Rainmakers know that Feature, Advantage and Benefit (FAB) selling is not dead! It is essential to know the FAB’s of your products, services or solutions to sell effectively. You build credibility in the eyes of the client by demonstrating your competence and knowledge. Moreover, solution and relationship selling requires incorporate the right FAB’s to inform and educate the client that you are able to address their requirements and enables you to partner with them to develop a customized solution. 
The best Rainmakers present the appropriate FAB’s and supporting value proposition only after they have conducted a thorough discovery and assessment of the client’s requirements. I still see unsophisticated, desperate, old school sales people doing a FAB dump on the client as soon as they get the chance to talk about their products or services. This is the equivalent of trying to give the client a drink from a fire hose. The client gets all wet (information overload) and is still thirsty (no solution provided).
 Rainmakers build strong client relationships by providing the mix of high-value FAB’s that add value and demonstrate to the client’s satisfaction is the priority.
FAB selling is not:

  • An information dump
  • An opportunity to show how smart you are by droning on about what your products, services, company or you can do or have done
  • A sales “tactic” (clients see through tactics and techniques – be real!)
  • The secret to sales success (pleeeeesae stop sharing your “secrets to success”. If they’re secrets, keep them to yourself rather than sell them at one low price of X$ if I buy today)

FAB selling is:

  • Strategic when the focus is on the client’s requirements 
  • Value based
  • Hard work (The seller must be fully engaged and present in order to understand the client’s requirements in to offer a customized solution)
  • Present the best solutions, options, resources

If you are uncertain about what the FAB’s of your products, services and solutions are, talk to your technical department, product specialist, engineers or manufacturing staff. Encourage them to conduct training sessions that include demonstrations, role plays or hypothetical client situations that enable you to draw out their deep knowledge and insight. Take their knowledge and create a reference or resource document you can draw upon and use when interacting with your clients.
Rainmakers build their brand and increase their value to their clients by being the best.