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Examples of Consultative Selling Role Play Exercises
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Sales role-playing exercises are particularly effective for those learning consultative selling in which the path to the sale is revealed through a process of questioning. This approach to selling requires the sales professional to be adept at exploring the customer’s needs, surfacing underlying challenges and understanding core value drivers. All of these practices require conversational skills that must be learned by doing. “It also helps learners solidify their understanding of effective selling behaviors by elaborating on the “why” behind their actions.” In role-playing exercises, team members must do more than ask questions of the mock customer — they must also answer the question of why they took the approach they did in the conversation. This practice, called elaborative interrogation, requires the participants to form an explanation for a fact they’ve learned. The value of this approach is reflected in research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, which found that an elaborative interrogation group of learners had an accuracy of 72% compared to just 37% in the non-interrogation control group.
Role-playing is a critical part of the professional learning process. The experience of reacting to simulated challenges in the moment in front of colleagues mimics the tension of real selling conversations. This tension is what makes the theoretical become the practical. The result: real-world skills. “This approach to selling requires the sales professional to be adept at exploring the customer’s needs, surfacing underlying challenges and understanding core value drivers.” Roleplay, however, offers more than a way to get accustomed to the stress of selling. It also helps learners solidify their understanding of effective selling behaviors by elaborating on the “why” behind their actions.