Preliminary Steps in the Selling Process Sales Management

- Convince the prospect PROSPECTING - Identify & - Qualify Potential Customers PREPARING - Pre-approach - Call Planning PRESENTING - Approach - Probe for needs - Convince the prospect Handling Objections Closing Follow up The Selling Process

Step 1- Prospecting “ Identifying potential customers & qualifying them to determine if they are valid prospects” Through: Networking: an active process of acquiring new contacts and cultivating existing ones Define Target Market Networking Market surveys Generate Sales lead Sales lead is a specific person or organization that might need a good/service Qualify Prospects Product need desire to buy Financial resources Decision making authority

Step 1- Identifying Prospects Present Customers Former Customers Cold Calling: making unsolicited Sales call Spotters: people who identify & qualify sales leads Directories & Mailing Lists Prospecting Services: companies that provide specific information on prospects. Personal Contacts Trade shows & Exhibits Direct Marketing Referrals: Techniques are - “centre of influence approach "is when a person with information about other people or influence over them helps a salesperson identify good prospects. - Endless Chain Prospecting involves sales representative asking customers for names of friends or business associates who might need similar goods or services

Step 1- Qualifying Prospects Potential customers must be qualified for validity based on prospects: Money Authority Need

Qualifying Checklist! Will they buy? Yes No Unknown 1. Do they have good business reasons to buy? 2. Have their needs (objectives) been identified? 3. Is top management aware of these needs? 4. Has funding been identified and approved? 5. Have the decision criteria been established? 6. Is the decision maker available for us? 7. Will other key people give us time and information? 8. Have they said they are definitely going to buy? 9. Have all levels of management agreed to buy?

Qualifying Checklist! Will they buy from me? Yes No Unknown 1. Have I established a favorable image for us? 2. Did I adequately describe our proven capabilities? 3. Does (Do) our product(s) provide solutions for their needs? 4. Has genuine interest in our product(s) been expressed? 5. Is the decision maker biased towards us? 6. Have any preferences for us been stated by key people? 7. Is (are) our solution(s) competitive? 8. Does the competition have major advantages over us? 9. Is a consultant (or other third party) involved?

Qualifying Checklist! Will they buy from me now? Yes No Unknown 1. Is there a pressing business reason to act? 2. Does a sense of urgency exist with the key people? 3. Has justification been presented and accepted? 4. Have the key steps in the decision process been finalized? 5. Has a decision date been determined? 6. Is the competition making progress in the sales cycle? 7. Has an installation or delivery date been established? 8. Is a demonstration or benchmark required? 9. Can we meet their implementation schedule?

Step 2- Preparing Two key activities are 1. Pre-Approach: Sales call preparation in which the sales person seeks out additional information after the prospecting process is completed - Who is the customer? gatekeeper, economic buyer, user or technical personnel? - What are the customer needs? - What other information is required? - Where does one obtain information?

Step 2- Preparing 2. Call Planning: involves a specific sequence of activities before the sales interview take place such as: - Specifying the objective of the sales call - Developing a strategy - Making an appointment

SALES SITUATION MANAGEMENT Estimate of Selling Solution Marketing Services Estimate of Selling Solution STEP I Consider the customer’s objectives and goals STEP II Consider your objectives. If multiple, set priorities. STEP III Compare your objectives and the customer’s. Is there a conflict if so, would you: re-examine your own objectives attempt to change the customer’s objectives? really try to keep this customer? STEP IV Consider your Goals Short range goals. Goal of Today’s call? Do they conflict with one another or with our objectives? Do they really enhance your objectives? If not, which is right…your goals or your objectives? STEP V Gather intelligence (Essential elements of Intelligence) Intelligence on the nature of your competition. Intelligence on products-yours and competition’s Intelligence on economic factors of the customer’s business Intelligence on psychological factors affecting the customers.

SALES SITUATION MANAGEMENT Cont.. SALES SITUATION MANAGEMENT STEP VI Analyze the intelligence (Identify facts, make assumptions) Consider assured advantages, possible advantages, effects. Consider assured disadvantages, possible disadvantages, effects. STEP VII Develop your sales strategy Consider possible courses of action, with alternatives Consider customer’s alternatives Consider competitor’s alternatives Consider customer or competitor reactions to your alternatives. Choose the most promising in terms of your long-range objectives. Avoid attractive short-range methods that jeopardize objectives. STEP VIII Plan Opening Tactics Same considerations as in step VII Exploit your advantages Anticipate and meet disadvantages Have alternate tactical plans ready.

Advanced Steps in the Selling Process Sales Management

The time is always right to do what is right. ~Martin Luther King Jr.

Sales Presentation Activities Approach Probe for needs Convince the Prospect Handle objections Close Follow up

Step 1- Approach “ Selling step during which the salesperson obtains the prospect’s interest and attention.” Preparation Beginning the presentation - Ask Questions - Use a referral - Offer a benefit - Offer a service - Compliment the prospect - Give something of Value

First Impressions are Essential! Wear neat, Conservative clothes Be clean and carefully groomed Know the prospect’s name and pronounce it correctly Be alert and pleasant Let the prospect offer to shake hands Forget about yourself and concentrate on the prospect Avoid smoking or chewing gum

Step 2- Probing for needs Probing for needs involves asking questions for identifying needs. An approach is SPIN selling that involves Situation Questions, Problem questions, Implication questions and need payoff questions in a logical sequence. Benefit of Questions! To learn about the prospect’s needs To maintain subtle control of the presentation To involve the prospect To Build trust To build relationship

SPIN (Neal Rackham - A British research psychologist developed the “SPIN” selling system.) Situation Questions deal with the facts about the buyers existing situation. Individual What is your position? How long have you been here? What do you see as your objectives in this area? Company What sort of business do you run? Is it growing or shrinking? What is your annual sales volume? How many people do you employ? Business What equipment do you use at present? How long have you had it? Is it purchased or leased? How many people use it?

SPIN Problem Questions ask about the buyer's pain and focus the buyer on this pain while clarifying the problem, before asking implication questions. . These give Implied Needs: Is this operation difficult to perform? Are you worried about the quality you get from the old machine? How satisfied are you with your present equipment? What are the disadvantages of the way that you're handling this now? Isn't it difficult to process peak loads with your present system? How is the reliability on this system

SPIN HURT & RESCUE

SPIN Implication Questions discuss the effects of the problem, before talking about solutions, and develop the seriousness of the problem to increase the buyer's motivation to change. How will this problem affect your future profitability? What effect does the reject rate have on customer satisfaction? What effect does that have on your output? You only have three people that can use them. Doesn't that create work bottlenecks? It sounds like the difficulty of using these machines may be leading to an employee turnover problem. Is that right? What does this turnover mean in terms of training cost? Could that lead to increased cost? Could that lead to customer service problems? Will it slow down your growth?

SPIN Need-Payoff Questions get the buyer to tell you about their Explicit Needs and the benefits your solutions offers, rather than forcing you to explain the benefits to the buyer. Getting the buyer to state the benefits has greater impact while sounding a lot less pushy. What these questions do is probe for explicit needs. Would it be useful to speed this operation by 10%? If we could improve the quality of this operation, would that help you? Is it important to solve this problem? Why would you find this solution so useful? Is there any other way that this could help you out? So would you be interested in a way to control this cost?

Step 2- Probing for needs Types of Questions - Open Ended Questions: Broad questions asked early in the sales presentation - Reflective Questions: Questions asked in response to a prospect’s comments - Directive Questions: Leading questions designed to point the prospect toward areas of agreement.

Step 3- Convincing the Prospect Most salespeople use Features-benefit Selling in which the seller relates to a prospect’s needs by emphasizing the benefits received from the seller’s product. Presentation techniques used are: Visual aids Testimonials Examples Guarantees Demonstrations

Step 4 – Handling Objections - Sales resistance: actions or statements by a prospect that postpone, hinder, or prevent the completion of a sale. - Objections: Outward expression of a prospect’s doubts or negative feelings about a sales proposal. Objections could be related to timing, price, Source and competition.

Step 4 – Handling Objections Responding to Objections Listen carefully Ask questions to clarify objections Respond to the objections Confirm your response and also make sure that the prospect understands & accepts it. Prospect states objections/questions/concerns

Step 5- Closing When to close - Look and listen to buying signals - Verbal buying signals - Nonverbal buying signals - Using a trail close: A sales technique that asks for an opinion.

Step 5- Closing How to close: Some techniques are - Alternative proposal close: offers the prospect a choice between details - Assumptive close: Assumes that the prospect will make a commitment. - Gift Close: provides the prospect with an added inducement for taking immediate action. - Action Close: Suggests that the sales representative take an action that will consummate the sale. - One –more yes close: salesperson restates the benefits of the product in a series of questions that result in positive responses, then asks for the order. - Balance sheet close: the salesperson and the prospect list the reasons for acting now against the reasons for delaying, aimed at pointing advantages of prompt action. - Direct Close: Salesperson simply asks the prospect for a decision.

Step 6- Follow up Follow up are the salesperson's after sale activities - Post sale action - Customer relations Handle Complaint, promptly and pleasantly Maintain contact with customers Keep serving the customer Show appreciation - Self Analysis: Continual personal evaluation of a salesperson’s own performance and methods.