The Sales Process - Prospect Development

In our discussions at our monthly TAB meetings, we frequently speak about how to manage salespeople. Managing sales people is not always an owners primary concern and their performance is usually only judged by the revenue produced. This is very dangerous. Throughout my career, I have seen many instances where the sale has cost the company more then the revenue generated. Understanding the sales process, benchmarking your best sales person, and having an integrated sales measurement system are keys to managing a sales force and maximizing profits. In November, we spoke about Lead Generation and Management . This is only the start. Prospect Development requires a whole different skill set for sales people. We now have the appointment, and now is the time for the salesperson to sell himself, the company, and then the product. Keep this in mind. A company can have the greatest product in the world, but if the prospect does not believe in you or your company, the product will not be sold. When asked 9 out of 10 sales people will tell you that they sell, because they are able to develop relationships. Although there is much truth in this statement, the sale sometimes never goes beyond that point. It is absolutely CRITICAL for the salesperson to be asking the right questions, and listening to move the sale beyond the relationship phase. Your best salesperson is the best listener, NOT the best talker. Only after the right questions are asked should a presentation be made. In this way the presentation will fit the buyer’s needs. A good exercise for your sales group is to develop a series of at least 5-10 questions for each of the following categories and then determine what are the most important in each category to be asked before a full blown presentation be made: 1. Relationship and Rapport Building – Show an interest in the person first. Ex. How did you get started in the business? There has to be sincere interest. 2. Lay of the Land and Information Gathering– What prompted you/your company to look into your product or service? How, who, and when will a decision be made? What has been budgeted for this project? What are the expectations? 3. Pain – What challenges has the company/person faced with product or service? 4. Fear – What is the company and the person afraid to do? What is the risk involved in making the decision to go with a new company, new product, or different product or service? 5. Consult Questions – The idea here is that the salesperson is bringing in the companies expertise into the picture. This really starts the differentiation from the competitors. This is especially important when dealing with multiple solutions to an opportunity, or a commodity type product. At this point the close is either to go to the next step and make a presentation, or set up a second appointment for a more full blown demonstration or proposal. Your sales team should be required to ask and document at least 5-10 key questions for every prospect appointment made. Again, get those CRM systems working so you can document, track, measure,teach, and take the proper ACTION to move forward. If this is interest, and you want further discussion, please do not hesitate to contact me.