I’ve been a lot of places. Sold many products. Won quite a few awards.
Here are 10 tips on what’s worked for me:
– Consistent prospecting – A salesperson should always be busy. If you’re not working toward closing, you should be opening (aka prospecting).
– Trust but verify – Verify contacts/titles/need/etc.
– It takes an average of 18 calls to get through. Have a voicemail/email cadence. Give prospects different reasons for taking your call, hopefully, one or more will resonate.
– Track your cadence so you’re not leaving the same voicemail many times. Show Salesforce (or your CRM) some love.
– Open with a hook (what’s in it for them, then ask the prospect a question. Relationships start with a two-way conversation.
– Let the prospect choose what they want to know. Yes, you’ve learned a lot and you can show what you know when you find out what their challenges are.
– More contacts are better – People leave companies. The more people that know you, the more likely you’ll keep the account if turnover happens.
– Objections are good. – You’ve engaged the prospect and they are seriously considering your solution. If they agree with everything you say, ask an unexpected question (called a pattern interrupt).
– Closing – Set upfront contracts and let prospects know it’s okay to say no and choose another solution. While we want to win every deal, it’s probably not gonna happen. The easier you make it for the prospect to say no, the less time you’ll spend chasing dead deals. You can use that time to prospect.
– Get feedback on every deal if you can, whether you win or lose. You’ll know what to do on future deals. It will make you better. I promise.
Finally, if you win the deal, it’s the start of delivering on the trust they put in you. Exceed expectations and create those win/win situations.
It’s up to each of us to develop mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. To be the people they know, like, and trust.
#victoriabselling