The salesperson's expertise was unimportant. Now, the sales process is reversed. It's no longer possible for the professional sales- person to jump from product to product or field to field. Understand what the customer is thinking. Frankly, there's no other way to describe how they treat both prospects and customers.
Customers understand what's happening and in- stantly put up the barriers.
This requires reading and understanding, not just mouthing a few glib terms or words. Spend your time in front of groups. Today, getting with the program means getting on the program. If what a salesperson knows is the key to selling, then seeking opportunities to communicate that knowledge should be at the top of the list of priorities. In the final analysis, people buy people's expertise and the capability of presenting ideas effectively suggests to the listeners that you are worthy of their time.