Great salespeople have the ability to blend in with and mimic their surroundings.
Agency principals have often asked me to help evaluate and identify the traits of effective producers so that they can identify prospective employees who exhibit these characteristics. They also want to know if they, themselves, are more insurance expert or sales expert.
A “Chameleon” is a being whose greatest strength and defense is its ability to meld with and mimic its surroundings. The best insurance salespeople take on the same characteristics as the chameleon. When they encounter a prospect, they spend far more time listening and “feeling out” the person than impressing them with their own knowledge. Like a chameleon, the producer is “tasting” their surroundings to determine how best to approach the prospect with the greatest chance of success.
The key to this success is to identify the personality of the prospect and understand the best way to adapt your presentation to this personality. If the prospect enjoys a gregarious, high-impact professional, the Chameleon will become that professional. If the prospect is introverted, with an analytical nature, the Chameleon will use a low-key, analytical approach.
By the way, this nature does not speak to a Chameleon’s degree of knowledge. Chameleons who are light on knowledge and try to bull (or bully) their way into sales will usually fail in the long run. However, the Chameleon who is polished and professional — with experience and knowledge of insurance and of the situations they face with the prospect — is a wondrous sight to behold. They’ll learn more about a prospect from a one-hour conversation than most agents would learn in a year. By the time the meeting’s over, the Chameleon not only has the prospect’s confidence as a knowledgeable and caring professional, but will usually find some common personal ground to share with their new friend. Chameleons know a little about everything and, although they’re not experts, they’ll know enough to discuss any hobby or area of interest, as well as developing a comprehensive knowledge of the prospect’s business.
Chameleons are always “there” in a conversation. They focus like a laser on what the other party is saying. Their purpose in any conversation is to learn, not to impress. Chameleons often poke fun at themselves and never deprecate anyone else. They know that someday they might need the goodwill of the person about whom they’re speaking.
Chameleons will use repetition to make sure that they understand. You’ll often hear them say, “Let me make sure I understand. What you said was …” Believe me, they understood every word the first time it was spoken. The repetition of a prospect’s issues or concerns is a well-known method of winning over a person’s confidence. If you’re watching a Chameleon at work, notice that they seem to be different with different people. That’s the Chameleon mechanism kicking in, changing to adapt to the needs and the best approach for each person.
If you ever have the chance to study a Chameleon, do so. They can teach you a great deal about consultative selling. Very few Chameleons are high pressure-salespeople. They don’t need to be. They win clients by becoming like their prospects and winning their confidence.