Are you sure you know what Active listening is?

Do you truly practice active listening?

You think you know what active listening is. But can you apply it in your sales call?

I have spent a lot of effort in my articles emphasizing the need to practice active listening in sales. When I ask others to define this, most get only half right. The most common answer is “listen intently”.

Wikipedia defines active listening as “a technique that is used in counseling, training, and solving disputes or conflicts. It requires that the listener fully concentrate, understand, respond and then remember what is being said.”

In my search, it was interesting to see there are other listening methods such as “reflective listening” and empathetic listening.

However you define the type of listening methods, there is a need for action on the listener’s side to engage with their customers better.

Let’s go back to active listening. Please note the last bit of the definition: “fully concentrate, understand, respond”. What does that tell you?

Active listening is a lot more involved than just listening especially in sales.

Let’s get technical.