How to Stop Losing Sales
How to Stop Losing Sales
If you're like most sellers, you've probably been in that situation more than once. (I have!) Losing a big sale is downright painful. You may also have an overpowering urge to blame the decision makers for making a "stupid" choice or for their failure to see why they should change now.
I'd like to suggest an alternative: turn your losses into learning opportunities. Use post-mortem debriefings to figure out how you might have contributed to the lost sale. That's what top sellers do. They assume total accountability for the lost business and then try to figure out how to ensure it never happens again.
The key to learning from your losses is to ask yourself tough questions. Then, be brutally honest with your answers. If you let your ego get in the way, you're doomed to repeat the same mistake again. Rack your brain to get beyond the obvious answers.
Use the questions below to jump start your thinking and give you insights into how you might improve.
General Overview Questions
Start by analyzing the whole sales process. Make sure you notice what you did well too, because that's also imperative to your long-term success.
• When did you start to sense something was amiss?
• In your discussions, what did your customer like? Want to achieve? Eliminate?
• Where did you encounter resistance, objections and stumbling blocks?
• What actions could you have taken to prevent these obstacles?
Losses to "No Decision"
If your prospective customer decided to stay with the status quo, it's because they didn't see enough value in making a change. Ask yourself:
• What could you have done to help your prospect better understand the ramifications of staying with the status quo?
• How could you learn more about your prospect's problems, business issues, goals and objectives?
• Did your prospect have enough proof sources to assure him of the business outcome?
• How could you have helped you prospect better understand the value of changing now?
Losses to a Competitor
If you lost to a competitor when you think you should have won, for some reason your message didn't work. Ask yourself:
• What was your prospect's primary decision criteria? Based on this, how did you stack up against your competitors?
• What could you have done to maximize your strengths, minimized your weaknesses and better differentiated your offering?
• Did you miss any vital piece of information that caused you to lose the sale?
• What strategy did your competitor use to convince the prospect to choose his company over yours?
Self-analysis is a starting point. If you're brave, ask your customer for direct feedback. You may be amazed at what you learn. If other people from your company were involved, debrief the situation with them. Brainstorm with your colleagues, friends and peers. Try to figure out what you could have done that would have let to a different outcome - one where you were the winner.
What do you do if you're totally stumped? Sometimes that happens because you literally lack the knowledge and expertise to figure it out. Other times it's a challenge to step into another person's shoes and see the situation from their perspective.
When that occurs, it's imperative to seek outside advice. Talk to an experienced sales professional. Read books or listen to CDs that focus on the sales challenges you're facing. Search online for resources to improve your sales savvy and skills.
But don't give up! The answer is out there. You just don't know it yet. Plus whatever you learn is a chance for you to get better. That's the true value of this exercise.
How to Stop Losing Sales - To learn more about this author, visit Jill Konrath's Website.
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Have you ever felt that your product or service was an absolute perfect fit for a prospective customer then found out later that you lost the business?
If you're like most sellers, you've probably been in that situation more than once. (I have!) Losing a big sale is downright painful. You may also have an overpowering urge to blame the decision makers for making a "stupid" choice or for their failure to see why they should change now.
I'd like to suggest an alternative: turn your losses into learning opportunities. Use post-mortem debriefings to figure out how you might have contributed to the lost sale. That's what top sellers do. They assume total accountability for the lost business and then try to figure out how to ensure it never happens again.
The key to learning from your losses is to ask yourself tough questions. Then, be brutally honest with your answers. If you let your ego get in the way, you're doomed to repeat the same mistake again. Rack your brain to get beyond the obvious answers.
Use the questions below to jump start your thinking and give you insights into how you might improve.
General Overview Questions
Start by analyzing the whole sales process. Make sure you notice what you did well too, because that's also imperative to your long-term success.
• When did you start to sense something was amiss?
• In your discussions, what did your customer like? Want to achieve? Eliminate?
• Where did you encounter resistance, objections and stumbling blocks?
• What actions could you have taken to prevent these obstacles?
Losses to "No Decision"
If your prospective customer decided to stay with the status quo, it's because they didn't see enough value in making a change. Ask yourself:
• What could you have done to help your prospect better understand the ramifications of staying with the status quo?
• How could you learn more about your prospect's problems, business issues, goals and objectives?
• Did your prospect have enough proof sources to assure him of the business outcome?
• How could you have helped you prospect better understand the value of changing now?
Losses to a Competitor
If you lost to a competitor when you think you should have won, for some reason your message didn't work. Ask yourself:
• What was your prospect's primary decision criteria? Based on this, how did you stack up against your competitors?
• What could you have done to maximize your strengths, minimized your weaknesses and better differentiated your offering?
• Did you miss any vital piece of information that caused you to lose the sale?
• What strategy did your competitor use to convince the prospect to choose his company over yours?
Self-analysis is a starting point. If you're brave, ask your customer for direct feedback. You may be amazed at what you learn. If other people from your company were involved, debrief the situation with them. Brainstorm with your colleagues, friends and peers. Try to figure out what you could have done that would have let to a different outcome - one where you were the winner.
What do you do if you're totally stumped? Sometimes that happens because you literally lack the knowledge and expertise to figure it out. Other times it's a challenge to step into another person's shoes and see the situation from their perspective.
When that occurs, it's imperative to seek outside advice. Talk to an experienced sales professional. Read books or listen to CDs that focus on the sales challenges you're facing. Search online for resources to improve your sales savvy and skills.
But don't give up! The answer is out there. You just don't know it yet. Plus whatever you learn is a chance for you to get better. That's the true value of this exercise.
How to Stop Losing Sales - To learn more about this author, visit Jill Konrath's Website.
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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