
to speak

Remember 4 point INDIVIDUAL

CUSTOMER MODEL

Share general benefit statement

Offer your solutions as benefits

related to Income, Expenses,
Surplus and Deficit. Offer Product
Combos (Cross-Sell) to enhance
your targets achievements

Fix up appointment, confirm and

close

Close
Open the call

Summarize the benefits, Check

for unaddressed concerns.

Introduce self and company

Formulate action plan & sign the

contract, seek references

Share theShare
purpose of meeting
Take permission for asking Questions

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