I’ve been reading and researching a lot of information regarding sales. One of the articles talked about the 10 Commandments of Sales. It made me step back and think – what would be 10 hospice principles or guidelines of sales?
Here’s what I think:
- Be passionate about end-of-life care and hospice
- Give value first
- Don’t take no for an answer
- Build trusting, professional relationships with customers
- Always tell the truth
- Profile, profile, profile
- Follow up in a timely manner
- Promise only what can be delivered
- Learn and stay current with hospice care, Medicare and Medicaid regulations, patient appropriateness and hospice industry trends
- Keep a positive attitude
Hospice is not a service you can (or should) sell unless you believe in the value of the care we provide. Your sales skills and how you present yourself can mean the difference between a terminally ill patient and family hearing about hospice or not. Your effectiveness and professionalism directly influence referrals.
Hospice is a valuable service. I just met someone who shared how much he appreciated having hospice for his parents. Your job is to be able to convert the wonderful hospice features into benefits that have value for each individual customer.
Don’t take no for an answer does not mean that you should be aggressive or that you should push too hard for agreement to refer, to schedule an in-service or to choose your hospice services. It does mean that that you should know your customers and their needs so you can professionally present what you and your hospice have to offer, moving the customer to a “YES”.
It doesn’t matter what you are selling, relationships are based on trust and hospice is no different.
Profiling is an on-going process that allows you to know your customer, leading to a trusting relationship.
Follow-up speaks for itself. The Hospice University ® video class on follow-up gives an interesting real life example of how important it is. One of customers’ biggest complaints is that no one followed up or that the follow-up wasn’t prompt.
Know your hospice, what services it offers and how the services should be presented. If there are services that would benefit patients and families that other hospices are providing, discuss this with your management team. You are the eyes and ears out in the community.
You will distinguish yourself from other liaisons by being knowledgeable. You will also gain the respect of your customers – you will be seen as a consultant, not as the cookie lady.
Keep a positive attitude. Find your own way to feel good about the important work you do. Sales always involve good times and bad times – sometimes in the same day. I always kept a picture of two of my patients on my desk to remind me I was making a difference and to get going!!! A representative I worked with always ended her day with a customer who loved her and her hospice.
What are your principles of hospice sales? Let us know! Share them on Hospice University’s Peer-to-Peer/Faculty Forum.